Working with the Criminal Justice System

1. Working with the Criminal Justice System Ursula Hill February 2012 Notre Dame-AmeriCorps Mid-Year Conference

2. Incarceration in the U.S. Some Numbers • 7.3 million people under correctional supervision • 2.4 million people incarcerated • 93% of inmates will be released • 67.5% of inmates released in 1994 were rearrested within 3 years and almost 50% were re-incarcerated From: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Total Correctional Population, Recidivism, & Petersilia (2009)

3. Incarceration in the U.S. The Financial Cost • The average annual cost of incarceration, nationally: $26,000 per person • Average annual cost of probation or parole, nationally: $1,300-$2,800 From: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Budget and Expenditure

4. Trends in Incarceration • Exponential Increase in Incarceration • 500% over the past 30 years • Race and Incarceration • Racial and ethnic minorities make up over 60% of the prison population • 1 in 8 black males in their twenties are in prison or jail on any given day • 3/4 of all persons in prison for drug offenses are people of color • Gender and Incarceration • 1/3 of women in prison are incarcerated for drug offenses • Female incarceration rate increasing at nearly double the male rate • Severe histories of physical and sexual abuse, high rates of HIV infection, and substance abuse • Leads to an increasing number of children directly impacted From: The Sentencing Project

5. Introductions • Who are you? • Why did you pick this workshop? • What do you hope to get out of the workshop?

6. Objectives By the end of the workshop, participants will: • Know the scope of and current trends in incarceration in the US • Have a basic understanding of the sequence of events in the US criminal justice system • Be able to identify some of the challenges in working with the criminal justice systems • Be able to use strategies for working with incarcerated people, family members, and correctional personnel

7. “Map” of the Criminal Justice System Grand Jury Jury Deliberation • http://clrep.org/pdf/Map%20of%20criminal%20justice%20system.pdf • (activity?) Booking Indictment Verdict Preliminary Hearing Sentencing Arraignment Bail Trial

8. Sequence of Events in Criminal and Juvenile Justice Systems From: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/justsys.cfm

9. Moving Parts Family/Support System • 2 children, ages 2 & 4 • Father of children incarcerated • 2 younger siblings (1 in juvie) • Mom gave birth at 15 yr. old • Grandma’s death = significant Individual System • 18 yr. old African American female • From Baltimore City • Mental health diagnosis: depression, PTSD, borderline mental functioning, history of sexual abuse (victim) • Cigarettes, marijuana, some alcohol, possible other drugs Criminal Justice System • Juvenile history • Runaway from placements • Probation • 2 current 2nd degree assault charges in different counties Society

10. Individual System Challenges • Age • Location – external to individual, but important • Role of trauma, mental illness, drug use • Gaining trust Strategies • Listen • Advocate • Inform • Accompany

11. Family or Support System Challenges • Children • Level of family functioning Strategies • Listen • Communicate • Bridge • Facilitate contact

12. Criminal Justice System Challenges • Complexity • Individual history in system • Limited options, inc. sentencing guidelines Strategies • Build relationships – the system is made up of people • Capitalize on systemic desire for collaboration • Be patient • Pay attention to policy

13. What next? • Where my client is now • Intergenerational issues • Echoes of Incarceration • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByBnFe97gjM • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ia0EokKgV6A&feature=related

14. Review • Scope of incarceration • Outline of criminal justice system • Challenges in and strategies for working with the individual, family/support, and criminal justice system • Listen • Advocate • Inform • Accompany • Communicate • Bridge • Facilitate contact • Build relationships • Capitalize for collaboration • Be patient • Pay attention to policy

15. Questions

16. Resources • Families and Corrections Network (FCN) • The Urban Institute • The Sentencing Project • Department of Justice • State and local legislature/news • Colleagues and clients

17. References • Bureau of Justice Statistics. (n.d.). Employment and Expenditure. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved from: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/ • Bureau of Justice Statistics. (n.d.). Recidivism. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved from: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/ • Bureau of Justice Statistics. (n.d.). Total Correctional Population. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved from: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/ • Bureau of Justice Statistics. (n.d.). Sequence of events in criminal and juvenile justice system. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved from: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/justsys.cfm • Echoes of Incarceration http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByBnFe97gjM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ia0EokKgV6A&feature=related • Petersilia J. (2009). When Prisoners Come Home: Parole and Prisoner Re-Entry. Oxford: Oxford University Press.