By C1 Staff
OMAHA, Neb. — Bob Houston, the former director of the Nebraska Department of Corrections, says that a furlough program used by the department to alleviate overcrowding wasn’t a secret.
KETV news reports that the furlough program was revealed in a 2011 interview with Parole Board Chairman Esther Casmer and Houston.
Houston said the program aimed to release 260 individuals.
But a recent investigative report shows that some inmates released included violent felons who should not have been released.
Casmer declined an on-camera interview, but did say over the phone that Houston wanted to take the Parole Board in a direction it wasn’t comfortable with. Houston was surprised by her statement.
Houston also said the report’s recommendation to abolish the furlough program is unfounded. He believes the program is working, and will continue to work.
“It was actually created by the Parole Board and it wasn’t to circumvent the parole system,” he said. “We work hand-in-hand with the Parole Board. There wasn’t a single person referred to the furlough program that the Parole Board did not sign off on.”
He continued by saying the department always contacted victims and counties before a prisoner was released. If a victim opposed the decision, the prisoner was not released.