Family ReEntry's Testimony on
Criminal Justice Before the
Connecticut State Legislature
Appropriations Committee
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Public Hearing:
Wednesday, February 22, 2017, 6:30 pm
Legislative Office Building - Room 2C
Hartford, Connecticut
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H.B. No. 7027 AN ACT CONCERNING THE STATE BUDGET
FOR THE BIENNIUM ENDING JUNE THIRTIETH 2019,
AND MAKING APPROPRIATIONS THEREFOR.
Good afternoon, Senator Formica, Senator Osten, Representative Walker, and members of the Appropriations Committee.
My name is Jeff Grant and I am Executive Director of Family ReEntry. Founded in 1984 in Bridgeport, Family ReEntry's mission is to develop, implement, and share innovative and cost-effective solutions to the unprecedented numbers of people involved in the criminal justice system.
We contract with the Connecticut Department of Correction and the Court Support Services Division, as well as other state agencies, to provide services inside and outside of prison, in support of DOC's mission to "protect the public" and "provide offenders with opportunities for successful community reintegration." Our high-impact services for youth and families tackle the root causes of violent crime through evidence-based social, cognitive and behavioral interventions that restore healthy family functioning and assist returning citizens in becoming positive contributing members of society. For example, participants in our court-referred domestic/family violence programs (n=1539) for 2014-2015 had a re-arrest rate of 8%, which is 60% lower than the program benchmark for re-arrest rates set by the state (20%).
I would like to take this opportunity to applaud the bold steps that this administration has taken to reduce the numbers of people in prison through criminal justice reform and Second Chance Society legislation. Having served thirteen and a half months in a federal prison myself for a white-collar crime in 2001, I can personally attest to the humanitarian value of second chances. Without the support from my wife, the faith community and opportunities to volunteer with Family ReEntry when I came out of prison, it is unlikely that I would be standing before you today as a tax-paying citizen, non-profit leader and advocate for returning citizens.
All taxpayers in our state will benefit if Connecticut's prison population levels can be sustained or further decreased, so long as public safety is not jeopardized. With these goals in mind, Family ReEntry opposes the proposed one-million dollar cut to DOC's community support services, and requests that the amount remain at the same level as last year ($34,803,726).
While we understand the pressing need for a balanced state budget, we believe that cuts to community-based services are not in the best interest of public safety or the longer-term fiscal health of our state.
With more individuals returning from prison and jail to our communities, it is all the more urgent that we maintain our investment in community services to ensure that recidivism rates do not increase. Research shows that when individuals returning from prison do not have the social supports and resources they need to rebuild their lives, they are much more likely to commit another crime and return to prison within one to three years of release.[i] The first six months in reentry are a critical time for intervention and for linking individuals without the necessary supports to much needed behavioral health, housing, legal aid and other rehabilitative services.[ii] Reentry service providers are on the front-lines in preventing other critical problems our state faces as well, including overdose deaths[iii] and children from witnessing domestic violence.
Evidence-based community programs yield significant returns on investment by reducing recidivism. As stated in a PEW Center on the States report[iv]:
Policy makers must confront the reality that, for the foreseeable future, roughly seven out of every ten offenders will continue to serve all or part of their sentences in the community. Ensuring public safety and balancing a budget, then, require states to strengthen badly neglected community corrections systems, so they can become credible options for more of the lowest risk offenders who otherwise would be in prison.
The non-partisan Connecticut Regional Institute for the 21rst Century (CT21) report[v] concerning the fiscal future of our state---recommends that, "The current Department of Correction re
-
entry programs both internal and community based need to be funded and sustained" and they also warn that "Connecticut must resist temptation to reduce funding for these programs." A 2006 national opinion survey likewise indicates that the general public also favors rehabilitative services for offenders, as opposed to a punishment-only approach by an almost 8 to 1 margin[vi].
As the state continues to garner cost savings from criminal justice reform measures, it would behoove the state legislature to maintain the state's investment in reentry services as part of justice reinvestment. Everyone will be the beneficiary from front-line investments that will help restore healthy families, increase public safety, rebuild our communities and continue to reduce our prison population.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.
Respectfully submitted,
Jeff Grant, JD, M Div, Executive Director
75 Washington Avenue
Bridgeport, Connecticut 06604
FamilyReEntry.org
(o) 203-290-0855
(c) 203-957-0162
[i]
Kempker, G., Gibel, S., Giguere, R. A (2010) Framework for Offender Reentry. Silver Spring, Maryland. Center for Effective Public Policy.
[ii]
Source:
Draine, J., & Herman, D. B. (2007). Critical time intervention for reentry from prison for persons with mental illness.
Psychiatric Services
,
58
(12), 1577-1581.
[iii]
Yale's 2016 plan for
Connecticut Opioid Response (CORE)
states that 44 percent of fatal overdoses in Connecticut occurred among individuals who had a history of having been detained by the DOC. For individuals with an opioid disorder released from DOC, 60% of overdose deaths occurred within six months of their release.
Retrieved from
http://www.plan4children.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/COREInitiativeForPublicComment.pdf
[iv]
Source: One in 31: The Long Reach of American Corrections; PEW Center on the States; March 2009; page 22
[vi]
Krisberg, B. & Marchionna, S. (2006). Attitudes of U.S. Voters Toward Prisoner Rehabilitation and Reentry Policies. Oakland, CA: National Council on Crime and Delinquency.
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Good Evening Senator Formica, Senator Osten, Representative Walker, and members of the Appropriations Committee.
My name is Randy Braren and I am currently the Director of Reentry Initiatives for Family Reentry, Inc., a non-profit corporation based out of Bridgeport, CT. We provide a variety of services in the areas of Youth and Family, Domestic Violence and Reentry Programs. I am here
today to speak with you regarding the Governor's Proposed Budget cut of one million dollars to the Department of Correction's
Community Support Services
line. I am respectfully urging you to restore those dollars.
My concern is informed not only by my ten years in leadership roles in the non-profit world, but also by my 27 year career with the CT Department of Correction in which I served as a Parole Officer, District Supervisor, Assistant to the Chair of the Board of Parole (now CT Board of Pardons and Paroles), and as Director of Parole and Community Services under then Commissioner Theresa Lantz. Throughout my career, the role of the non-profit community provider network has been indispensable.
Over the past several years, CT has been very successful in reducing the prison population, along with its
commensurate costs. This reduction has been the result of a number of factors, including "front end"
initiatives in policing and bail setting policies, to sentencing and post-sentencing practices such as discretionary release programs (as administered by CTBOPP and CTDOC), and reentry services. It is this latter component-reentry services-that will be negatively impacted should these funds not be restored.
The programs and services administered by the CTDOC, and funded through this budget line, provide the support necessary to give individuals leaving prison the greatest likelihood to succeed.
Recent projections compiled b
y OPM's Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division indicate a continued
downward trend in the prison population, as well as an increase in release rates and community supervision caseloads. The funding that supports safe and effective reentry programs, and that helps to reduce recidivism and re-incarceration should be viewed, in my opinion, as an investment rather than as an expense.
Finally, I want to thank you for the leadership that you have shown over the years in this area of public policy, to acknowledge the progressive policies that you have initiated and supported, and to express to you
my appreciation for helping to make CT's Criminal Justice System one
that I have been proud to be a part.
Respectfully Submitted,
Randy Braren, Director of Reentry Initiatives
Family ReEntry, Inc.
75 Washington Street
Bridgeport, Connecticut 06604
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Family ReEntry
Our Mission
Our mission is to lead in the development and delivery of effective solutions that empower individuals and strengthen families impacted by the criminal justice system.
The Problem
Unprecedented numbers of people are involved in the criminal justice system. There are over 12,000 Returning Citizens released from prison each year in Connecticut. Most of them face challenges managing the most basic ingredients for successful reintegration into society. This includes finding employment and housing, reconnecting with their families and communities, and accessing substance abuse and behavioral health services.
Our Vision
- Healthy Supportive Communities Free from Crime and Violence
- Strong Resilient Individuals and Family/Relational Systems
- To Create Social Innovation
- To Develop and Operate Effective Programs
- To Inform Policy and Practice with Sound Research
- To Provide Education and Advocacy
Core Operating Values
Our values are CLEAR:
Clients - We justify our existence by serving our clients well.
Leadership - We lead with integrity.
Excellence - We strive to be the best in everything we do.
Accountability - We are accountable for our actions.
Respect - We respect all individuals and value diversity.
Intended Impact
- Breaking the Intergenerational Cycle of Crime, Abuse and Incarceration
- Give Voice to Experience of Returning Citizens and Their Families
- Empower Individuals as Productive and Responsible Citizens
- Strengthen Families, Build Community
- Increase Public Safety
- Decrease Financial and Social Costs and Consequence
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Schools Out for the Rock & Roll Event
of the Millennium as
Family ReEntry
presents its Benefit Concert starring
BLUE COUPE
featuring members of
BLUE OYSTER CULT
&
THE ALICE COOPER BAND
Opening will be
SCHOOL OF ROCK
Fairfield CT
Thurs. April 13th, 6:30 pm
FTC Warehouse
70 Sanford Street
Fairfield, Connecticut
Don't Fear the Reaper and Order Tickets:
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