Governor: Please help us to focus on converting our prisons to positive lifestyle changing environments!

My Message to Governor Christie: 

Governor: Please help us to focus on converting our prisons to positive lifestyle changing environments!  This will save tax dollars, increase security and save lives!

 By David H. Kerr                  May 17, 2016

Building our state's residential treatment capacity to give criminal addicts help would be a great way to start this change!  The well-researched and accepted therapeutic Community is one vehicle to drive this positive cultural change.

 Starting my career as a state Parole Officer I was quickly introduced to hardcore lifestyle criminal addicts.  New Jersey had little help for these career criminals at that time in 1965 but we do now!  Addict inmates don't get well in prison, they just get worse, folding to the negative peer pressure of similar people behind bars.  But if we re-build residential prison environments with high expectations and positive peer pressure, a sense of responsibility and role models who have walked the talk, things will change!  The history of positive prison therapeutic communities like Stayn' Out in New York and the Amity Drug Treatment program in Arizona, have demonstrated this changed cultural direction for decades. 

 You probably know that New Jersey ranks among the top twenty-five states nationally with the highest cost per person behind bars!  (See article below published in the May 12th addition of Reentry Central.)  But did you know that the yearly cost of one inmate in prison in New Jersey is now $54,865!  Did you know that this huge cost brings New Jersey the dubious rank of second highest prison costs in the nation only exceeded by New York whose costs are over $60,000!  As a taxpayer in retirement, that's allot of money for a system that doesn't work well if you look at re-incarceration rates!  The real cost though is in human lives.  The devastating irony here is that research validated long-term positive lifestyle changing residential programs such as the Therapeutic Community cost just over half that of prisons and are far more effective[1]

 In order to significantly reduce and/or convert our prison population to a positive way of thinking and doing, we need to carefully "rebuild them" from the inside starting with the attitude of the inmate and the training, attitude and expectations of our highly capable custodians.  For decades John Clancy has worked to make a difference in the lives of thousands behind bars.  He tried to bring help to them through their own renewed self-responsibility to help themselves and others.  For decades he was fighting an uphill battle but he was never able to change the mission of prison culture from custodial to corrective self-help.  May he rest in peace.

 We need to take his torch forward and shine the light onto our aging custodial prison culture.  Yes we have changed it over the decades but not nearly enough.  We need to recognize the well-hidden inner strengths of our inmates and work together with their leadership and responsibility to change our prison culture.  Inmates who demonstrate this inner change by working to repair themselves and connect their reentry with outside helping agencies long before their release, should earn early release! 

 The therapeutic community that I started in 1968 at 45 Lincoln Pk. Newark began with the wisdom and guidance of eight hardcore former parolee criminal addicts.  They knew exactly what they should do and what I should do and all I had to do was to hold them to their words!  They didn't expect that part.  Many left but some stayed and through their insight, knowledge, hard work and self-motivation, Integrity House was born.

 Prisons can become positive learning environments where inmates are above board accepting a major role and responsibility for changing their attitudes, behavior and ultimately the way they live.  We need to work toward letting inmates create this positive prison culture and if they demonstrate that they can walk the talk, let them out early. 

 When you have met and understood and loved and confronted the lies and the love and the hidden strengths of each inmate, you will agree that a change can and must be made!

Dave

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From Reentry Central           5-12-16

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Related article:

How Do Our Children Learn

By David H. Kerr      May 3, 2016

https://blog.nj.com/njv_david_kerr/2016/05/how_do_our_children_learn.html

[1] Therapeutic Communities in the United States prisons – Effectiveness and Challenges

WEXLER Harry K., PRENDERGAST Michael L.

https://www.scie-socialcareonline.org.uk/therapeutic-communities-in-united-states-prisons-effectiveness-and-challenges/r/a1CG0000000GVoiMAG;