Twenty-five dollars and a bus ticket.  That's the standard package traditionally doled out to an inmate being released from the Virginia Department of Corrections.  But a growing program involving state partnerships with local jails has inmates better prepared for their transition back into the community and has brought them closer to home after release.

"In Virginia, we have a lot of institutions spread out over a large area," said Charlene Motley, the DOC's Statewide Transition Programs Manager.  "Inmates can be six or seven hours away from home.  We wanted to be able to bring the inmates back into [their home] community by way of a jail."

By teaming up with local jails throughout the state, the DOC is now able to move some inmates who are nearing their release dates to a correctional facility in the community where they will be living so they can begin working there and reconnecting with family members.  The program began in 2002 with one jail and has since expanded to include eight.

"[We are] hoping to be able to blanket the state of Virginia, so that when a person is releasing out, they will be able to finish their sentence in that jail and then release out to the community," said Motley.

While the program is operational at eight jails in Virginia, two more have signed agreements with the DOC to begin a reentry program there.  Motley said that, during the next fiscal year, the DOC hopes to add five more jails to that list and to expand the program each year beyond that until it is running in most areas of the state.

State inmates are eligible for the program if they are nearing the end of their sentence and are releasing to a community where the local jail has partnered with the DOC.  Depending on the arrangement the DOC has with the county or city, offenders can be moved from a state facility to the local jail anywhere from two months to a year prior to their release date.

According to Motley, inmates of all security levels are considered for the three-phase program.  Those who have committed more serious crimes, however, are only eligible to participate in the first phase of the program, which consists of classroom instruction in the jail and lasts for 45 days. 

The classroom component of the program prepares inmates for their transition back into the community by covering topics like problem solving, conflict resolution, anger management, self esteem, time management, dealing with emotion, active parenting and employability.

During classroom instruction, which is facilitated by volunteers and takes place five days a week, inmates learn how to create a resume, fill out an employment application and interview for jobs, Motley said.   This type of education prepares them for the program's second phase, which provides inmates with on-the-job experience.

Depending on which jail the inmates are housed in, they participate in work release program for anywhere from 50 days to nearly a year, Motley said.  At the Community Corrections Center in Hampton, state inmates spend 10 months working for local companies, she said.

According to Hampton Jail Administrator Major James Adams, inmates there work in packing companies, car washes and even at Colonial Williamsburg, a historical tourist attraction.

This work experience is intended to help them earn money to pay restitution, Motley said.  Another goal is for them to maintain that job upon release to provide the offender with a smooth transition back into the working world, she added.

If they are not able to stick with the job they obtained through the jail, Motley said the skills the offenders developed on the job and in the classroom portion of the program will help them to find employment.  Additionally, the program links them to community organizations, which help to make their transition a success, as well.

According to Motley, the program is highly dependent on collaboration among community organizations, volunteers and the jails.  But the partnership between the DOC and the jails is the first step, she said.

"I think that [the partnership] is very important because we are dealing with the same inmates [and], with working closer together, we can actually piggybank off each other," Motley said.  "There are needs that really [should] be met at jail level as well as the institutional level."

Motley said that the DOC staffs one person at each participating jail to oversee the program.  Also, the Virginia State Compensation Board pays the jail $14 per day for each state inmate in phase one of the program and $28 per day for each state inmate in phase two. 

According to Motley, the local jails that are becoming involved with the program are really excited because it is increasing the programming they are able to offer in their facility.  But she said the true benefit is to the inmates who are gaining valuable skills prior to their release and reconnecting with their home communities.

"We are hoping that they are able to walk out [of jail] with the understanding of [what it means to] be a productive citizen and what it takes to do that," Motley said.  "Living in the institution for the past 10 years is so much different than living in the community."

She added that, for most of these offenders, jail was where they began their incarceration, prior to heading to prison, so it was likely a negative experience for them.  Now, it is their stepping stone back into the community, she said.

"I think that inmates have to look at [themselves and] say OK, I am back in a jail, but this time it's not a bad thing," Motley said.  "This time I am getting ready to go home."

Resources:

Motley (804) 674-3131 ext. 1505

Adams (757) 728-2064