NE: Will furlough gone bad further strain city-state relations?

By   /   September 18, 2012  /   6 Comments

Joe Jordan | Nebraska Watchdog

Upset with a prison furlough gone bad Mayor Jim Suttle wants an immediate end to furloughs for violent criminals.

Jermaine Lucas

Over the weekend police shot and killed violent gang member Jermaine Lucas who was back in town on his 11th prison furlough. 

According to police Lucas was going for a gun when officers opened fire. 

While the mayor knows he wants the furlough program examined top to bottom he doesn’t know if he should call the governor.

During a city hall news conference Nebraska Watchdog’s Joe Jordan questioned the mayor.

Contact Joe Jordan at joe@nebraskawatchdog.org

Editor’s note: To subscribe to News Updates from Nebraska Watchdog at no cost, click here.


YouTube

 

Please, feel free to "steal our stuff"! Just remember to credit Watchdog.org. Find out more

Joe Jordan

  • Brandi

    Same type of story came out in November of last year regarding Sam Irvin who pleaded guilty to an accessory charge in the rape and beating of Chrissy Schroeder. Bob Houston needs ousted if you ask me, this is a reoccuring problem that back in November they said they would monitor violent criminals being released on such programs.

  • Jason3

    playing the odds and hoping these criminals don’t hurt anybody and apologizing and explaining/excusing when they do…these criminals do the same thing on probation, parole, community furloughs…or whatever..catch me if you can mentality….you can’t be with them every minute of the day or night and they take advantage of every second..do away with all these perks for these criminals..they NEVER LEARN!….we’ve seen it time and time again…using these programs for a excuse for over crowding…another Heineman mistake…save money at the expense of the community DOES NOT WORK….

  • Kevin

    This furlough was an accident waiting to happen. This is one of the few times I agree with Suttle.

  • D. Mark

    Sounds like the Mayor wants a little press time. He knows that we have criminals in certain parts of Omaha and he doesn’t get upset unless it hits the newspaper like the Lucas problem. Make sure Omaha is not a welcome place for them and if certain people have a problem with keeping after them, they can go with the criminals. Where was the Mayor when law enforcement caught that gang of drug dealers in South Omaha? Not a peep out of him!

  • Hal

    At least no others were presumably injured or killed in this incident. A part of me believes that the furlough project is a good thing, in that it hopefully allows an offender to get a small “reward” in a step toward rehab and release. But the insider life at prisons really doesn’t prepare prisoners for that, despite the various avenues that are available there. And a few do make it through—but very few.

    Also, some insiders wait for the day when they can get free and either resume their old ways, or perhaps take revenge on those they feel placed them in the pen.

    Wish I had an answer toward a solution—-but I don’t have any.

    Hal

  • Hunyock

    Since when has this governor cared one bit for the taxpayers in the Omaha area? We are just a burden that brings in half of the taxes in this state. Heck, he probably is doing this to keep the Cancer Center from being built in Omaha.