VETERANS SERVICE

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Volunteers Honored for Efforts to Reduce Recidivism

More than 100 volunteers and staff from 35 local agencies will be honored for their efforts to help reduce recidivism among inmates discharged from the Atlantic County Justice Facility at a luncheon on July 21 at the Atlantic County Library/Mays Landing. County Executive Dennis Levinson directed the Department of Public Safety to implement a program in 2005 to address the escalating number of repeat offenders. The discharge planning program connects inmates with community-based agencies that provide resources to support their return to their families and their communities. While the national average rate of recidivism remains at 60 percent, the recidivism rate at the county jail is approximately 35 percent. "Our success is directly related to the contribution of the discharge planning professionals and volunteer staff," stated Levinson. "With their sustained support these citizens are far less likely to return to a life of crime." Since its initiation, more than 2,500 inmates have been assessed and have received a customized discharge plan that may include treatment for mental illness and drug addictions, disorders that often lead individuals to break the law. Among the agencies that will be recognized on July 21 are: AtlantiCare Mission Health; Covenant House; Jewish Family Services; Career Opportunity Development, Inc.; Cape-Atlantic Intergroup for Alcoholics Anonymous; Joseph's House; Mental Health Association of Atlantic County; John Brooks Recovery Center; Atlantic County Women's Center; U.S. Veterans Administration; South Jersey AIDS Alliance; Atlantic Prevention Resources and the Atlantic County Department of Family & Community Development. The event will also feature a presentation by Joseph Shields, Executive Director of the State Parole Board, who will discuss changes in policies that deal with parole violators and circumstances in which substance abuse treatment is more beneficial than incarceration. For more information, please contact John McLernon, Director, Social Services and Community Relations, at (609) 909-7546.