The important thing is to put aside the political posturing and the partisan bickering while embracing the lessons to be learned.
That should be the reaction to an investigation by the state Senate Law and Justice Committee into a fiasco at the Department of Corrections. Last week, senators released the results of a four-month probe into the early release of about 3,000 prisoners, an error that started in 2002 when the state Supreme Court ruled that good-behavior credit earned in county jails should be applied to time served in state penitentiaries. Corrections officials entered inaccurate coding into software that miscalculated sentences, resulting in the early releases.
The error was noticed in 2012, but an assistant attorney general at the time advised that it wasn’t necessary to manually recalculate the sentences. Therefore, it was not corrected until 2015, and by that point at least two people had been killed by the actions of those who should have still been in prison.
Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee quickly called for a probe led by two former federal prosecutors, and their report was released in February. Meanwhile, the Republican-led Senate launched its own investigation. While it easy to see the scandal as an opportunity to make political hay — particularly in an election year — it is more important to learn from the events. Among other items, the Senate report calls upon lawmakers to pass legislation that:
• Clarifies the obligation of the governor’s office to oversee state agencies and designates public safety as the Department of Corrections’ paramount duty — requests that should be obvious on their face.
• Simplifies Washington’s sentencing code in a manner that does not reduce punishment or compromise public safety.
• Requires an annual report to the Legislature regarding the Department of Corrections’ backlog of computer projects, a backlog that contributed to the early releases.
• And creates a corrections ombuds office independent of the department and the governor’s office.
Meanwhile, the report criticized Inslee and, in particular, former Department of Corrections Secretary Bernie Warner. “This was not a ‘software glitch,’ ” the report reads. “It was a failure of leadership.” Warner, who has since left for a private-sector job in Utah, is chastised for poor communication skills and poor leadership practices, and the report blames his hands-off management style for creating a culture that did not emphasize public safety.
Inslee’s hands-off management style also is to blame for a crisis that lingered through two previous administrations and continued under his watch. But once the situation came to light, the fallout resulted in one resignation, four demotions, and two reprimands of state employees. The governor also quickly appointed an investigation team.
All of that lent a partisan taint to the Senate investigation. But by holding public hearings, securing sworn witness testimony, and conducting email outreach to Department of Corrections employees, senators demonstrated motivations that reached beyond politics. Undoubtedly, Republicans throughout the state will use the corrections fiasco as fodder during election season. While Inslee did not cause the situation, it continued under his administration, and he must answer for that.
Yet the credibility of the Senate’s report will not become clear until after the November elections. If lawmakers next year give strong consideration to the recommendations in the report, then the people will be served instead of politics.
