If they finish their sentences and comply with any terms of parole, Texans convicted on felony drug charges soon will be able to receive food stamps, though another strike will put them back under a lifetime ban.
What happens when prisoners go from complete isolation to complete freedom in a day?
The number of men and women being held in Texas prisons fell by more than one percent in 2014, a slight dip that continues a downward trend aided by new diversion programs and a reluctance by state lawmakers to add more prison beds.
Starting Sept. 1, a new Texas law will allow people with felony drug convictions to qualify for food assistance, ending the lifetime ban they currently face. Supporters hope the change will reduce recidivism as it helps felons get back on their feet.
Most people, when filling out a job application, accentuate the positive. But for the nearly 12 million Texans with criminal records, there's one question that's not so easily spun: Have you been convicted of a crime?
The Coalition for Public Safety and Right on Crime took the Fair Sentencing and Fair Chances National Tour to Texas yesterday, hosting a public event at the Texas Public Policy Foundation in Austin.
Read the rest of this article at The Coalition for Public Safety.
AUSTIN — Prisons across the country will release 6,000 inmates early and nearly 600 of them, are headed to Texas.
The Austin City Council’s Economic Opportunity Committee took bold action on Monday to pass a comprehensive Fair Chance Hiring ordinance to the full council for vote.
Currently, 10 states use Certificates of Rehabilitation (CoRs) to help previously incarcerated individuals successfully reintegrate into society. In their various forms, these certificates are documents that the state provides, which lift occupational, housing, or other barriers to reentry. While Texas does not currently use CoRs, they offer a promising model to emulate.
Texas’ state jail system, created in 1993, was originally intended to divert certain individuals from crowded prisons and provide them rehabilitative assistance. However, people sentenced to state jail facilities have extremely limited access to treatment and programming options, and typically have no post-release supervision. As a result, state jail releasees have the highest rates of re-arrest and re-incarceration among returning populations.
