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Face to Face: Connecting Policymakers to People Involved with the Correctional System
This collection of stories highlights participation in Face to Face by a number of governors and features the voices of those who stand to benefit from criminal justice policy that is developed with personal experiences in mind. -
National Reentry Resource Center Launches Clean Slate Clearinghouse
The online resource provides information, including interactive maps, on juvenile and adult record clearance in all states and U.S. territories. -
Self-Assessment for Employment-Focused Reentry Programs
This self-assessment from the National Reentry Resource Center helps programs gauge their capacity to provide integrated reentry and employment interventions, including work readiness, to people with varying risks and needs. -
In Focus: Collecting and Analyzing Baseline Data
This brief focuses on how counties can collect and analyze baseline data on the prevalence of people in their jails who have serious mental illnesses.
Face to Face: Connecting Policymakers to People Involved with the Correctional System
Recent CSG Justice Center Posts
U.S. Senators Express Support for Key Justice Programs
Senate leaders in April took strong bipartisan action in support of three programs in FY 2020—the Second Chance Act, the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA), and the Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI)—aimed at increasing public safety and reducing recidivism at the local and state levels.
NRRC Director: Second Chance Month is Over, But a New Era of Work Must Begin
As April comes to a close, so does Second Chance Month, a time designated to focus attention on the millions of people returning from prison or jail each year. Ensuring their reentry back into communities is safe and successful matters to everyone. So it’s heartening to reflect on the momentum that now exists, and begin defining the future of reentry.
Second Chance Act Q&A: Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts
“Reentry is a process. It begins when individuals first enter our corrections system, not when they are about to exit it. We assess their needs, engage them in a plan for the future, provide them opportunities for positive change through treatment and programming, and equip them with job skills and healthy relationship habits.”
Second Chance Month Q&A: U.S. Representative Jim Sensenbrenner
“Since the Second Chance Act was implemented, more than 160,000 men, women, and youth have benefitted from Second Chance Act grants. For example, in my home state of Wisconsin, we saw a 20 percent decrease in recidivism over a 10-year period after implementing reentry support programs. I’d call that a success.”
Second Chance Month Q&A: U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy
“The vast majority of people in our criminal justice system will one day be released. We all have a stake in ensuring they can succeed. It reduces recidivism and saves money. It’s also just the right thing to do.”
U.S. House Members Express Support for Key Justice Programs
Congressional leaders in April took strong bipartisan action in support of three programs in FY 2020—the Second Chance Act, the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA), and the Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI)—aimed at increasing public safety and reducing recidivism at the local and state levels.
Highlights
- [Apply Now] Second Chance Act Youth Offender Reentry Program
- [Apply Now] Innovations in Supervision Initiative: Building Capacity to Create Safer Communities
- [Apply Now] Innovative Reentry Initiatives: Building System Capacity & Testing Strategies to Reduce Recidivism
- [Apply Now] Improving Reentry for Adults with Co-occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Illness Program
- [Apply Now] Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program
Announcements
![[Register for Webinar] Innovative Programming for Veterans in the Criminal Justice System](https://csgjusticecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Screenshot-2018-04-12-09.24.35-136x130.png)
[Register for Webinar] Innovative Programming for Veterans in the Criminal Justice System
This webinar will focus on the programming developed specifically for veterans in two jurisdictions—the Middlesex County Sheriff’s Office in Massachusetts and the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department in California—and explain how these jurisdictions developed partnerships with their Veterans Affairs resources and other entities in their criminal justice systems.
![[Apply Now] Innovative Responses to Behavior in the Community: Swift, Certain, and Fair Supervision](https://csgjusticecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Screenshot-2018-04-20-14.27.13-136x130.png)
[Apply Now] Innovative Responses to Behavior in the Community: Swift, Certain, and Fair Supervision
The program, funded by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance, provides funding for parole and probation agencies to help prevent recidivism and reduce crime through the use of principles underpinning the Hawaii Opportunity Probation with Enforcement Program.
WEBINARS
Responding to the 2019 Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program Solicitation
In this webinar, representatives from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance and The Council of State Governments Justice Center review the FY2019 Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program application process.
Improving Cultural Competency: Working with People in the Criminal Justice System Who Have Mental Illnesses
This webinar provides an overview of the intersection of mental illness and the criminal justice system; describes factors contributing to the need for cultural competency as it relates to people in the criminal justice system who have mental illnesses; identifies strategies and best practices that judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys can employ when working with people of diverse backgrounds who have mental illnesses.
Responding to the 2019 Second Chance Act Innovations in Supervision Initiative Solicitation
During this webinar, representatives from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the National Reentry Resource Center will describe the FY2019 Second Chance Act Innovations in Supervision Initiative (ISI) grant program and application process.
Responding to the 2019 Second Chance Act Innovative Reentry Initiatives Solicitation: Building System Capacity and Testing Strategies to Reduce Recidivism
During this webinar, representatives from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the National Reentry Resource Center describe the FY2019 Innovative Reentry Initiative (IRI) grant program, the application process, and tips for a strong application.
Responding to the 2019 Second Chance Act Community-Based Adult Reentry Grant Program Solicitation
In this webinar, officials from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance and the National Reentry Resource Center review the Second Chance Act Comprehensive Community-Based Adult Reentry grant program and its application process.
PUBLICATIONS
Face to Face: Connecting Policymakers to People Involved with the Correctional System
This collection of stories highlights participation in Face to Face by a number of governors and features the voices of those who stand to benefit from criminal justice policy that is developed with personal experiences in mind.
Police-Mental Health Collaborations: A Framework for Implementing Effective Law Enforcement Responses for People Who Have Mental Health Needs
The framework is intended to help jurisdictions advance comprehensive, agency-wide responses to people who have mental illnesses. These responses feature cross-system collaborations between the criminal justice and behavioral health systems.
Justice Reinvestment Initiative: How States Use Data to Design Innovative Strategies to Reduce Crime, Recidivism, and Costs
State policymakers are grappling with upticks in violent crime, the opioid epidemic, people who have mental illnesses in the justice system, high rates of recidivism, and the high cost of corrections, all while trying to improve services for victims and increase opportunities for people returning to communities from jail and prison. To tackle these issues, more than 25 states have partnered with the CSG Justice Center to use a justice reinvestment approach.
Behavioral Health Justice Reinvestment in Oregon: Fourth Presentation
The fourth and final presentation to Oregon’s Behavioral Health Justice Reinvestment Steering Committee provides an overview of the project’s Medicaid and State Hospital analysis results from a criminal justice and health data match.
Justice Reinvestment in New Mexico: Second Presentation
The second presentation to the New Mexico Justice Reinvestment Working Group summarizes findings and policy options related to reducing crime and supporting victims of crime, community supervision, and reincarceration rates.
JUSTICE CENTER IN THE NEWS
Sonoma County Launches In-Depth Review of its Juvenile Justice System
The Sonoma County Probation Department recently launched a comprehensive review of its juvenile justice system to determine how well department policies and practices align with what research shows works to improve outcomes for youth while using resources efficiently.
[Opinion] Colorado’s Youth Deserve a Better Juvenile Justice System
Colorado has made remarkable improvements to its juvenile justice system resulting in safer communities and fewer youth unnecessarily incarcerated. Due to bipartisan policy solutions, juvenile arrests declined 18 percent and filings to juvenile district court decreased 9 percent between 2012 and 2016; new commitments to the Division of Youth Services have decreased 22 percent since 2013.
DA Seeks to Reduce Probation in Many Cases
Pointing to the punitive nature of parole and supervision in Philadelphia and across the state, District Attorney Larry Krasner has announced his office’s new policy of working with judges to reduce parole and supervision in both felonies and misdemeanors.
Nebraska Prison Population Hits New High; ‘I Hope It’s an Anomaly,’ Corrections Chief Says
Here’s a record Nebraska leaders didn’t want to set: a new high for prison overcrowding.
Wyoming Legislature Tackles Criminal Justice Reinvestment
The Wyoming Legislature passed a slate of bills aimed at tackling criminal justice reinvestment in Wyoming. Based on recommendations from the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center, formed after a nearly year-long study, the bills offer science-based solutions to the pressures on the state’s prison system.
County Joins National Initiative to Reduce Jail Bookings, Connect Mentally Ill Inmates to Help
Since joining Stepping Up in 2016, Dakota County has made multiple key changes, said Angela Lockhart, the county’s integrated service delivery coordinator. About 15 other Minnesota counties are also part of the program, including Ramsey, Carver, Scott, and Hennepin.