The City Club’s August program will examine the impact of having a new prison in our backyard. Max Williams, Director of the Oregon Department of Corrections in Salem and a representative from Deer Ridge will discuss crime, incarceration rates and public costs of incarceration. They will also discuss who will be housed at the new prison, number of inmates, types of crimes they have committed, when the prison will open, where the prisoners will be released when they have completed their sentences, the impact of prisoner families moving to the area, the economic impact/jobs the facility brings and whether we should anticipate increased crime and gang activity.
In addition to the Thursday Forum, a City Club member’s tour of Deer Ridge has been organized for Tuesday, August 14th. Transportation will be provided. Please click on the Events link to see the Tour schedule and pre-register for the tour.
Max Williams became director of the Oregon Department of Corrections in January 2004. He was appointed by Governor Ted Kulongoski after a distinguished career in the Oregon Legislative Assembly where he was chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, chairman of the Legislative Counsel Committee, and a senior member of the House Revenue Committee. He was also a practicing attorney for more than 12 years at the Portland law firm Miller Nash LLP.
Mr. Williams is a former member of the Oregon Law Commission and the Oregon Progress Board. In July 2002, he was elected to the executive committee of the National Conference of State Legislatures. He is an active member of his local Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club, and on the board of directors of the Cascade Pacific Council Boy Scouts of America. He also serves on the board of the Tigard homeless shelter, the Good Neighbor Center and as a board member of the Tigard-Tualatin Schools Foundation.
In 2002, Mr. Williams was named Tigard’s “First Citizen” for his volunteer work and leadership in the community. Additionally, for three sessions in a row, he was recognized as the top-rated member of the House by Willamette Week in their biennial issue ranking Metro-area legislators.
Mr. Williams’ interest in corrections grew through his legislative responsibilities, where he became very familiar with the policy issues facing the agency and the larger public safety issues facing the state. He has worked closely with the DOC and the public safety community on a number of issues and is a strong advocate of evidence-based programs in corrections.
Born and raised in Bend, Oregon, Mr Williams earned a bachelor of science degree in information management from Brigham Young University. He worked in the computer industry for both IBM and IBM business partner companies before attending law school at Northwestern School of Law of Lewis & Clark College. He graduated magna cum laude in 1991.