ALTERNATIVES TO PRISON

We can have order, without new jails and prisons, if we pursue social and economic justice. We will have chaos, even with a thousand new prisons, if we deny it.--William Nagel, former prison warden

EVER SINCE THE FIRST PENITENTIARY OPENED in the United States in 1790, incarceration has been the centerpiece of the nation's criminal justice system. In the same 200-year period, many creative alternatives to prisons have been tried-usually at a lower cost than imprisonment, and have shown higher success rates. The following list gives samples of programs that have worked around the country. It is not an endorsement of any particular program. What is needed is a continuum of services. No program is suitable for everyone. Neither is there any substitute for dealing with the underlying economic and social causes of crime and violence.

PRE-TRIAL

*Black Man's Development Center, Wilmington, DE: A 90-day pre-trial supervision program, emphasizing frequent contact, community services, and monitoring court appearances. Cost: $349/person
*Bail Bond Program, Vera Institute of Justice, NY. Pre-trial release. Conditions of release include face-to-face daily contact, development of activities schedule, transitional facility. Cost: $41/day
*Court Mediation Program, Crime and Justice Foundation, Boston. Diversion from the court system at pre-trial stage, involving
voluntary mediation between parties to resolve charges.

COMMUNITY SENTENCING

*Victim-Offender Reconciliation, Catholic Charities, Oakland, CA. Uses volunteer mediators to intervene between youth who have committed crimes and their victims to develop mutually agreed upon restitution plans.
*St. Vincent de Paul Center for Community Reconciliation, Orange, CA. Uses volunteer mediators to bring together victims, offenders, and family members of both to resolve the conflict
*Day Fine Program, Vera Institute of Justice, NY. A system of fines based on the offender's ability to pay, determined by daily income and seriousness of the offense.

MOTHER-INFANT PROGRAMS

*Elizabeth Fry Center, San Francisco, CA. Run by Volunteers of America. Established in 1986, provides for low risk women prisoners and their children under age six. Fosters the bond between mother and child while helping with educational, vocational, drug dependence, and personal counseling needs. Uses in-house and community services.
*House Uhuru, Los Angeles, CA. Run by Watts Foundation since 1984. Three-phase program for 10 families: orientation and stabilization; program plan with school, vocational training, recovery; re-entry.

DRUG REHABILITATION

*Delancey Street, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and other locations. Intensive live-in environment providing job skills, education and counseling programs. Highly structured, disciplined environment serving 500 residents in each location.
*Walden House. Several locations in San Francisco. Highly structured therapeutic community for men and women recovering from substance abuse. Both in-patient and out-patient, including a residential program for addicts with AIDS.
*Free At Last, Community based, non-residential, drug/alcohol recovery programs in East Palo Alto, CA. *Thunder Road Adolescent Treatment Centers, Oakland, CA. A 50-bed hospital setting for teenagers recovering from substance abuse. Short-term residential treatment and long-term follow-up.
*Options for Recovery, Sacramento, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Alameda, CA. Multi-service recovery program for women with children. Counseling, resourcing, transitional living.

POST RELEASE

*Allied Fellowship Employment Center, Oakland, CA, provides a range of services geared towards achieving viable employment in today's competitive labor market: job counseling, case management and referral, GED preparation, job placement.
*Northern California Service League, San Francisco, CA. Provides a "bridge back into the community," through "Jobs Plus," life skills training, substance abuse counseling, information and referral, and work with families.
*Supportive Living Program, of the Center for Juvenile and Criminal Justice, San Francisco, CA is a 90-120 day re-entry program. In a supervised, shared living setting, clients receive assistance in finding jobs, getting into appropriate recovery groups, securing permanent housing, and meeting other needs.
*Community Connection Resource Center, San Diego, CA. Help making positive life choices: pre-release planning, employment preparation, job development, support groups, emergency services.

Pacific Mountain Region American Friends Service Committee, 1611 Telegraph Ave., #1501, Oakland, CA 94612, Ph. (510) 238-8080 NCX Feb/Mar 1996

North Coast HOME
Electrons to the Editor - Archives