Ex-inmates need social support after prison
December 31, 2012
The Sandy Hook Elementary shootings have affected us all in different ways. As a mother of 1- and 3-year-old boys and a virtual master’s of social work student through the University of Southern California, I am distraught by these tragic losses and empathetic with the families, school and community.
But I am also extremely troubled by who Adam Lanza was, and what lead him to commit this unthinkable act. Before I initiated my MSW program, I might not have thought so much about Adam’s life, his family, his mind, his social network and supports. I might not have been so conscious of the stigma of mental illness or disabilities, and the lack of support for so many who are in need. Just in this particular tragedy, there are so many layers of support needed for the victims, students, families, the community and even for the killer at some point in his life before it came to this.
This piece, however, is not about Sandy Hook Elementary or Adam Lanza. People in need take many different forms. This past semester, I’ve been focused on those reentering society from prisons or jails. Often, a lack of support, stability and proper medical or mental health care has lead them down a path of drugs, theft, violence or other crime, landing them behind bars.
Most of these former inmates are uneducated, unskilled, without family supports and experiencing significant social and medical issues on top of legal barriers to voting, housing, employment and welfare. The end result is often isolation, wasted productivity, drug abuse, violence or other crime. It is thus not surprising that 30 percent are rearrested in the first six months, 44 percent within the first year and 67.5 percent within three years of release from prison.
To help reduce these recidivism rates, promote public safety and support the potential in these human beings, The Second Chance Act was signed into law in 2008 with bipartisan support. This federal legislation provides funding for organizations that offer employment assistance, mentoring, substance abuse treatment and family counseling to newly released prisoners.
If these ex-offenders are successfully supported after serving their sentences, at least they will have a second chance to be and do something, and the risk that they will resort to crime and violence is mitigated. Continued funding for the Second Chance Act not only offers the critical support for these people but it also aims to reduce the expense of imprisonment. In 2010, the average cost per inmate was $31,307 per year but can be as high as $60,000 per year in some states. Incarceration costs taxpayers $63.4 billion a year.
This mind-boggling expense may not be as easy to grasp as the importance of public safety to us all, especially in light of the Sandy Hook Elementary shootings, as well as the basic human need for support. Promote continued funding for The Second Chance Act. Reentry programs work. Social and professional support is vital.
Ash, an Ithaca resident, is a Cornell University alumna.
http://www.theithacajournal.com/article/20121231/VIEWPOINTS02/312310048/Guest-Viewpoint-Ex-inmates-need-social-support-after-prison