ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - A north St. Louis State Representative says she will continue to push for prison reform in the legislature next session.
Kimberly-Ann Collins will reintroduce her "Good Time Credit" bill to the legislature when it resumes in January 2024. The bill would allow for a potentially quicker release for inmates but the parole board would still retain the right to determine that.
During the last session, the Democrat's bill was aimed at reducing time served for good behavior. The bill almost made it to the Gov. Mike Parson's desk.
Collins says she has made frequent trips to state prisons to observe the condition of inmates since she was elected as 77th district State Representative in 2020.
Her mission for prison reform is fueled by the death of her father who died at a prison in Bonne Terre.
"He ended up dying at a young age," said Collins. "When I got into politics, I then noticed there was something is state statutes that allow State Representatives to go into the prisons at any time for any reason. I kind of took advantage of that."
The death of her father while he was incarcerated in Bonne Terre is her motivation to observe the conditions of inmates during her visits.
"Knowing that there are loved ones that don't have the access that I have inside the prisons and me going into the prisons [to] make some things happen, that gives me inspiration," said Collins. "It also gives other family members hope, which I didn't have as a little girl because I didn't have a state representative to reach and ask if they could check on my father."
Alongside the "Good Time Credit" Bill, Collins is also looking at "Clean Slate" legislation that would automatically expunge the records of low-level criminals.