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Felony Reentry in the Athens Community

Felony Reentry in the Athens Community. Presented by the Athens Justice Project. What is the problem?.

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Felony Reentry in the Athens Community

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  1. Felony Reentry in the Athens Community Presented by the Athens Justice Project

  2. What is the problem?

  3. “This year, some 600,000 inmates will be released from prison back into society. We know from long experience that if they can’t find work, or a home, or help, they are much more likely to commit crime and return to prison….America is the land of second chance, and when the gates of the prison open, the path ahead should lead to a better life.” • George W. Bush, 2004 State of the Union

  4. Barriers Faced upon Reentry • Housing denials • State services revocations • Driver’s license suspension • Lack of substance abuse and mental health counseling • Stigma in the community • On top of all this, trouble finding a job

  5. Barriers to Employment • One year after release, as many as 60-75% of ex-felons are unemployed; Why? • Georgia has been ranked as the 2nd worst state in terms of legal barriers that hinder ex-offenders from obtaining employment • Open, easy access to criminal records, even to arrests that did not lead to convictions • As many as 66% of employers have admitted they refuse to hire anyone with a conviction, regardless of the nature of the crime • Experiencing such outright rejection from jobs further demotivates ex-offenders

  6. Barriers to Employment • For employers who don’t refuse to hire based solely on a record, job applications are still daunting • Applicants have little space to explain an offense • State law requires employers to notify applicants when a record is the reason for employment denial, but many do not • Georgia’s expungement law is narrow, keeping nearly anything on a person’s record for a job search

  7. Public-Order Violent 24.9% 25.4% 24.7% 24.4% Drug Property Who experiences these barriers? • Of these jail inmates, 66% regularly drank alcohol at the time of arrest and 68.7% regularly used drugs • 49.7% were under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of the offense • Only 15.1% of inmates had received any form of treatment since admission to jail • Additionally, 56.2% of state prisoners have a mental health disorder

  8. Why does it matter?

  9. “Georgia simply can’t afford for the corrections system to maintain the status quo.” • Newt Gingrich • “They go in [prison] and get whatever they do, go to school or whatever, but they still come out, and then they can't get a job because of what they did. Then they see other people; there's fast money, so they want to do the same thing again. Then they're back in there, they may still sit a little longer, but they still come out doing the same thing.” • Suburban female, 2002 Philadelphia focus group

  10. Why Employment Barriers Matter

  11. Georgia’s Corrections System (Source: Georgia Budget and Policy Institute) • 1 in 70 Georgians is behind bars • 1 in 13 Georgians is behind bars, on probation, or on parole • This rate of correctional control is the highest in the nation, more than double the national average of 1 in 31 • In 2007, Department of Corrections spending surpassed $1 billion for the first time in state history • $1 out of every $17 in state spending goes toward the Department of Corrections

  12. Athens Clarke County Budget In 1996, 6% of prison budgets were spent on rehabilitative programs and 94% went for building, staffing and maintaining prisoners.

  13. Why Employment Barriers Matter • A one year sentence for an inmate costs $49/day or about $18,000/year, compared to $4.43/day or $1617/year for a parolee • Offenders who are tax burdens are not becoming productive taxpayers • The estimated economic benefit per inmate is $68,800 in reduced crime and associated benefits in one year

  14. Why Employment Barriers Matter • 90% of the crimes committed in the US each year are remunerative in nature • Without a fair chance at legitimate earnings, prison becomes a “revolving door” for many • Motor vehicle thieves (78.8%) and those in prison for receiving or possessing stolen property (77.4%) have very high 3 year re-arrest rates, while violent offenders, like rapists (2.5%) and those convicted of homicide (1.2%) have very low rates

  15. Other Effects • Public safety • Without rehabilitation, ex-offenders released back into the community may be just as prone to commit crimes, especially without legitimate income • If “ex”-offenders continue to offend, the public is no safer • Increased social costs • Risk of homelessness • Disconnect from family and friends • Perpetuates further victimization • Ex-offenders are essentially discriminated against when applying for jobs

  16. Title VII Discrimination • Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, hiring procedures cannot create disparate treatment or a disparate impact • Disparate treatment occurs when an individual with a record is treated differently than another ex-offender because of race • However, disparate impact occurs when a company refuses to hire someone with any record and such a policy disproportionally affects a particular race • Not overt, but still essentially a form of discrimination • Employers can refuse to hire particular ex-offenders because of “business necessity” • The EEOC and 1991 Civil Rights Act have now established a cause of action for pursuing claims

  17. What is the solution?

  18. “What we’re suggesting is that the next stage in our effective, tough-minded approach in dealing with crime is to have programs that fundamentally change people’s behavior.” • “If I can be safer and it’s less expensive and we have citizens who are now dedicated, productive taxpaying citizens – which part of that is bad?” • Newt Gingrich

  19. What are possible remedies? • Incentives for “second chance employers” • Tax incentives and bonding opportunities • Job training and other rehabilitation programs to minimize risk and increase payoff of hiring ex-offenders • Name recognition and good community reputation • “Ban the Box” • Don’t ask about criminal record until a late stage of the application process

  20. How does Ban the Box work? • The box inquiring into criminal convictions is taken off the application • The resolution would prohibit any criminal background or inquiry until after a tentative offer has been made • If there is a history, it would only be relevant if it created an unacceptable risk that the applicant could not fulfill the job requirements (as applied in Boston)

  21. States Hawaii New York Minnesota New Mexico Illinois (evaluative task force established) Cities Boston San Francisco Chicago Newark Philadelphia Los Angeles New Haven, CT Kalamazoo, MI Battle Creek, MI Travis County, TX Where has Ban the Box been implemented?

  22. Ban the Box in Boston • Boston extended Ban the Box to the city’s 50,000 private contractors • These contractors also have to adopt a policy of nondiscrimination against ex-offenders to obtain and maintain city contracts • Encourages PR effort to make other employers aware of discriminatory effect of hiring practices

  23. Ban the Box in Minneapolis • Adopted in December 2006 • Background check run only after a conditional job offer • Under old policy, only 5.7% of applicants with “flagged” background were hired • Now, 60% are eventually hired • Additionally, running these checks at a later stage in hiring has reduced time and resources for the city hiring process by 28%

  24. Rehabilitation Studies • For every grade level advance in education, the inmate’s probability of re-offending drops by 2.9% (Source: Florida DOC, May 2001 Recidivism Report) • If quality drug treatment were made available to all who needed it, recidivism could be reduced by 36-60%. (Source: Dr. R. Casper, CURE-NY) • A study of inmates in San Diego who completed drug treatment in prison and then participated in a community-based after-care program had a recidivism rate of 27% compared to a control group who did neither and had a recidivism rate of 75%. (F. Butterfield, New York Times, 11/29/00)

  25. 52% 13% Rehabilitation Results • Two examples • New York: Center for Employment Opportunities • Chicago: Safer Foundation

  26. What works? • Michigan recently launched the Michigan Prisoner Reentry Initiative (MPRI) to employ a comprehensive approach to reentry • Prisoners’ strengths and needs are assessed and addressed by a large network of service providers • For example, MichiganWorks helps address employment-related needs • Job search strategies, educational opportunities, information on bonding and tax credit opportunities, and resolving other barriers to employment • The MPRI has achieved an overall 32% reduction in recidivism among its clients • Meanwhile, the state of Michigan saw the largest decrease in prison population in the U.S. last year (3,260 fewer prisoners for a decline of 6.7% in state prisoner population)

  27. What works? • Texas launched the Texas Rehabilitation Tier Program in 2001 • Inmates are assessed at intake and those with the highest demonstrated needs and highest predicted recidivism rate are given priority treatment • Composed of 6 programs: • In-Prison Therapeutic Community • Substance Abuse Felony Punishment • Prerelease Substance Abuse Program • Prerelease Therapeutic Community • Sex Offender Treatment Program • Faith-Based Prerelease Program • Recidivism rate declined from 25% in 1994 to 16% in 1998 for those participating in the programs

  28. Voter Support

  29. Voter Support (2001 focus group and telephone survey research study)

  30. Voter Support Which statement comes closer to your own point of view?

  31. Voter Support Which statement comes closer to your own point of view?

  32. Voter Support Which statement comes closer to your own point of view?

  33. Budget Comparisons

  34. What happens when an inmate is released? • Lifetime ban on receiving TANF and food stamps if convicted of a drug offense • Driver’s licenses are suspended for a drug offense and must be reinstated by payment of a fee • Broad agency discretion allows for denial of public housing in potentially unjustifiable situations • A NY study showed a 74% drop in state prison use when ex-offenders were able to obtain housing • On top of these barriers, ex-offenders find it very difficult to obtain employment

  35. Barriers to Gaining Employment • Arrests without conviction can be considered by an employer • Arrest and conviction records are freely available and easily accessible online • Employers are required by the EEOC to refuse to hire an ex-offender because of a business necessity, but few notify the applicant of the reasoning behind such a decision • Expungement of a record can be confusing and difficult to achieve • Georgia provides no certificates of rehabilitation or other similar conventions to aid ex-offenders

  36. Why should employment matter? • Several studies have found a negative correlation between employment and criminal activity, even crime of a non-economic nature • In suffering these collateral consequences, ex-offenders essentially become a class of people that is discriminated against • For every 1% reduction in the state recidivism rate, Georgia taxpayers will save $7 million • A year of incarceration costs the state approximately $18,000 • Tax burdens should become tax payers

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