Columbus, OH – The Buckeye Institute’s Daniel J. Dew has been named to the Ohio Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI) 2.0 Ad Hoc Committee, which held its first meeting today. Over the next year, JRI 2.0 will bring together legislators, judges, prosecutors, prison officials, defense lawyers, and criminal justice experts to discuss ways Ohio can safely reduce its prison population.

“Using evidence-based policies, Ohio can be a safer place, save money, and we can help those who have made bad decisions in the past become productive members of society,” said Daniel J. Dew, legal fellow at The Buckeye Institute and an expert in criminal justice reform policy. “By bringing together practitioners, policymakers, and experts to look at data, the committee will be able to build on the successes of Ohio’s 2011 Justice Reinvestment efforts, the Targeted Community Alternatives to Prison initiative, and other reforms.”

JRI is an initiative of the Council of State Governments, which helped to pass Ohio’s justice reinvestment legislation (House Bill 86) in 2011. The law diverts low-level non-violent offenders from prison and helps them receive much needed rehabilitative treatment. House Bill 86 has saved tens of millions of dollars in prison costs by curbing Ohio’s prison population. Those savings have been invested into probation services and programs that increase public safety.

# # #