Family Matters: Re-entry Issues with Formerly
Incarcerated Individuals and their Families
MODERATOR:
Ken Borelli, LCWS, Community Advisory Member, kjosephb@aol.com
PRESENTERS:
Yali Lincroft, MBA, SPARC (State Policy Advocacy and Reform Center) at
First Focus , Policy Consultant, yalil@firstfocus.net
Carol Burton, LMSW, Centerforce, Executive Director,
cburton@centerforce.org
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
1
Workshop Agenda
•
•
•
•
•
•
Incarceration Facts & Figures
An Overview of Realignment in California
Common Myth Busters
Partnership Examples
Discussion/Q&A
Resources and Additional Information
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
2
Incarceration Facts and Figures
1 in 100 adults in America is in jail or prison.
1 in 31 adults in America are in jail, prison or on probation.
Men are incarcerated at a rate 5x that of women
Parental racial incarceration disparities:
• 1 in 15 black children have a parent in prison
• 1 in 41 Hispanic children have a parent in prison
• 1 in 110 white children have a parent in prison
114% increase in the # women in state and federal prison (from
1990 to 2001)
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
3
About Children of Incarcerated Parents
During incarceration, parents primarily rely on their
families for the care of their children.
90% of children with an incarcerated father live
with their mothers.
50% of children with an incarcerated mother live
with their grandmother.
About 10-15% of the child welfare caseload involves
an incarcerated parent.
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
4
California’s Crisis: The Corrections System
• Prison Overcrowding (175%)
& Federal Receivership
• Increase from 2% of General
Fund 30 yrs ago to 5% 10 yrs
ago to 10% in 2011
• May 23, 2011 Supreme
Court decision ordered CA
to reduce overcrowding by
30,000 inmates
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
5
California’s Realignment Process
“Re-alignment” is term created by Gov Brown’s plan to send
those convicted of the three “non’s” to serve their
sentence in county jails vs. state prisons (non-violent, nonserious, non-sexual)
AB109 block grants distribute to the counties. Opportunity for
partnerships between corrections/law enforcement with
social services agencies like child welfare/health/housing.
Each county is required to develop an AB109 plan and
community advisory committee – re-entry councils have a
critical role
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
6
Reviewing the Corrections Systems from the Lens of a
Child – A Bill of Rights for Children of Incarcerated
Parents
Arrest
Jail
Sentencing
Prison
Probation
Court
ordered
drug
treatment
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
Release
CURB Report Card
“CURB” (Californians United for a Responsible Budget) reviewed
realignment plans for 13 counties
FOUR Counties Pass (SF, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara and Alameda) –
reduces jail population and provided programming and alternatives
to incarceration
TWO Counties Failed but with some improvements (Contra Costa and
Sacramento) – are focused on expanding jail capacity but did invest
in re-entry support and some alternatives to incarceration
FIVE Counties Failed (SMateo, Riverside, SBernardino, SD, and LA) - are
focusing on jail construction plans with little support for community
alternatives to incarceration
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
8
Common Myth Busters
MYTH – People with criminal records are automatically barred
from employment
MYTH - Individuals who have been convicted of a crime are
“banned” from public housing, can never receive SNAP, Social
Security benefits and is not eligible to receive federal student
financial aid
MYTH – A parent with a felony conviction cannot receive
TANF/welfare
MYTH – Child welfare agencies are required to terminate
parental rights if a parent is incarcerated.
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
9
Partnership Ideas from Alameda Children of
Incarcerated Partnership (ACCIP)
• Centerforce/Alameda County Sheriff’s Department/Oakland
Housing Authority Partnership with MOMS Program at Santa
Rita County Jail
• Oakland Children’s Hospital Early Childhood Mental Health
Consultation
• AB109 Policy Recommendations from ACCIPP
• Data and Research with the National Council of Crime and
Delinquency
• Habbitot Children’s Museum
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
10
Reforms at the San Francisco
Department of Human Services
•
•
•
•
•
•
Policy and Procedure Guideline (Section 57-8)
Data collection in CMS/CWS
Contract with nonprofit for visitation assistance in jail
TDMs inside the jail
Staff training
Data sharing with the Sheriff’s Department and Probation
Department
• Federal grants include Second Chance Act and Court
Improvement Funding
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
11
San Francisco Human Services Agency
Family and Children’s Services Handbook
Effective Date:
Revised Date: 10/1/08
HSA/FCS Policy
Statement
Date of Approval
Debby Jeter
Deputy Director, FCS
Community Concerns
Section 57-8
Arrested and Incarcerated Parents
The following protocol is for Protective Services Workers (PSWs) communicating
with and providing services to parents who are arrested and incarcerated. This policy
is designed to provide Protective Services Workers with guidelines and procedures
for providing appropriate services to arrested and incarcerated parents.
An arrest of a parent in itself is not grounds for an allegation of child abuse or
neglect. Incarceration of a parent may be an additional risk factor and, in all cases,
decisions regarding an incarcerated parent should follow laws and Child Welfare
regulations.
The Human Services Agency (HSA), Family and Children’s Services (FCS) has
contracted with a national organizational, Friends Outside, local chapter to provide
services to incarcerated parents.
Considerations
for visits with
Incarcerated
parents
Visitation must be provided to an incarcerated parent
TABLE OF CONTENTS
HSA/FCS Policy Statement
Rights of Incarcerated
Parents
Arrest Protocol:
Agreement between SFPD
and FCS
PSW Responsibilities
Documentation
CWS/CMS
Locating and Noticing
Incarcerated Parent
Notice of Hearing
Locating the Incarcerated
Parent
Friends Outside Program:
Incarcerated Parent
Liaison
Resources and Links
A Health Framework for Developing Programs for
Families and Children of Incarcerated Parents
(… a concept from Susan Phillips, Sentencing Project)
An Example: Preventing the Flu
Universal: teach everyone importance of hand
washing and covering their mouth when they
cough
Selective: vaccinate vulnerable populations like
the elderly and pregnant women
Targeted: screen and treat individuals who show
symptoms, such as fever and cough
30th Annual Child Abuse Symposium (Santa Clara/April 2012)
14
What Works …
• Program which offer a variety of services and works with the parent, the
caregiver and the child at the same time
• Programs which offer TA like legal services, child support, benefits
programs, housing, etc.
• Programs which include clients as staff and advisory members
• Programs which are non-judgmental, offers a holistic
• Programs which uses the “crisis opportunity” for quality parent/child
interaction and wrapping services both inside/outside the corrections
setting
FOR CHILD WELFARE CASES: Specialized social workers focused on
maintaining contacts and visits, potential relative placement, as well as
subcontract with agencies who are familiar with corrections.
15
What Doesn’t Works
• Stigma, Judgment, and Social Isolation
• Impossible hurdles
• Distinguishing between the children and the
parents in policy and practice
• Zero tolerance of children in school
• Demonizing the parent and pretending that the
kids do not need their justice involved parent
• Corrections (and social service staff) not
understanding an appropriate child response to a
reunifying parents
16
Why we do this work…
“I was serving time with a woman who had only 10
years to do. Twenty years later, some kid comes up
to me and says, “Aren’t you Ms. Mechie? My mom
told me to look you up when I got here.” At first I
was glad to see someone else’s child, like they
dropped by my house to visit. Then it occurred to
me just how tragic a scene this is. Now it happens
all the time – I’m forever looking out for somebody’s
kid here in prison.
I see three generations of mothers, all in prison at
once. For those who lack clear evidence of
intergenerational incarceration – here we all are!”
-- MARIE SCOTT
SOURCE: Howard Zehr and Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz, “What Will Happen to Me?” (2010), available at
www.GoodBooks.com or Amazon.com
17
Resources & Additional Information
Yali Lincroft and Ken Borelli (2011). When a Parent is Incarcerated: A
Primer for Social Workers. Annie E. Casey Foundation, see
www.aecf.org website
The National Resource Center on Children and Families of the
Incarcerated (Family and Corrections Network)
http://fcnetwork.org/
National Re entry Resource Center – webinars on re-entry issues and
working with families,
http://www.nationalreentryresourcecenter.org/
• How & Why Probation Dept Should Partner with Families
• From Arrest to Homecoming – Addressing the Needs of Children of
Incarcerated Parents
18
Resources & Additional Information
Northern California Training Academy (Spring 2008). Out of the Shadows:
What Child Welfare Workers Can Do to Help Children and their
Incarcerated Parents. UC Davis: The Center for Human Services.
http://humanservices.ucdavis.edu/news/pdf/074_140.pdf
KARE Family Center (2011). Behind Bars- Difficult Questions Children Ask …
And Answers That Might Help. Arizona children’s Association.
http://www.arizonaschildren.org/documents/AZFamily
MembersBehindBarsFinal.pdf
Zehr, H., Amstutz, LS (2011). What Will Happen to Me? Good Books, PA.
RISE – By and For Parents in the Child Welfare System (Summer 2008).
Parenting from Prison (issue NO. 10). Youth Communications.
http://www.risemagazine.org
National CASA Conference (Washington DC
June 2012)
19