The focus of reentry courts recognizes that offenders need to be held strictly accountable but yet are in serious need of assistance as they return to communities. Give a detailed overview of the core elements of a reentry court.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Reentry courts are not used as leverage tools to obtain offender compliance. They
are instead tools to ensure public safety, on one hand, and that offenders receive the
necessary case management services, on the other. These courts address the conflict
between public safety and offender reintegration, acting as the moderator between the
two competing interests. Further, the use of reentry courts acknowledges that most
offenders eventually return to the community. These courts focus on the work of prisons
in preparing offenders for release, and presume that a reentry court will actively involve
the state corrections agency and others, as outlined below.
The core elements of a reentry court are the following:
Assessment and Planning: It is envisioned that correctional administrators, ideally with a
reentry judge, would meet with inmates prior to release to explain the reentry process.
The state corrections agency and, where available, the parole agency, working in
consultation with the reentry court, would identify those inmates to be released under
the auspices of the reentry court to assess the inmates’ needs upon release and begin
building linkages to a constellation of social services, family counseling, health and
mental health services, housing, job training, and work opportunities that would support
successful reintegration.
Active Oversight: The reentry court would see prisoners released into the community
with a high degree of frequency--probably once a month--beginning right after release
and continuing until the end of parole (or other form of supervision). It is critical that the
judge see offenders who are making progress as well as those who have failed to
perform. The judge would also actively engage the parole officer or other supervising
authority and the community policing officer responsible for the parolee’s neighborhood
in assessing progress. In the drug court experience, acknowledgment of the successful
achievement of milestones by participants provides encouragement to others who
observe them.
Management of Supportive Services: The reentry court must have at its disposal a
broad array of supportive resources, including substance abuse treatment services, job
training programs, private employers, faith institutions, family members, housing
services, and community organizations. These support systems would be marshaled by
the court, drawing upon existing community resources where possible. At the core, the
court would again actively engage the parole officer or other supervising authority, as
well as the community policing officer responsible for the parolee’s neighborhood. In the
drug court experience, judges and others have become very effective service brokers
and advocates on behalf of participants. An important lesson from the drug court
experience is that this brokerage function requires the development of a case
management function accountable to the court. To be successful, a reentry court would
have to develop a similar case management capacity.
Accountability to Community: A jurisdiction might consider creating a citizen advisory
board to work with the reentry court to develop both community service and support
opportunities, as well as accountability mechanisms for successful reentry of released
inmates. Accountability mechanisms might include ongoing restitution orders and
participation in victim impact panels. It may also be appropriate to involve the crime
victims and victims’ rights organizations as part of the reentry process. The advisory
board should broadly represent the community. Other mechanisms for drawing upon
diverse community perspectives should also be considered.
Graduated and Parsimonious Sanctions: The reentry court would establish and
articulate a predetermined range of sanctions for violations of the conditions of release.
These would not automatically require return to prison; in fact, this would be reserved
for new crimes or egregious violations. As with drug courts, it would be important for the
reentry court to arrange for an array of relative.