Abstract
This study will explore post-prison release programs. The issues are not always the fault of the criminal justice systems; occasionally the fault lies with the offender and not obeying the rules of the post-prison release. Each offender has different conditions that must be followed. A parole or probation officer is assigned to each offender and the officer is the one that usually handles the conditions and makes decisions on what will happen if rules are disobeyed. If the rules are not followed an offender could be arrested and booked in a correctional facility. Prison ministries can be effective in prison and after release. Various ministries along with their volunteers can help offenders find hope and believe in themselves that there is a second chance for them. Prison Fellowship helps people transition from jail to life outside the prison walls with resources and programs run by local organizations and churches. Instead of feeling hopeless the offender can find help on finding work and being in a supportive group of people that have been in the same situation as they have been in.
Post prison release supervision can help reduce crime and minimize the cost and victimization. In the State of Oregon the community corrections system relies on evidence based practices and principles of risk, the needs of the offender and responsibility. The program’s goal is to encourage behavioral and cognitive changes, leaving the offender accountable for their actions and decisions. An offender can find themselves I trouble with the law. Some released prisoners have a conditioned release, rules that are given by the court or from a probation or parole officer. In Oregon each offender is assigned to a probation or parole officer and the officer enforces the conditions of the release. If the conditions are met then life outside the prison walls may be more productive. If the offender decides to disobey the conditions then a ride back to jail may be in their foreseeable future. Some conditions may include failure to attend drug or alcohol or other type of treatment; failure to register as a sex offender, retreating from supervision, (not checking in with parole or probation officer); and consuming alcohol or drug use. An offender that violates their release conditions will most likely hear from their probation or parole officer and depending on the seriousness of the offense the offender may or may not return to jail (State of Oregon, 2011, p 3, 4).
Another form of post-prison release is an electronic monitoring system. This system is used to help locate the offender. This is ideal for house arrest or for offenders that have a curfew. The use of these devices dates back to 1964 when they were first used to help monitor mental patients and a few parolees. In 1983 New Mexico Judge Jack Love established an experimental project to help monitor offenders convicted of driving while intoxicated (Inciardia, 2010, p 434). Another claim of the invention of electronic monitoring was in 1964. Ralph Schwitzgebel used the small radio transmitters similar to the kind used in CB (Citizen’s Band) radios. In a field test Ralph tested 16 offenders and non-offenders with the small transmitters. In the 1980’s electronic equipment became even smaller, making house arrest a safe and cost effective community sanction for low-level offenders (Inciardia, 2010, p 435). These devices are tamper proof and are usually worn on the wrist or ankle. In a telephone interview in September 2011, Kim, a sales representative from Actronsystems, (a company that sells electronic monitoring systems answered questions on problems with monitoring. “If electricity goes out for several days the device cannot be charged. The units have to be charged anywhere from four to six hours a day to keep them operational. These devices might pose a problem for an offender that has a job and due to traffic or public transportation they get stuck in traffic or in climate weather, they might arrive home late for their curfew.” A good line of communication can play an important role with this type of monitoring. It is important that the offender keep in contact with their parole officer should the power go out or the reason they are late for curfew. An open line of communication can go a long way in the process of being in good standing while on parole.
Henry Duffie, the Chief Probation Officer for the Adult Probation Department in Maricopa County, Arizona, stated he is apprehensive in using electronic monitoring on offenders. Staff members in his department “are not interested in what they chose to call dog collars on people (Champion, 1998, p 30).”
If a crime is committed in an area and a known offender, who was convicted of the same crime, resides or was present in the area of the crime, they may be brought in for questioning as a possible suspect. If the offender can prove their whereabouts at the time of the crime with credible alibi or reliable evidence, they might be released (Champion, 1998, p 30).
Finding a job after prison release can be difficult but not impossible. The Civil Rights Act of 1963 prohibits discrimination of the basis of race, color, gender, national origin or religion. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) states that to exclude a person from employment on the basis of arrest or conviction record might violate the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (Mukamal, 2010, p 53). The employer can ask the applicant either on an application or in an interview about their criminal history. If the applicant denies having a criminal record or lies about it they can be denied a job or fired. The employer can run a background check to screen applicants. There are three rules in place that the employer can use to decide if the applicant can be hired that are deemed as business necessity. (1) Nature and gravity of offense(s), (2) the time that has passed since the conviction and/or finishing the sentence; and (3) the nature of the job held or sought. Some convictions have occupational prohibitions such as no contact with minors. The state attorney or parole officer can be contacted or if there is a question on the legality of what the restrictions are or the offender believes that they have been excluded from a job because of a conviction (Mukamal, 2010, p50-53).
Resources on the Prison Fellowship website can be used to help ex-prisoners find a church, a support group, transitional housing, drug and alcohol treatment and help with finding employment. They are listed by state and have contact information. Some of the groups are run by a church while others are run by private organizations. Chuck Colson, a former special counsel to President Richard Nixon was sentenced to prison in 1975 for Watergate related crimes. God radically changed Colson’s life so he established Prison Fellowship in 1976, the largest prison ministry in the world. Prison Fellowship partners along with local area churches across the United States to minister to prisoners and prisoners that have been released. Society sometimes views prisoners and people with criminal records with scorn and neglect. Prison Fellowship’s mission tries to help prisoners transform and help them find reconciliation with God, their family and friends. Prisoners are offered a chance to come to chapel in the prisons through evangelism. (2010, Shortimer, Preparing for Release, p 10, 11).
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brother and sisters of mine, you did for me (Matthew 25:35, 36, 40, NIV).’”
We are human and all of us are prone to sin. Prisoners have sinned and have been given a sentence for their sin. Prisoners deserve to be treated with kindness just as anyone else should be. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus (Romans 3:23, 24, NIV).”
Felix had Paul put in prison in Caesarea Felix and “ordered the centurion to keep Paul under guard but to give him some freedom and permit his friends to take care of his needs
(Acts 24:23, NIV).”
“May the Lord show mercy on the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains ( 2nd Timothy 1:16, NIV).”
Corrie Ten Boom wrote in a forward of a book for prison ministry, “I have been in prison. I knew the agony of being away from the people I loved, the dark, lonely nights I spent in a place where the door could only be opened from the outside. Without the Lord I would never have made it through these hard times. He preserved me because He had work for me to do. But I know there are thousands of prisoners today who have no hope. They spend their lives behind bars, growing bitter, feeling and feeling hopelessly lost. They need Jesus.” (Pederson (1979) xi, xii). Corrie Ten Boom survived being imprisoned in a Nazi Concentration camp during World War II for hiding Jews.
The majority of the people working in prison ministry are volunteers. The prisons usually have a
chapel service at least once a week. Prisoners and the volunteers ministering to them should be able to see that God, through Jesus Christ offers abundant life for all mankind. For this reason Christ came to earth. God can offer new hope, giving a prisoner’s life a sense of purpose and teach them how to love. (Peterson, 1979, p 36, 61).
“The thief only comes to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10, NIV).”
Dennis Holmes, the assistant administrator of religious services for the Oregon Department of Corrections wrote that to have an effective prison ministry the volunteers must learn the language and culture and to adapt their ministry to those in ministry. The volunteer cannot simply educate the prisoner but they need to relate to the prisoners. Prisoners possess moderate to severe criminal thinking pattern and the volunteer should look to see how they can meet these needs (Holmes, 2009, Corrections Today, p 15).
Prisoners who are released can find help in locating a church and programs (drug or alcohol treatment, support groups), through Prison Fellowship or through their probation or parole officer. Establishing a safe place to go for help is very important for post-prison released individuals.
Bibliography
Champion, Dean J. (1998), Felony Probation: Problems and Prospects
New York, NY: Praeger Publishers, p 29, 30, 99, 100.
Information on electronic monitoring and parole/probation violations.
Holmes, Dennis R (April 2009), The Role of Religious Services in the Oregon Accountability Model,
Alexandria, VA: Corrections Today, Volume 71, Number 2, p 15.
The effectiveness of prison ministry.
http://www.oregon.gov/DOC/TRANS/docs/pdf/ReligiousServicesOAM.pdf?ga=t
Inciardia, James A, (2010) Criminal Justice, Ninth Edition
New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, p. 434, 435.
History on electronic monitoring.
Mukamal, Debbie, (2010) Shortimer, Preparing for Release,
Landsdowne, VA: Prison Fellowship Ministries, p 50-53.
www.prisonfellowship.org/images/content/prison_fellowship/documents/shortimer%202010.pdf
How employers are allowed to use criminal records in hiring a former prisoner.
(2010) Shortimer, Preparing for Release
Landsdowne, VA: Prison Fellowship Ministries, p 10, 11.
www.prisonfellowship.org/images/content/prison_fellowship/documents/shortimer%202010.pdf
Information on what kind of help Prison Fellowship can provide released prisoners.
Pederson, Duane (1979), How to Establish A Jail and Prison Ministry: A Basic Training Guide,
Nashville, Tenn: Thomas Nelson Publishers, p xi, xii, 36, 61.
Corrie ten Boom quote, some Scripture references and why prisoners should be ministered to.