The First of Three Ideas that could Transform Corrections....ConAnon

June 15, 2009 Madrid
I recommend reading the previous essays for background if you have time. But given the fast pace of modern life, I'll try to make this essay stand on it's own legs.

The first of the Three Ideas to Transform Corrections deals with improving the success rate of inmates who have finally "graduated" back onto the streets. Currently 65 to 70 percent of them are re-arrested and go back into the criminal justice system. Given the high cost of incarceration, that is just not an acceptable level of success.

Before we get to a proposed solution, let's take a closer look at the problem. Imagine Alonzo, a fictional 29 year old inmate who has been in and out of institutions since adolescence. He is now being released on parole after 5 years inside. Alonzo completed his high school equivalency while in prison and took a variety of vocational courses. He has the idea that he will at least "try" to stay out this time.

He leaves prison with $200 in cash and a bus ticket to Los Angeles, his home town, where he will meet his Parole Officer. On the way home, he spends $10 on food. On arrival in LA, he finds a room in a run-down neighborhood. By taking a weekly rate, he only spends $10 a night, but he has to pay for the week in advance. By the time he pays that and has dinner, he has $110 left in his pocket.

Alonzo never had friends who weren't Outlaws. Being lonely, he looks a few of them up. They, knowing how little money he has, immediately offer some ideas for revenue. Maybe a drug dealer offers to "front" him some drugs to get started selling or other scams may be offered. Certainly his release will merit some celebration - drinking and drugs being a part of that. This will probably be the most fun he has had in years. The chances are nearly 100% that, by the morning of his second day of freedom, he will have committed some kind of crime. If Alonzo is a member of a street gang or a prison gang, his option to avoid Outlaw behavior will be even more limited.

Now he has to report to his Parole Officer. He goes to the office and waits his turn. Eventually he meets the officer who asks a lot of questions about where he will live and work. The officer will probably provide some written resources for employment, counseling, and lodging. However, the officer has probably around 300 cases and is far too busy to be a counselor or mentor. The parole officer spends the most time on "violations", either dealing with clients who have been re-arrested or writing court reports.

So now Alonzo has to try to find employment. Having been inside for five years, he is very self-conscious in the non-Outlaw world. He can feel the disapproval from secretaries and others who know that he is an ex-con. In fact, he feels that they can tell his status just by looking at him. And the street-wise people actually can.

At this point we leave our fictional Alonzo at the point of making a decision. Does he face the fear, rejection, and wariness of the non-Outlaw world in order to get a menial job that he finds totally uninteresting and that pays only enough for bare survival? Or does he return to his old friends and join in their scams for quick cash and a lifestyle he finds comfortable?

Although some released inmates in the real world may have more available resources and different circumstances, our fictional Alonzo illustrates the kinds of all-too-typical challenges faced by a released convict. So now it is time for the First Idea:

ConAnon - a voluntary 12-step program for released inmates run totally by successful, employed ex-cons for the benefit of themselves and newly released inmates. Employed ex-cons meet at least once a week and sponsor "new graduates" through the difficult transition into non-Outlaw life. The sponsors know very well what the new guy is going through - all the temptations from the "homeboys", the pressure from gangs, and the fear of the unknown in the non-Outlaw world. There is an old saying, "You can't con a con". The sponsors are not going to buy into any lame excuses.

Each ConAnon chapter would need a public meeting room - there are many of these available for the various other "anons". This would be the only expense of the program. They would meet weekly or more often as they decide. The meetings are based on established 12-step principles and stress personal responsibility and supporting one another to break the addiction to the Outlaw lifestyle. The employed cons might be able to provide an introduction to employment opportunities where they themselves work and could mentor their new guys right into a job. The employers would have the comfort of knowing that their new employee has an extra set of eyes following him all day.

Parole Officers could recommend ConAnon for new releases and provide a schedule for the meetings, but there would be no direct communication between ConAnon and the Parole Office. For ex-cons to trust ConAnon, they would have to able to feel that they could speak honestly and openly about what is happening with them.

For the first time, released inmates would actually have a support group for non-Outlaw behavior. I am not aware of any other institution or organization that provides this service although certainly there must be something in some localities.

To establish such a 12-step program would require recruitment of leadership -successful ex-cons who are willing to commit themselves to this challenge. National attention could be raised by the involvement of celebrity ex-cons from the worlds of music and television. When a core group of successful ex-cons is found, a pilot chapter would be formed and the basic 12-step principles modified for the needs of this group. Once the chapter is established, ConAnon needs to establish a national center, recruit leaders for chapters all over the country, and print/distribute written materials to support the chapters. This phase of organization will require funding through grants and the national headquarters will require secure ongoing funding. Alcoholics Anonymous could provide a model for the organization.

This idea could be developed into a much longer essay but my intention is to sow the seed, not to complete the idea. It can be seen that this would be an inexpensive and effective way to reduce the failure rate for released inmates. What is needed now is a group of ex-cons willing to take the idea and make it happen in their own community.....