Recent events have caused society to reflect on the need for changes to our criminal justice system. The general consensus is that mass incarceration has reinforced and magnified racial disparities and disproportionately impacted low income communities and people of color. As a result, there is a growing call for sentencing reforms.

At the same time, the covid-19 crisis has made reducing prison populations a matter of urgency.

In response to budget constraints, Washington State Department of Corrections has offered a proposal to increase earned time to 50% for nonviolent offenders, grant early releases for inmates who are within 150 days of completion their sentence, and cut funding to vital re-entry support programs.
These short-term measures are likely to result in a high level of recidivism, and they dont come close to solving the budget issues of the state or do anything to address the larger societal issues surrounding mass incarceration.

Focusing only on non-violent and short-term sentences ignores a large portion of the prison population serving lengthy sentences for violent crimes.
Lawmakers can no longer afford to leave violent offenders out of discussions around prison reform.

Numerous studies on recidivism have shown that people who serve prison time for a violent crime are actually less likely to be convicted of another crime once they are released than those who served time for drug or property crimes. Recidivism rates are also lower for older people, as well as for those who have served substantial sentences.

Violent offenders are older on average and have served longer sentences, so they are statistically much less of a threat to society. Their age also makes them more costly to keep incarcerated, due largely to higher medical costs. Combined, these factors make them ideal candidates for early release from both a societal and monetary standpoint.

Furthermore, racial disparity in incarceration is more dramatic for violent crimes. As of 2016, black people were 7 times more likely than white people to be incarcerated for a violent crime. Therefore, reforms that leave out violent crime convictions only exacerbate existing racial disparities.

Unlike many states, Washington does not have parole. Currently, people serving sentences for violent crimes must serve at least 90% of an often lengthy sentence, with no hope of being released sooner, regardless of what they've done with their time or how much they've changed.

Increasing earned time to 1/3 off for violent offenders would allow someone serving a thirty year sentence to be considered for release after twenty years if they have displayed positive behavior, completed state-required programs to address their offending behavior, such as drug treatment or anger management, and maintained a consistent school or work schedule.

This proposal would not "automatically" release a large number of inmates back into the communities en masse. Instead, it would make a lasting change that would have a significant, long term impact on the state budget. It would also make prisons, and ultimately society safer by providing an incentive for positive behavior and personal change.