<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1mcMiN_0vjzSX7V00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1mcMiN_0vjzSX7V00" width="986" height="555" >GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A local group is working to get a number of bills passed that collectively could fix portions of the prison system.Wednesday, a Kent County Judge, former inmates and members of the general public gathered at Linc Up in Grand Rapids to discussHouse Bills 4556-4560, a package of legislation that, taken together, is known as the Second Look Sentencing Act, according toLegislative Analysis from The Michigan House Fiscal Agency.If signed into law, the bundle of bills would "prescribe procedures for hearings to reconsider the sentences of eligible incarcerated individuals who have served at least 10 years of a sentence or sentences for a conviction or combination of convictions," the analysis detailed.Those portions include just sentencing, felon surplus, safety for prison staff and the incarcerated.“An individual is greater than their worst crime, their worst act, the worst day of their life,” Kellen Dotson, a Kent County judge,said. “It’s an opportunity for after a certain period of years for the sentencing judge to make a decision. Is it appropriate to reduce the minimum sentence for an individual so they can go in front a parole board and make the decision whether or not it’s appropriate to have this individual released back into the community."<ul><li>Politics: JD Vance hosts campaign event in Grand Traverse County</li></ul>Tenee Gildea is the executive director of Nation Outside, a team that, according to their website, is "led by those who have experienced the criminal legal system firsthand, we recognize that the struggle continues long after sentences are served.”Formerly incarcerated herself, Gildea believes the "Second Look" legislation would’ve been nice to have when she was sentenced to 6-20 years in prison for using and operating a meth lab.Meth is an addiction Gildea has had since she was 16 years old.“I found out six days into that stay that I was pregnant with my child," Gildea said. "I hit rock bottom 9 months into my sobriety. I had to watch my child leave the visiting room with my family every weekend."Gildea has since gotten her case overturned after serving four years in prison.As of Wednesday, she is happily raising her baby girl who is now 8 years old.In Gildea's case, the bundle of bills would’ve taken her mental stability into consideration, being that her drug addiction started when she was just a teenager.<ul><li>Previous Coverage:Michigan corrections officer urges Governor to deploy National Guard to prisons</li></ul>Byron Osborn, president of the Michigan Corrections Organization, said in April his workers and too many state prisons are overcrowded, understaffed and underworked due to staffing shortages.That is why he asked Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to bring the National Guard to Michigan prisons after noting that vacancy levels ranged between 4% and 36% for officers at the time.Five months later, it's still an issue."Imagine at the end of your workday, your boss says 'hey, we're going to need you for another 8' and then the day after tomorrow he tells you that again and this isn't optional overtime, this is required overtime. You can't leave," Osborn said.News Channel 3 has reached out to Gov. Whitmer's Office and the Michigan Department of Corrections for comment on the legislation, but have not heard back.</div></body>

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Kent County judge, former inmates push for passage of 'Second Look' prison reform bills

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A local group is working to get a number of bills passed that collectively could fix portions of the prison system. Wednesday, a Kent County Judge, former inmates and members of the general public gathered at Linc Up in Grand Rapids to discussHouse Bills 4556-4560, a package of legislation that, taken together, is known as the Second Look Sentencing Act, according toLegislative Analysis from The Michigan House Fiscal Agency.