Returning Citizens in Maryland
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CALL TO ACTION - this legislation is scheduled for a vote on Tuesday, March 15th.
See Interfaith Action for Human Rights’ website for ways to ACT!
A statement in support of Legislation House Bill 67 in Maryland by the Rev. Dina van Klaveren, given at a Virtual Press Conference hosted by Interfaith Action for Human Rights on March 9, 2022.
I support the legislation to ensure transitional services to incarcerated people as they approach their release date because I love our state and its people, and desire the health and flourishing of individuals, families, businesses and communities.
For the returning citizens with whom I have spoken, every single one finds it challenging to adapt to society outside of the prison walls. Learning how to function in society can be overwhelming, even when there is a supportive family system to surround a returning citizen. I urge our state legislators to step-up and implement a step-down program that moves incarcerated persons about to be released through a process of preparation, allowing them to develop the awareness they need to function in society, in their families, and according to the expectations of the law.
This is even more critical for those who are being released without steady family support to welcome them home. Functioning in society without the guidance and support of law-abiding family or friends is an exceptional challenge.
As a pastor and church leader, I advocate for a “toolbox” of resources to be placed in the hands of incarcerated persons approaching their release date - a toolbox that will allow them to rebuild their lives, rebuild their family relationships, rebuild society and make positive contributions.
In the 180 days before release, our prison system has the opportunity to make the most of an important threshold moment in the lives of not only those incarcerated- also in the lives of Marylanders on the outside of the prison system. By providing a toolbox of resources, such as:
-mental health resources,
-recovery resources,
-health resources,
-transitional resources for relocation logistics and transportation, and
-ways to reconnect productively with family and law-abiding support networks,
we provide each returning citizen access to the tools they need to constructively rebuild their lives in a stable manner, rather than ejecting them thoughtlessly into a world for which their only preparation is life lived in the context of confinement, violence, disempowerment, and whatever was happening in their lives just before they were arrested for a crime.
By providing these tools to those about to be released, we provide society with returning citizens equipped for interaction and ready to work and contribute productively. This will benefit business that will hire returning citizens, increasing employee retention and productivity, resulting in a positive impact on our state’s economy.
Another important reason to adopt HB 67 is the benefit of the step-down program for the corrections staff to properly evaluate readiness for release. Within the 180 day threshold before releasing incarcerated persons into society, the corrections staff will be better equipped to evaluate compliance of the person and understand if they are appropriate for release into society. This may add another layer of protection to society, providing a window for evaluating behavior and assessing each incarcerated person’s suitability for release, rather than releasing an unprepared person into society directly from restrictive housing to encounter the noise and demands of life on the outside without the tools to navigate the freedom and responsibilities before them
On behalf of families who are preparing for their family member to be released, I strongly urge Maryland legislators to adopt HB 67 so that we can move toward a society where justice is restored, providing people with tools to live in better ways once released.
