FAST FACTS:
"A young man was given 16 years to serve on some burglaries. He was released and I'm down at the courthouse two years after he was sentenced and he's sitting on the front steps wearing an ankle bracelet," said a frustrated John Champion, District Attorney 17th Circuit Court.
The Mississippi Department of Corrections is now facing an even bigger dilemma. Governor Barbour slashed more than $216 million out of the state budget this weekend. It could have meant the early release of 3,000 to 4,000 prisoners but Barbour says federal stimulus money will off set some cuts. He's not guaranteeing inmates won't be released but says it's not as bad as it could be.
Champion says the Department of Corrections decides how much of the sentence an inmate serves. Still, he's the one often answering to victims.
"We get calls from victims wanting to know why this person is being released. They'll say you told me that he was going to get this amount of time. We don't have an answer for them a lot of times because it's not anything that we can do about it," said Champion.
Champion says with the possibility of more early releases there's even more uncertainty when it comes to judgement day.
On top of the Department of Corrections cuts, Champion says the budget shortfall may force lay-offs in his office, including some of his prosecutors. They are state employees.
- Mississippi budget shortfall hits Department of Corrections
- Governor can't guarantee prisoners won't be released early
- District Attorney says early release already an issue with victims
"A young man was given 16 years to serve on some burglaries. He was released and I'm down at the courthouse two years after he was sentenced and he's sitting on the front steps wearing an ankle bracelet," said a frustrated John Champion, District Attorney 17th Circuit Court.
The Mississippi Department of Corrections is now facing an even bigger dilemma. Governor Barbour slashed more than $216 million out of the state budget this weekend. It could have meant the early release of 3,000 to 4,000 prisoners but Barbour says federal stimulus money will off set some cuts. He's not guaranteeing inmates won't be released but says it's not as bad as it could be.
Champion says the Department of Corrections decides how much of the sentence an inmate serves. Still, he's the one often answering to victims.
"We get calls from victims wanting to know why this person is being released. They'll say you told me that he was going to get this amount of time. We don't have an answer for them a lot of times because it's not anything that we can do about it," said Champion.
Champion says with the possibility of more early releases there's even more uncertainty when it comes to judgement day.
On top of the Department of Corrections cuts, Champion says the budget shortfall may force lay-offs in his office, including some of his prosecutors. They are state employees.
