Secretary of Homeland Defense; Former Republican Governor (PA)
Supports victim’s rights & death penalty
On crime, Ridge got the legislature to pass Megan’s Law, a tougher rape law and a victims’ rights measure in 1995, and he has restored capital punishment by signing more than 100 death warrants; executions have followed.
Source: National Journal, the Almanac of American Politics
Jan 28, 2000
More prisons; more death penalty
Supports the following principles concerning crime:
Increase state funds for construction of state prisons and for hiring of additional prison staff.
Support contracting with private sector firms to build and/or manage state prisons.
Expand the use of the death penalty for additional circumstances relating to murder.
Prosecute juveniles who commit murder or other serious violent crimes as adults.
Supports flexible federal block grants for crime programs.
Ridge adopted the National Governors Association position paper:
The Issue
The major crime issues for the 107th Congress will be:
reauthorization of the juvenile justice program, which established a block grant to states for prevention and delinquency intervention programs;
reauthorization of programs in the 1994 crime bill, including the state criminal alien assistance program (SCAAP), a reimbursement program to state and local governments for housing illegal alien prisoners;
the state prison grants program, formally known as the Violent Offender Incarceration/Truth-in-Sentencing (VOI/TIS) grant program, [where states receive funds based on increasing the percentage of prison sentences actually served]; and
the Byrne block grant program, a flexible block grant that states use for innovative crime and illegal drug fighting programs.
NGA’s Position
NGA policy calls for reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (JJDPA)
and supports the underlying principles of the act. However, NGA wants some flexibility in the core requirements, e.g., allowing some accidental contact between adults and juveniles; expanding the hours before removal from 24 hours to 48 hours; holding certain incorrigible juveniles in detention; and relaxing the disproportionate minority confinement record keeping process. The Governors urge maximum flexibility to implement the spirit and purpose of the act.
The Governors support authorization of the juvenile accountability incentive block grant (JAIBG) program.
The Governors also support reauthorization of SCAAP and seek to raise the reimbursement ratio.
For the Byrne block grant program, NGA seeks to continue the current program with flexibility.
For the state prison grants program, NGA seeks to abolish all requirements and have more flexibility, with the state designating the offender population to be served.
Source: National Governors Association "Issues / Positions" 01-NGA10 on Sep 14, 2001
