Strategy for Job Creation Linked to Safer Community and Effective Restorative Justice
by Robert Lincoln Hancock
The Community Condition:
1. The jail is full, overcrowded and offenders are being booked and turned loose.
2. Early release offenders (2457 last year) from our jail annually plus another 1600
offenders completing their prison terms are returning back into our community.
3. The State wants to trade assistance $ for building a much needed additional jail for
bringing an unwanted prison/re-entry facility to our county.
4. Correctional facilities have a 65-75% failure rate in recidivism (return offenders).
5. Restorative justice/prevention programs receive token government and community support.
6. Ninety per-cent (90%) of the offenses are non-violent drug and alcohol related.
7. With State and Federal budgetary crisis many more early release offenders are expected.
In summary we have a broken justice system, enforcement is limited, the large number of offenders coming back into our county is tripling including early releases both local and from state and federal facilities. Most of these offenders and ex-offenders will have great difficulty re-entering our community and getting jobs especially with a real 20% unemployment rate in Shasta County. The stage is set for the perfect crisis posing an imminent threat to our community safety and quality of life.
This prevailing and growing crisis is preventable with intentional community leadership and ownership of not only the problem but more importantly a solution that is not dependent on the uncertainty of government funding and programs.
Growing community support for action can take us where we want to go as opposed to where the State wants to take us with more prisons. The State gives us their budgetary “crumbs” and wants to dump on us their criminal bums”. We need to be in the business of growing valued employees in a prevention and intervention strategy. This community manifesto can start “a movement” toward community ownership of a restorative justice plan and job creating businesses that can transform the values, provide the jobs and purpose to the youth and at-risk citizens eager for change. By default we will pay the higher price of wasted lives and more taxes or by intentional leadership we can embark on a restoration remedy to be equal to the challenge of our past neglect and current need.
The Proposed Solution: To provide a private sector business solution in partnership with governments to create jobs and a full service support system that transforms at-risk people (ex-offenders and substance abusers) into tax paying, law abiding valued employees.
What we can expect from this partnership is a community owned remedy, an increased level of hope critical to bridging the gap between being at-risk and a valued contributing citizen, reduction of recidivism and the associated costs, improved community safety and quality of life, generation of revenue that stays in Shasta County and more bed space in our jails for enforcement of the law.
This can all be done with government and business contracts and job creating enterprises. The support in talk needs now to turn to task. The remedy is ready. All that is needed are the contracts leadership and enterprises with community support to convert tax takers into productive citizens.
Contact: Valued Employee Project 243-3373 for information or 917-3457 for hiring service.