Did you know that 70,000 people will return from state prison to their New Jersey communities over the next 5 years? For more facts about reentry in New Jersey,
download the fact sheet
[PDF: 135KB/1Page]
Civil Consequences of
Criminal Convictions in New Jersey:
Fact Sheets
Individuals leaving prison in New Jersey face many legal barriers to successful reintegration. To learn about specific restrictions in various areas, click on the links below.
The New Jersey Institute
For Social Justice, Inc.
IN THIS ISSUE
-
New York State Reentry Committee Issues Report>>
- John Jay Prisoner Reentry Institute Series on Reentry Research>>
- Online Drug Courts Discussion>>
- FBI Considers New Measure to Expand Rap Sheets to Include "Non-Serious" Offenses>>
- OJJDP Releases New Juvenile Justice Resources>>
- Vera Institute Event: Mass Juvenile Justice Involvement among Urban African American Males>>
- Voting Rights Update: Florida, Mississippi, Rhode Island >>
- Funding Announcement: BJA Prisoner Reentry Initiative Grants>>
New York State Reentry Committee Issues Report
The NYS Independent Committee on Re-entry and Employment, made up of leaders from a variety of advocacy organizations, has issued a report calling for broad changes in the way individuals are treated before and after release from prison. The Committee’s report recommends several steps, including the creation of a $25 million fund that would offer employers wage subsidies as an incentive to hire those with criminal records. The report also recommends expanding the types of convictions that can be sealed and changing current law to make the process of sealing records more effective. The Doe Fund, a New York City-based agency that helps homeless individuals find work and housing, assembled the Committee at the request of Chauncey Parker, NYS Director of Criminal Justice Services.
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John Jay Prisoner Reentry Institute Series on Reentry Research
The Prisoner Reentry Institute at John Jay College of Criminal Justice is hosting “An Occasional Series on Reentry Research: Generating Conversations between Researchers, Policymakers, and Practitioners to Improve Policy and Practice.” On November 17 from 8:30-10:00am, the Domestic Violence and Reentry session will feature Creasie Finney Hairston, Dean, Jane Addams College of Social Work, University of Illinois at Chicago; Mike Bobbitt, Associate Managing Director of Training and Technical Assistance, Family Justice; and Mary Lou Leary, Executive Director, National Center for Victims of Crime. On December 15 from 8:30-10:00am, the Women and Incarceration session will include Natasha Frost, Assistant Professor, Northeastern University’s College of Criminal Justice; Ann Jacobs, Executive Director, Women’s Prison Association; and Vicki Lopez Lukis, Chairperson, Governor Bush’s Ex-Offender Task Force. Both sessions will take place at John Jay College in New York City.
Online Drug Courts Discussion
On November 13 from 2:00-4:00pm (Eastern Time), Harvard University's Government Innovators Network will host “Drug Courts Reexamined,” a free online discussion. Experts in drug treatment and criminal courts will discuss research on adult drug court outcomes and costs as well as the factors that affect program implementation and impact. The online session will feature Michael Rempel, Research Director at the Center for Court Innovation; Peter F. Luongo, Ph.D., Director of the Maryland Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration; and Judge Terry D. Terrell, First Judicial Circuit Court of Florida.
The exchange will be moderated by Thomas J. Charron, Executive Director of the National District Attorneys Association.
Click here for details and registration
FBI Considers New Measure to Expand Rap Sheets to Include "Non-Serious" Offenses
The FBI has asked for public comments, due November 6, on a proposed regulation that would, for the first time, authorize the agency to report “non-serious” offenses on the FBI’s rap sheets for employment screening purposes. Currently, the FBI can only report serious misdemeanors and felony arrests and convictions. Both public and private employers are increasingly using FBI rap sheets – generated from the fingerprint-based criminal records provided by the states and federal law enforcement – to screen workers for employment and occupational licenses.
Download fact sheet from the National Employment Law Center
OJJDP Releases New Juvenile Justice Resources
In partnership with the National Center for Juvenile Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has released three new bulletins. “The Guide to the State Juvenile Justice Profiles” is designed to help users navigate the State Juvenile Justice Profiles website, which provides tailored information on each state’s juvenile justice system. “The Importance of Timely Case Processing in Non-Detained Juvenile Delinquency Cases” outlines steps for achieving timely court processing and describes promising practices and programs that help expedite the processing of non-detained delinquency cases. “How Does the Juvenile Justice System Measure Up? Applying Performance Measures in Five Jurisdictions” makes recommendations for measuring and reporting juvenile justice system performance outcomes and identifies success factors for measuring juvenile justice performance.
Download “The Guide to the State Juvenile Justice Profiles”
Download “The Importance of Timely Case Processing in Non-Detained Juvenile Delinquency Cases”
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Vera Institute Event: Mass Juvenile Justice Involvement among Urban African American Males
As part of their Mellon Speakers Series on Race, Crime, and Justice, the Vera Institute of Justice will host “Mass Juvenile Justice Involvement among Urban African American Males” on November 17 from 12:30-2:00pm. Paul Hirschfield, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Rutgers University, will present his research on the causes and racial implications of expanded juvenile justice systems. Dr. Hirschfield has participated in separate experimental evaluations of the impact of the Moving to Opportunity program and the Comer School Development Program on rates of juvenile court involvement. Additionally, he recently began an evaluation of model approaches to the educational reintegration of young ex-offenders in New York City.
Voting Rights Update: Florida, Mississippi, Rhode Island
Florida: Republican gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist recently endorsed automatically giving felons the right to vote upon sentence completion. Crist’s Democratic opponent, U.S. Rep. Jim Davis, made the automatic restoration of felon voting rights part of his platform from the outset of his campaign.
Read local coverage in the Tampa Tribune and Miami Herald
Mississippi: The Associated Press has reported two problems with Mississippi’s voter restoration efforts: a Constitutional provision defining those crimes that result in the loss of voting rights and a cumbersome restoration process. The ACLU cites these two issues in its current legal suit against the state challenging the denial of voting rights to formerly incarcerated individuals.
Read local coverage in The Clarion-Ledger and the Sun Herald and learn more about the ACLU challenge
Rhode Island: As the state’s November 7 ballot initiative to restore voting rights to formerly incarcerated individuals draws near, support for its passage is building. “Citizens have a clear interest in encouraging former criminals to return to society as useful and responsible citizens,” stated a recent Providence Journal editorial in favor of Question 2.
Read Providence Journal editorial and New York Times editorial
Download Rhode Island Restoration of Voting Rights Act
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Funding Announcement: BJA Prisoner Reentry Initiative Grants
As part of its Prisoner Reentry Initiative (PRI), the Bureau of Justice Assistance has announced grants for state agencies to provide pre-release assessment, programming and services, transition planning, and post-release supervision and coordination of services for formerly incarcerated individuals returning to communities. PRI’s target population includes individuals ages 18 and older convicted as an adult and imprisoned in a state or tribal prison or a tribal, regional, county, or local jail pursuant to state or tribal law. A twenty-five percent match is required for this grant program and the federal funding amount may not exceed seventy-five percent of the total project costs. Grants of up to $450,000 will be awarded to eligible recipients for a grant period of 24 months; the application deadline is January 11, 2007.
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For more information about news or event sharing contact rgreenberg@njisj.org. To subscribe or unsubscribe to the New Jersey Reentry Digest, visit the subscription page.