Facts on Incarceration and Deportation in ContraCosta County County

On June 6th and 7th a representative of the Contra Costa County Sheriff announced that the sheriff would like to expand county jail facilities by 150 beds to hold 300 inmates. The costs of the construction and ongoing annual costs of staffing these facilities have not been publicly released. Crowding at the county’s jail could be addressed by building more jail space, or by addressing some of the underlying causes of the high numbers of people incarcerated.

This fact sheet describes six of the challenges underlying the jail crowding, and six opportunities to implement strategies that are backed by the county’s strategic plan, scientific research on best practices, and broad community support. These solutions are more likely to improve community health and safety, and ultimately reduce costs to the county.

REALIGNMENT

The ChallengeIn October of 2011, the new state legislation AB109 or “realignment” took effect, and the county became responsible for incarcerating and supervising an increased number of individuals with non-serious, non-sexual, and non-violent offenses. Realignment followed a thirty-year escalation of mass incarceration and prison expansion, the cost of which became unbearable and forced the state to change direction. The legislators writing AB109 hoped that the counties could figure out a way to do what it could not: reduce recidivism and find more effective ways of responding to crime.

The OpportunityFor the first 9 months, the county received $4.57 million from the state for meeting this responsibility, which is spent on increasing jail and probation staff and basic health services. For the second year, the county is getting $19 million, which can go much further to meet community needs like transitional employment, integrated services, and housing. The county has a Strategic Plan for Reentry, which includes specific recommendations on reintegrating people released from incarceration, but none of it has been

Facts on Incarceration and Deportation in Contra Costa County! 1

Facts on Incarceration and Deportation in ContraCosta County

implemented yet due to lack of funding. 1 The realignment funding is a rare opportunity to implement this plan.

HOUSING

The Challenge It is widely recognized that stable housing is key to successful reintegration, yet seven out of ten recently released Richmond residents do not have stable housing.2 A study by the CA Department of Corrections found that 30 to 50 percent of parolees were homeless.3 Contra Costa County probation staff reported in May that 96% of people on AB109 probation have housing, but that this includes many inadequate arrangements, such as individuals living in backyard tool sheds. While $100,000 of AB109 funding was allotted to transitional housing, as of May no one had qualified you must have an income to be eligible. The only housing assistance provided to these returning residents has been a bed at a homeless shelter. However, community testimonies and published research has found that staying at a homeless shelter actually increases the rate of re-incarceration by up to 17%.4

The OpportunityThe Reentry Policy Council recommends several evidence-based strategies for increasing housing options available to people coming home, including the use of state and local funding “used for traditional public safety and criminal justice purposes… to finance the development of supportive


1 Contra Costa County Re-entry Strategic Plan: http://www.cocoreentry.org

2 Pacific Institute (2010) Survey of 101 individuals on probation or parole released within the previous 3-18 months. More information at: http://www.pacinst.org/topics/community_strategies/ formerly_incarcerated/reentry_report.pdf

3 California Department of Corrections (1997) Prevention Parolee Failure Program: An Evaluation.

4 Stephen Metraux and Dennis P. Culhane (2004) “Homeless Shelter Use and Reincarceration: Assessing the Risk,” Criminology and Public Policy 3, no. 2, pp 201-222.


http://www.cocoreentry.org

http://www.cocoreentry.org

http://www.pacinst.org/topics/community_strategies/%20formerly_incarcerated/reentry_report.pdf




housing”.5 AB109 funding could be dedicated to re-entry housing that builds upon existing community-based housing programs.

REENTRY SERVICES

The Challenge No integrated system exists for maintaining information on and making referrals to the services needed by returning residents. Probation and parole officers rely on their own individual records and collected business cards to make referrals. Without such a system, individuals are unlikely to have needed support during the first 72 hours after release, a period when studies have found the greatest risk of death.

The OpportunityIndependent evaluations have found that integrated programs like the No Violence Alliance have had clients three times less likely to be re-arrested.6 This program and other like it cost less than $10,000 per client, a fifth of the cost of incarceration. Community-based organizations and service providers in West Contra Costa are in the process of designing such a program that could be funded in the coming year at multiple sites.

DETENTION OF IMMIGRANTS

The ChallengeContra Costa County has the highest rate of deportation of immigrants who have not been convicted of anything in all of the Bay Area. 1/3 of all immigrants whom ICE has arrested under SCOMM have never been convicted of anything;


5 Council of State Governments Reentry Policy Council (2005) Report of the Re-Entry Policy Council: Charting the Safe and Successful Return of Prisoners to the Community. New York: Council of State Governments.

6 No Violence Alliance evaluation


The OpportunitySanta Clara, San Francisco, and other counties have stopped cooperating with the ICE Secure Communities program. Contra Costa Sheriff could decide to no longer refer people to ICE who do not have a violent or serious offense.

PRE-TRIAL DETENTION AND BAIL REFORM

The Challenge 85% of the Contra Costa County jail inmates (approximately 1,300 individuals) are pre-trial, as in they are incarcerated despite having not been tried and convicted. This is fourteen percent above the state rate and twenty four percent above the national average.7 These individuals are incarcerated primarily because they simply cannot afford bail, and as a result are prevented from continuing or pursuing employment and engaging in family and community life.

The OpportunityThe county’s Community Corrections Partnership has participated in trainings and researched bail reform best practices that more effectively gage the risk of releasing an individual on public safety, while reducing the jail population. Santa Cruz county enacted such a system in 2005, releasing low-level offenders on their own recognizance, and found that after two years 92% had not re-offended, and 90 jail beds a day were saved. Camden, New Jersey, enacted similar changes and reduced its jail population by 21%, saving $9 million annually.8

EMPLOYMENT


7 ACLU (2012) “Public Safety Realignment; California at a Crossroads”: https://www.aclunc.org/issues/criminal_justice/realignment_will_california_confront_its_incarceration_crisis.shtml

8 ACLU (2012)

Facts on Incarceration and Deportation in Contra Costa County

https://www.aclunc.org/issues/criminal_justice/realignment_will_california_confront_its_incarceration_crisis.shtml






The Challenge Approximately eighty percent of formerly incarcerated residents are unemployed, according to both the Pacific Institute survey and a May report by probation staff. With such extreme unemployment, this community is prevented from gaining the independence and dignity necessary to reintegrate successfully.

The OpportunityTransitional employment programs can provide direct employment and training, ensuring both short-term needs and a path toward long-term employment. Large projects like the construction of the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab provide potential employment placements for which a transitional employment program could prepare formerly incarcerated residents. The county itself is one of the largest employers and can implement the recommendation of its Reentry Strategic Plan to ‘ban the box’ and level the playing field for residents with a past conviction applying for county positions

VIOLENCE PREVENTION

The Challenge Violent crime and gun violence continue to take lives and devastate families and communities in Contra Costa County. In the community of North Richmond alone there were more than five shootings in the last month. The Richmond Ceasefire-Lifelines to Healing initiative is a community-driven collaboration between law-enforcement, community and clergy leaders to reduce gun violence, recidivism and built a pathway to opportunities for those most impacted by gun violence. Every major law enforcement entity in Contra Costa County is at the Ceasefire-Lifelines working group table, except the Contra Costa Sheriff's Office despite numerous requests from working group partners. This has made implementation in the greater Richmond area difficult because of the lack of coordination and accountability.



The OpportunityCeasefire-Lifelines is a proven strategy to save lives and has proven to reduce gun violence nearly 70% in cities across the country. The early data shows that gun violence is down nearly 50% at this time in 2011, however, community efforts have been hampered by the lack of cooperation from Sheriff David Livingston. It is imperative that the Contra Costa Sheriff's Office join the Ceasefire-Lifelines to Healing working group table and embrace the goals of the initiative to keep our community alive and free and build pathways to opportunity.



Documents

Facts on Incarceration and Deportation in ContraCosta County County