Program Helps Former Inmates Reintegrate Into Society

Aired 6/20/13 on KPBS Midday Edition.

GUESTS:

Nancy Jamison, Executive Director, San Diego Grantmakers

Conrad Harris, Transition Advocate, Case Manager, Coming Home to Stay

Sheila Morton, former Coming Home to Stay client, current peer mentor at Crossroads, substance abuse program

Transcript

Being incarcerated for years is punishment for a crime. But it is not a lesson in how to live in society. Prison realignment has shifted the responsibility of parole from the state to the counties. So, programs that help former inmates transition back into normal life are more important now than ever.

The City Heights and Diamond neighborhoods are home to the largest number of people on probation in San Diego County. A program called Coming Home to Stay is for those coming out of prison and county jails. It helps them establish lives that work and lessen the chances that they'll re-offend. A recent SANDAG report confirmed it's working.