Policy Makers Working to Find a Solution for Increased Incarceration

Yesterday in Richmond, Virginia Attorney General Jerry Kilgore celebrated the 10th anniversary of the abolition of parole in the state. The milestone is a dubious one, at best, as it's helped contribute to the fact that the United States, the so-called "land of the free," has, by far, the highest incarceration rate of any nation in the world.

Some civil rights advocates contend that his explosion of the U.S. prison population marks a return to a "class society" in America divided between free men and slaves.

It's a problem crying out for its own form of correction. What was abandoned for years, the notion of prison as rehabilitation rather than merely retribution, is now being revived. New efforts to keep people out of jail, and when they do go, to leave and not return, are seen as the only real solution.

In 2002 the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics announced a milestone that had been predicted for years: two million people incarcerated. With the cost of housing and feeding inmates at $30,000 a year, more and more pressure is being put on federal, state and local governments. As a result, more attention than ever is being paid to institutions like Virginia's Peumansend Creek Regional Jail in Caroline County southeast of Fredericksburg, housing prisoners from Northern Virginia, that works to provide rehabilitation options for inmates. America’s Prison Problem

The two million mark was long expected as the population has been growing rapidly, increasing seven fold over the past 20 years. Now one in every 32 U.S. adults is either in jail, prison, on probation, or parole.

Recently enacted "Truth in Sentencing" guidelines in various U.S. states, including Virginia, have added to the problem by increasing the time inmates must serve to a required minimum of 87% of the original sentence. This has added to the numbers of people institutionalized and also means that the prison population is likely to continue increasing as more people serve longer terms.

Other "tough on crime" strategies include policies to crack down on repeat offenders like "Three Strikes You’re Out," which creates escalating penalties for multiple convictions. In some cases this has led to inmates serving remarkably long sentences for minor felony convictions and misdemeanors.

These tougher policies have made the U.S. the world’s top incarcerator, with a rate of 702 inmates per 100,000 people. The next closest country is Russia with 632 per 100,000. The U.S. prison population is almost seven times as high as its neighbor to the north, Canada. Whether the tougher guidelines are effective as a method of crime prevention is an open question.

Supporters of policies like "Truth in Sentencing" and "Three Strikes You’re Out" point to record lows in violent crime rates to show the policy is effective. In 2002 there were 1,686,600 violent crimes iln the U.S., the lowest since data was first collected comprehensively on the subject in 1973.

But others argue that the drop in crime has very little to do with sentencing. Marc Mauer, Assistant Director of The Sentencing Project, a non-profit organization focused on finding effective alternatives to incarceration, talked about this to the News-Press by phone. He said that the decrease in crime rate is only partly due to increased sentencing.

Most of the gains, he said, are attributable to an improved economy, increased focus on youth programs, and a shift in the drug culture, specifically the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s. Only around 25% of the shift is due to tough crime policy.

While there is disagreement about the success of tougher guidelines, everyone agrees that there is an issue with prison overcrowding. The more than 3,200 jails across the country have become crowded to the point that extra cells have had to be added and inmates are being crowded three or four people in cells meant for one or two. Everyone also agrees that there is problem with high recidivism rates.

Even as sentences increase and the population grows, so too does the number of people being released. Annually 350,000 people are released from prison and another seven million from jail. Of those released from prison over two thirds are arrested again within three years. This recidivism rate has put an additional burden on an already over taxed correctional institution which has often become simply a place to banish people deemed dangerous for longer and longer periods of time.

That longer sentences don't help this problem is evidenced by the fact that even with extended sentences the vast majority of the inmates, 95%, return to society eventually, often with very little preparation to deal with a world they have grown unfamiliar with during their imprisonment.

Renewed Interest in Prison Reform

Because of these problems, there is a growing interest in rehabilitation programs and reentry initiatives. In his 2004 State of the Union Address, President Bush addressed the problem of recidivism. “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 a crime and return to prison,” the President said. “America is the land of second chance, and when the gates of the prison open, the path ahead should lead to a better life.”

To deal with this issue new bipartisan legislation has recently been introduced into the U.S. House by Rep. Robert Portman, a Republican from Ohio’s second district.

The bill increases support for prisoners both during and after their incarcerations. For many, the work to reintegrate must begin well before they face the open gates. The National Institute of Justice reported that after one year, up to 60 percent of former inmates are not employed, and upon release from prison between 15% and 27% of prisoners expect to go to homeless shelters.

Another issue facing many of the inmates is substance abuse, an issue largely untended to by correctional institutions. According to a study by the Re-Entry Policy Council, three out of four inmates released from prison or jail have a substance abuse problem. Yet only 10% of prisoners and 3% of jail inmates receive assistance in overcoming such problems.

The study also stated that the two out of three inmates lack a high school diploma and 40 percent have neither a diploma nor a GED. The proposed legislation includes a focus on increasing support for programs that provide health care services including substance abuse and mental health services, as well as programs to increase educational opportunities, job training, English as a Second Language programs, and life skills training.

Rep. Robert “Bobby” Scott from Virginia’s second district and ranking member of the house judiciary committee spoke at a congressional hearing about the bill earlier this month. “As a society, we breathe a sigh of relief when a long sentence is issued for a crime, as if that is the end of our responsibilities," he said. "With the numbers of prisoners, releases and re-incarcerations growing exponentially, we can no longer afford, financially or morally, to allow ourselves the luxury of 'tough on crime' rhetoric, and 'tough on crime' policies, with no attention to what happens next.”

Scott pointed out that only a slight shift in funding would be required to create sorely-needed reentry programs. He said that an increase in funding reentry programs would be a better investment than lengthier sentences. Scott said that an increase of 10% to prison sentences in Richmond, Virginia, alone would cost an estimated $4.5 million more. Instead of marginally increasing the length of a prison sentence, having very little deterrent impact, Scott said that money could be spent on youth development programs or reentry initiatives.

Peumansend: A Place Working for a Solution

At Peumansend Creek regional Jail near Bowling Green, Virginia, the task has been undertaken to work on preparing non-violent offenders to reenter society.

A minimum and medium security jail, it works to provide a different experience to inmates and hopefully give them greater support when they are released.

One inmate, Laura Wood, has been through previous systems which provided very little support helping her deal with a substance abuse problem. She was sent to Peumansend Creek a year ago after she was arrested for failing a drug test, part of her probation requirements. She had previously been incarcerated for possession, forgery and grand larceny.

Now at Peumansend, Wood is trying to get herself on better footing for when she leaves. At Peumansend Creek the focus is on helping inmates like Laura find that balance during their stay.

Sandra Thacker, the superintendent of the jail, has been involved with Peumansend since the planning process through its opening in 1999. With 27 years of experience in correctional administration Thacker is very familiar with the way that most correctional facilities deal with prisoners. “A lot of jails don’t have the time or resources to work with inmates,” said Thacker.

But Peumansend Creek was specifically created as a new way to deal with the problem of recidivism. One of the main facets of the program is the industry program. The first jail industry program in the U.S. to be accredited by the American Correctional Association, services include shoe-resoling, embroidery, silk screening, printing banners, hygiene kits, woodworking, work crew operations, and an agriculture program.

Carl Barker, the director of the Peumansend program, said that it provides unique opportunities for the inmates to gain work experience. “Everyone you see here will go out of here with a skill,” said Barker.

Some inmates have even been hired right from the jail. Barker said that companies come to him looking for people who can operate the complicated embroidery machinery. “Pretty much anybody who has been here for a long time we can place in a job,” said Barker. For Wood, the industry program hasn’t necessarily given her a future profession but it has provided some hope. “I didn’t have a serviceable trade when I arrived here,” said Wood. “I like it, I’ve never sewn before. It keeps your mind occupied,” she added.

But what’s made the biggest impact for Wood is the fact that she can now spend time in person with her 15 year old daughter, who had refused to see her when she was detained at a previous jail in Richmond. In most correctional institutions, like the Richmond jail, visitation is restricted to speaking to loved ones by phone through a glass partition. At Peumansend Creek a focus is made to keep inmates involved with relatives.

The connection often allows a person to make a smooth transition back into the community and remain part of a family structure that will be part of the former inmate’s support system later.

Another reason for the attention to the family is the attempt to break the cycle of imprisonment that runs in families of convicts. Studies show that children of prisoners are five times more likely to be incarcerated some time in life, compared to those who have not had a parent incarcerated. By working with an entire family, the program attempts to stop the cycle of incarceration through generations. The ability to spend time in person with friends and relatives on weekends is one right that is gained through a graduated reward system at the jail that also includes living facilities, luxuries like phone and T.V. and rights to purchasing items at a commissary. Thacker said that the system is based on forcing the inmates to take responsibility for their actions. One way that is shown is by having the inmates to attend to their own schedules.

Rather than being forced to go from the living facilities to lunch and recreation areas, inmates are told to take charge, themselves, getting to their various activities. If they miss lunch then they have to suffer the consequences. If they want to get a haircut or send a letter they have to take initiative to make the proper arrangements. “We bring no services to the inmate, he has to take responsibility for himself,” said Thacker. “Most jails involve bringing things to inmates. We bring them everything, then all of a sudden we open the door and they have to take responsibility for themselves.”

The jail also includes classes that the inmates are required to attend. For inmates without a high school education there are basic education classes and a GED program. Barbara Clinedinst instructs the GED classes. She said that she has seen a lot of inmates gain a lot of self confidence as they worked towards their diploma. “They’re very pleased when they get their GED,” said Clinedinst.

Along the walls outside the classroom are over 100 plaques that list the names of inmates who have received their diploma while at the jail. Also included in the list of programs is a substance abuse class that those suffering from addiction must attend. Wood, a former heroine addict, said she thinks the classes are helpful, although she wishes they would have a tighter focus on specific substance issues, rather than just general substance abuse which can include everything from alcohol to crack cocaine. While representing more than most institutions have, some claim the project is too little too late.

John Raftery, another inmate at Peumansend Creek is actually in his second stint at the jail. In jail for a technical violation following a previous conviction of possession and grand larceny, Raftery, over 40 years old, said that there is still very little being done to facilitate reentry for ex-convicts, and that once released there isn’t any support.

Clear eyed and well spoken, Raftery, who reads constantly and draws as a form of therapy, said that he didn’t have any trouble finding a job after being released. Instead the problem came in dealing with the stress of meeting his probation requirements while working. Because he violated his probation multiple times, supervision was very tight requiring weekly meetings with his probation officer. The meetings required him to take off work and travel an hour to the meetings. Without his own car he was required to arrange rides from friends or family. He said that the stress of meeting the requirements caused him to relapse into using cocaine, resulting in his resentencing. Rather than providing continued assistance in dealing with his addiction, he said the system is set up in such a way that he would fail and end up back in jail. “They made it real difficult,” he said.

Raftery acknowledged that in the past he had been in and out of trouble quite a bit but he hasn’t done anything recently. “As long as I stay clean I’m not coming back,” he promised. But the substance abuse program at the jail, he said, is not enough for most people. “It could be better, there could be more one-on-one work rather than simply group classes, but at least it’s something,” he added. For Thacker it’s the best that can be done with the resources at their disposal. The only advantage that Peumansend Creek has over other jails is no overcrowding. Drawing from six different jurisdictions, the jail accepts only a limited quota of 336 inmates. Other than the limit on population the jail has a standard sized staff with many of the program staff teaching multiple classes and serving double duty as supervisors and counselors to the inmates.

While the various programs provide some additional assistance for the inmates, when the door is opened many still find themselves suddenly on their own.

Even with its increased focus on reintegration within the system, the success of people once released seems to hinge upon continued support. For government this means increased funding of programs to assist reentry for convicts, as addressed in bills like the Second Chance Act.

It’s an iffy proposition. At the congressional hearing for the bill, the sponsor Rep. Portman said that one of the biggest issues dealing with recidivism is that very little data is available on the efficacy of reentry programs and rehabilitative initiatives. But the status quo isn’t a viable option either as prison populations continue to grow, costs escalate, and prisoners continue to be released then reincarcerated.