(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Supreme Court rules against a group of inmates at the Newton prison who said their constitutional rights were violated by a delay in getting sex offender treatment need to be considered for parole. The ruling says the Iowa Department of Corrections has not postponed treatment in order to delay parole. It says it is a numbers problem where there are more male sex offenders in Iowa’s prison system than spots available for treatment.

Newton Correctional Facility (Iowa DOC photo)

The ruling notes the Corrections Department has been actively addressing the need for sex offender treatment by increasing the number of classes and counselors. And says prioritizing the admission to treatment based on the tentative discharge date is a reasonable way to decide when a prisoner gets admitted to treatment.