A resource for community based reentry court systems
Up-to-date funding and resource information, as soon as we are receive it. We ask our readers to help us provide funding information from their state and locality.
Nov. 1, 2010
A new report from England, “Time is Money“, from the Prison Reform Trust and, Unlock (the National Association of Reformed Offenders) highlights the importance of access to financial services for prisoners due for release. The study explores the impact of the criminal justice system on banking, credit, debt, savings and insurance, and concludes that financial inclusion for people in prison reduces reoffending.
Oct.17, 2010
On Friday October 8th, Attorney Genenral Eric Holder announced the winners of the Reentry Court Grant Application process. A total of $2,651,703 was awarded to nine awardees. The awardees and the grant awards can be found here. More on the awards and grantees in the coming weeks.
Oct. 17, 2010
According to a new publication just out, “Many states are imposing new and often onerous “user fees” on individuals with criminal convictions. Yet far from being easy money, these fees impose severe – and often hidden – costs on communities, taxpayers, and indigent people convicted of crimes. They create new paths to prison for those unable to pay their debts and make it harder to find employment and housing as well to meet child support obligations.”
Published by the New York University Law School’s Brennan School of Justice, Criminal Justice Debt: A Barrier To Reentry, by Alicia Bannon, Mitali Nagrecha, Rebekah Diller, presents a muti-layered indictment of the heightenned state intererest in extracting monetary penance from offenders reenterring society with no resources or ability to to pay. An important work that will add much to the debate about what encumbrances are fair and even constitutional upon release into society.
Oct. 2
The House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security of the Committee on the Judiciary, held its first hearing on the reauthorization of the “Second Chance Act. Testifying before the subcommittee on Sept.29th were Le’Ann Duran, Director of the National Reentry Resources Center, Council of State Governments; Michele Banks, Manager,Richmond Second Chance Re-entry Program, Richnond City Sheriff’s Office; Nancy G. La Vigne Director, Justice Policy Center, The Urban Institute; David B. Muhlhausen, Ph.D. Senior Policy Analyst, Center for Data Analysis, Heritage Foundation; and Gladyse Taylor, Acting Director, Illinois Department of Correction.
While none of the witnesses testified in regard to reentry courts, their testimony (found above) is relevant as to the reauthorization of the “Second Chance act” and its $10 million in grant funding for reentry courts. Proceedings in both House and Senate are expected to continue on Reauthorization over the next several months. We will do my best to keep you informed as events unfold.
Sept. 27th
This week, a Wall Street publication, “the Street”, described an unexpected weakness in privately owned prison stocks. Blaming the weakness on a reduction in both violent crime and a first time ever decline in prison populations nationwide (after an eight fold increase between 1972 and 2008), the article, “Jailhouse stocks slip as trends shift” projects continuing weakness in prison spending.
Sept. 20
Missouri has taken an important step forward, by providing its judges with the cost of imprisonment when sentencing felony offenders. According to an article in the New York Times, “Legal experts say no other state systematically provides such information to judges, a practice put into effect here last month by the state’s sentencing advisory commission, an appointed board that offers guidance on criminal sentencing.”
Missouri has consistently been a leader in prison reform with such alternatives to prison as “split sentencing” and reentry courts. This year, in his annual address, the chief justice of Missouri’s Supreme Court, William Ray Price Jr., stated “Perhaps the biggest waste of resources in all of state government is the over-incarceration of nonviolent offenders and our mishandling of drug and alcohol offenders”. Missouri is only one of many states whose courts are now taking a hard look at the cost of sending non-violent offenders to prison, rather than keeping them in more cost-effective community based prison alternatives (such as pre-entry courts).
Assistant Attorney General Laurie Robinson, Director of the Office Of Justice Programs (OJP), testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week. Ms. Robinson has been a champion of innovative communiy-based rehabilitatilon programs, in particular drug courts, during her first stint as Director of OJP during the Clinton Administration. This time around she has championed effective reentry programs and reentry courts. During her testimony before the Senate Judiciary committee, she stressed the importance of fully funding the “Second Chance Act” at its previous year 2010, $100 million level.
Part of her testimony follows, “In FY 2010, Congress appropriated $100 million to continue the Second Chance Act Offender Reentry Initiative in OJP. This funding level represents an increase of $75 million over the FY 2009 appropriation of $25 million. This $100 million also includes $10 million for research, furthering our goals to support evidence-based initiatives. In FY 2011, the President’s Budget request includes $100 million to continue the Second Chance Act Offender Reentry Initiative.
Last week, Attorney General Holder called for a new approach to dealing with criminals and announced the creation of an interagency working group to focus exclusively on reentry issues. The group will focus on everything from mental health and drug treatment, housing, and job training needs as well as policy recommendations and efforts to enhance interagency coordination at the federal level.
To further these efforts throughout the federal government, the President launched a new Transitional Jobs initiative with the Department of Labor for ex-offenders and low-income, noncustodial fathers who face serious barriers to finding work and keeping work. The majority of returning prisoners are parents and strengthening family ties upon release can help returning prisoners successfully reintegrate into society. Through this program, fathers will be helped to develop the skills and experience they need to move into full-time, long-term employment so they can meet their child support obligations and help provide for their families”
For full text of testimony: Asst. AG Laurie Robinson/July 22
The Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP) has long provided resources and assistance across the nation to “reentry ” efforts. It’s signature website, simply labeled “Reentry“, contains information on existng state and federal resources, as well as other state and national activites, related to “Reentry “. It’s site map provides a review of national efforts being provided in all fifity states and territories. Although, not always up to date, this site provides an excellent overview of federal efforts and resources dedicated to the “Reentry” issue.
The following was taken from a 6/29/10 Press Release:
“The Public Welfare Foundation has granted the Center for Effective Public Policy (the Center) and its partner, Northpointe Institute for Public Management (Northpointe), funding to support “Strategic Planning Capacity Building for Prisoner Reentry Under the Second Chance Act.” This grant award will support the development of strategic plans and provide assistance directly to the states that support essential planning. This grant award will increase the capacity of states to create better strategic plans that lead to more effective implementation efforts, ultimately increasing the likelihood that each jurisdiction will be able to impact the success rates of people returning home.”
Seven grants from the California Emergency Management Agency (Cal EMA) were recently awarded to Alameda, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, San Joaquin, San Francisco and Santa Clara Counties. In all, $9.5 million in Federal stimulus funds will be distributed to Parolee Reentry Court pilots to be coordinated by the California Administrative Office of the Courts. In doing so, California has committed itself to the largest court based prison reentry demonstration project in the nation’s history.
The Parole Reentry Court Program, will provide funding to each county for up to two and one half years All the awardees have well defined and implemented drug and/or mental health courts. Priority was given to jurisdictions serving large numbers of parolees and those with higher risks of recidivating. All pilot reentry courts will be expected to use risk/needs assessments in their implementation and adopt research tested evidence based practices throughout their programs.
For California, with its overwhelming prison overcrowding and reentry problems, this project marks a remarkable change from business as usual. For the first time, ex-prisoners will be under the jurisdiction of the California Courts. While a parole officer will initially will decide who is referred for the program, once a prisoner is accepted by the Reentry Court judge, that judge with assistance of the reentry court team ( including a parole officer) will have final say until termination from the program.
Note: Deadline for applications; June 3, 2010
This is the fourth and last article on the “Second Chance Act” Reentry Court Solicitation. In this analysis, I will review the RFP from the perspective of a Pre-Entry or county jail, probation-based reentry court applicant. [Note: A Pre-Entry Court is a before entry to prison court)
Typically, when one thinks of a reentry process, the focus is on state prisoners reentering society. While this is clearly a critical issue, the possibility of keeping the offenders in the local community , and using a substantial jail term as a last resort has not always received the focus it deserves. Creating an effective county jail-based reentry court program offers the possibility of reducing the state prison population with its extraordinary costs, keeping offenders local, while increasing public safety within a seamless and comprehensive jail-based reentry court system.
Note:This solicitation is open to offenders returning from jails as well as prisons.
The pressure is on to reduce prison population in states like California (see article below). Governor Schwarzenneger has just announce a major new prison plan to return 15,000 prisoners to county jail to complete up to three years of their sentences. This news augurs well for Pre-Entry or County Probation-Based Reentry Courts. The potential for dealing with offenders at an early stage of the criminal justice process (possibly as soon as Arraignment), allowing for the seamless transitioning from jail to community, providing judicial oversight and incentives, using the same reentry court team throughout, and providing critical rehabilitation services early on, is a compelling alternative to prison (see: County Jail Based Reentry Courts, a Policy Paper).
An additional benefit of the Pre-Entry Court, is that the local jurisdiction can submit an application and proceed with their planned reentry court, even in states that don’t support state prison-based reentry courts. As described in last week’s article, “RFP Targets Criminal Justice Leadership“, there is enormous political, social, and financial pressure to handle prisoner reentry through the corrections and parole mechanisms that have always been in place. Hopefully, by showing that Reentry Court works on the county level, many more states will take a serious look at reentry court as an alternative to the failed conventional corrections/parole based reentry system presently in place at the state level.
It’s worth repeating the obvious, the way to deal with exploding prison populations and prisoner reentry failures is to refrain from sentencing non-violent offenders to prison in the first place.
EXTRA
The National Reentry Resource Center will conduct a free webinar, on Tuesday, May 18, from 12 to 1:30PM to help applicants respond to the Second Chance Act’s State, Local and Tribal Reentry Courts FY 2010 Competitive Grant Announcement, which was released on April 14, 2010, by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), and is due June 3, 2010.
Here’s your chance to learn about the grant application process from those most directly involved in it. Don’t miss this opportunity. To register for the Webinair with the National Reentry Resource Center, click here.
Deadline: June 3rd
BJA’s Family-Based Substance Abuse Treatment Program (under Section 113 of the Second Chance Act) provides up to $300,000 per grant for states and local jurisdictions, willing to provide services to prisoners with minor children, both in prison and after being released from prison [Note: though the legislation appears to target both returnes from prison and jail, the RFP appears clear that this is a prisoner only program]
Family-Based Substance Abuse Treatment Program grants are availabfor Services provided to incarcerated parents with minor children including:
Note: Deadline for applications; June 3, 2010
This is the third of several articles on the “Second Chance Act” Reentry Court Solicitation; in this analysis, I will speak to the real audience for this RFP: Your State’s Criminal Justice Leadership
BJA’s “Reentry Court RFP, says it right up front, half-way down the title page, “Applications submitted by entities other than the highest state court are strongly urged to demonstrate that the proposal has been coordinated with, and is supported by, the state’s highest state court”. Again on page 12, in describing the RFP’s priorities for applicants, ” Demonstrate that the application has been consulted with, and is supported by, the state’s highest state court”.
I would submit the RFP is communicating the obvious, a reentry court is not a viable institution without the full support and collaboration 0f the State Supreme Court and its executive arm, the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). In reality, a reentry court is not viable without the full support and collaboration of the entire state criminal justice and political leadership. That doesn’t mean that a local jurisdiction can’t apply for and be awarded a grant, but that a state parole/corrections based reentry court (as opposed to a county-based jail/probation reentry court; see: Pre-entry Courts), needs to partner with the state.
This isn’t so for any other problem-solving court. Drug, mental health, DUI, and other problem-solving courts are often started by local jurisdictions, sometimes without the knowledge of the state judicial or political leadership (although state collaboration and support is becoming more and more critical)
The analysis is simple: State’s are overwhemingly responsible for the control of offenders, post prison. To that end, state-wide jurisdiction is typically granted to state parole/probation agencies to oversee offenders returning to the community. In most state’s it’s called the state-wide Parole and/or Probation Agency. Traditonally, counties had little or no jurisdiciton once the offender was sentenced to state prison.
Times have changed. We’ve looked at the data and realized that a state-wide correctional authority alone, may be too narrowly focused, and that a broader collaborative approach to the returning offender may be more successful and cost-effective. The reentry court is one such model that is being widely investigated as a new path for the returnee. But it can’t succeed without the State Supreme Court, Correctional Authority, Probation/Parole Agency, and the legislature’s collective planning, collaboration and funding. (see: Ten Prison-Based Reentry Court Models).
This RFP and message is for those of you in your state government’s crimial justice leadership: It will take your good will and support, and yes, your initiative to make an acceptable application under this RFP, truely successful.
Deadline: June 3, 2010
BJA has announced a solicitation that will distribute $13 million under Sec. 201 of the “Second Chance Act” for offenders with co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders. Up to $600,000 in matching grants will be available to states and local governments to “establish or enhance residential substance abuse treatment programs in correctional facilities, including aftercare and recovery supportive services”.
Under the BJA Solicitation, priority will be given to applicants that (p.5-6):
Target higher-risk offenders who have been dually diagnosed with serious mental health disorders and alcohol or substance addictions at the same time using validated assessment tools.
• Demonstrate a high degree of collaboration among a variety of public, private, and faith-based organizations, to include at a minimum the State Substance Abuse Authority, the State Mental Health Authority, and a provider organization for direct client integrated substance abuse and mental health treatment services appropriate to the proposed project.
• Demonstrate effective case assessment and management abilities to provide a comprehensive and continuous reentry process, including the following:
o Using an actuarial-based assessment instrument for reentry planning that targets the criminogenic needs of the offender that affect recidivism, and provide sustained case management and services during incarceration and for at least 6 months in the community;
o Access to affordable and appropriate housing;
o Establishing pre-release planning procedures to ensure that the eligibility of an individual for federal or state benefits is established before release and that individuals will obtain all necessary referrals for reentry services; and
o Delivery of continuous and appropriate integrated drug and mental health treatment, medical care, job training and placement, housing, educational services, or any other service or support needed for successful reentry.
• Focus their program on geographic areas with high rates of offenders returning from prisons, jails, or juvenile detention facilities.
[Note: This solicitation is available to both prison and jail-based Reentry Courts and their community and correctional partners]
