LINCOLN — Nebraska will seek federal money to conduct a new, “data-driven” study of possible criminal justice reforms, though the study won’t delay consideration of an expensive new state prison, Gov. Pete Ricketts said Friday.
Ricketts said consideration of his administration’s proposal to build a 1,600-bed, $230 million prison — one of the most expensive state construction projects in history — cannot be delayed. It would replace the State Penitentiary in Lincoln, which is nearing the end of its useful life, and would help the state avoid an estimated $195 million in upgrades, the governor said.
“The Nebraska State Penitentiary needs to be replaced. That’s a fact,” Ricketts said. “That legislation needs to move forward.”
At a press conference Friday that included the chief justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court and state legislative leaders, the governor said a grant request will soon be sent to the federal Department of Justice to finance a study by the nonprofit Crime and Justice Institute. That group helps criminal justice systems discover strengths and weaknesses in areas of probation, parole, criminal sentencing and incarceration.
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Ricketts, a Republican who has made “continual improvement” a top goal, said that study would provide more solid data for state courts, parole and corrections officials on what needs to be done to improve outcomes for those systems. Right now, about 30% of all Nebraska prison inmates commit repeat crimes within three years of leaving prison, a recidivism rate that could be reduced via suggestions from the new study, he said.
For instance, the governor said, drug courts and other judge-supervised treatment courts have reformed many lives, but should the state do more, or should it do other things, like expanding its supervised release of inmates?
State Sen. Steve Lathrop of Omaha, a Democrat who has focused on corrections and criminal justice issues, said he had reached out to the Crime and Justice Institute after watching proposed criminal justice reforms fail to advance in the Legislature. He said such a study, which would be done by the end of the year, would provide data to show what reforms would help the state maintain public safety while avoiding the high cost of prison incarceration.
“This is a beginning of an opportunity for Nebraska to join other states that have gotten smart on crime,” Lathrop said. “Tough on crime” efforts that have included longer prison sentences and mandatory sentences, he said, have failed, and contributing to more state spending and too many lives behind bars.
Six years ago, Nebraska passed a series of criminal justice reforms suggested by the Justice Center of the Council of State Governments. But the resulting law, Legislative Bill 605, didn’t achieve the predicted reductions in state prison populations, and Nebraska now has the second-most overcrowded prison system in the nation.
Ricketts said that a new study won’t be “deja vu all over again,” but will provide better data to guide state policies and programs. The CSG study, he said, came with too many preconceived notions about what reforms were needed in Nebraska.
Our best Omaha staff photos of February 2021
Our best Omaha staff photos of February 2021

Kearney's Richard Harbols dives in the boys Nebraska state dive competition on Thursday.

Lincoln Southeast's Katerina Hoffman competes in the NSAA state diving championship on Thursday.

North Platte's Jonathan Brouillette is reflected in the swimming pool as he competes in the NSAA boys state diving championship on Thursday.

An ice jam forms on the Platte River west of the Highway 77 bridge near Fremont on Monday. Observers in eastern Nebraska will be looking out for signs of flooding as the weather warms up. “We’re just waiting to see how the snow will melt over the next couple of days,” said hydrologist David Pearson of the National Weather Service office in Valley. “We’ll be watching closely.”

Omaha Skutt's Adam Kruse, left, and Gothenberg's Abe Mendez, right, wrestle during a Class B 138 pound match.

Millard South's Joel Adams celebrates after defeating North Platte's Darian Diaz during the Class A 138 pound championship match.

A few snowflakes fell in Omaha on Wednesday.

Creighton's Greg McDermott congratulates Denzel Mahoney on a made 3-pointer against Villanova.

Gretna's John Weed, facing, and Millard South's Antrell Taylor compete in the first round of the 160 pound, Class A state wrestling tournament in Omaha on Wednesday.

Frost collects on a sheet of ice in a parking lot in South Omaha on Tuesday. Omaha set a record low on Tuesday, dipping to 23 degrees below zero.

PJ Smith, an administrator at Grand Island Northwest, helps set up mats on Tuesday for the state wrestling tournament at the CHI Health Center. The tournament starts today and runs through Saturday. Read more in Sports.

Dr. Michael Howard listens to the heart of Bella, a Boston terrier puppy at Best Care Pet Hospital In Omaha on Tuesday, February 16, 2021. Bella was anesthetized before power was cut to the south Omaha neighborhood where they are located because of extreme temperatures in the region. Omaha's low Dr. Howard was prepping to spay Bella by window light before the power did come back on. They had performed one surgery with no power already that morning.

Neymar walks around in a sweater after a power outage at Best Care Pet Hospital at 3030 L Street on Tuesday, February 16, 2021. Extreme temperatures forces rolling blackouts in the area.

Sunlight filters through the steam as cars head east on Leavenworth Street towards 16th Street as the low in the area was close to 20 degrees below zero on Tuesday, February 16, 2021.

Steam rises out of the Missouri River around the Interstate 480 bridge as viewed from Tom Hanafan River's Edge Park in Council Bluffs early Tuesday, Feb. 16. Lows in the Omaha metro area were around 23 degrees below zero. The steam caused icy roads and the temporary closure of the bridge.

Owner Gary Wrenn moves catfish filets from the cornmeal dredge to the fryers at Cajun Kitchen on 30th and Maple Streets in Omaha on Monday.

Firefighters work to put out a fire in an apartment building at 10th and William Street in Omaha on Monday.

Omaha's Matt Miller (27) moves behind the net, near Colorado College's Matthew Gleason (15), Brian Hawkinson (29) and Matt Vernon (30) in the Colorado College vs. Omaha hockey game at the Baxter Arena in Omaha on Friday. The Mavericks won the game 7-1.

Erin Gramke gives Sigurd Sorenson his second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at the VA Medical Center in Omaha on Thursday. Sorenson, 84, served in the Army.

Rev. Ralph Lassiter sits inside Kohl's Pharmacy during the observation period after his second COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday. Rev. Lassiter wants to set a good example for his community by receiving the COVID-19 vaccine and stressing its' safety.

The Bellevue West bench celebrates a three-pointer in the Waukee vs. Bellevue West boys basketball game on Tuesday. Bellevue West won the game 74-60.

Hand-painted bonbons for a Valentine's Day special are flavored with, from left, raspberry, passion fruit, vanilla bean salted caramel and milk chocolate, from Sugar Makery BitterSweet in Council Bluffs.

A Gibson Les Paul is one of more than 70 guitars in the exhibit.

A crane lifts a small plane that had its landing gear collapse while landing at Eppley Airfield on Friday. Two people were on board the plane; neither was injured.

Creighton's Damien Jefferson is called for a foul against Georgetown's Jamorko Pickett at CHI HealthCenter on Wednesday, February 03, 2021.

Avante Dickerson talks to members of the media after he announced he was signing to play football at the University of Oregon at Omaha Westside High School on Wednesday, February 3, 2021.

Rime ice forms on the trees at the Chalco Hills Recreation Area on Tuesday, February 02, 2021.

Two people jog around Prairie Queen Recreation Area as a freezing fog covers the region on Tuesday, February 02, 2021.

Frost hangs onto a fence in Omaha on Tuesday, February 02, 2021.
paul.hammel@owh.com, 402-618-0009, twitter.com/paulhammelowh