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Reentry Week: Anchorage Event Aims to Help Former Inmates Find Housing
Anchorage, AK – The U.S. Attorney’s Office, led by U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler, is taking steps to address the challenges faced by former inmates as they reintegrate into society. As part of National Reentry Week, the office will host a special event at the Henry House in Anchorage on Wednesday, April 27.
Henry House provides safe, alcohol and drug-free transitional housing to reentrants and others in downtown Anchorage. However, housing is a key challenge that returning citizens face when they are released from prison back to their communities in Alaska. The event will be a volunteer project at Henry House to assist with basic maintenance projects to brighten Henry House’s common areas.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office has also invited the United States District Court, the United States Probation Office, and the Federal Public Defenders to participate in the event. According to the Obama Administration, the Department of Justice designated the week of April 24-30, 2016, as National Reentry Week as part of its commitment to strengthening the criminal justice system.
Each year, more than 600,000 citizens nationwide return to their neighborhoods after serving time in federal and state prisons. Another 11.4 million individuals cycle through local jails. In Alaska, there were 12,590 citizens released from state custody and 182 released from federal custody in 2015. The long-term impact of a criminal record prevents many people from obtaining housing, employment, higher education, and credit – and these barriers affect returning individuals even if they have turned their lives around and are unlikely to reoffend.
As part of National Reentry Week, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced the “Roadmap to Reentry,” the Department’s comprehensive vision to reduce recidivism through reentry reforms at the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). These efforts will help those who have paid their debt to society prepare for substantive opportunities beyond the prison gates, promote family unity, contribute to the health of our economy, advance public safety and sustain the strength of our communities.
The principles outlined in the “Roadmap to Reentry” are aligned with the work of the Federal Interagency Reentry Council, which has been working since its creation five years ago to reduce recidivism and improve housing, employment, education, health, and child welfare outcomes. The Attorney General also sent a letter to governors with a request to permit citizens returning to their communities to exchange their Bureau of Prisons inmate identification card and authenticated release documentation for state identification.
“In Alaska, we face similar challenges for our population attempting to return to our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Loeffler. “Housing, access to health care, and jobs are key components to successful reentry. In order to aid in successful transitions with the extra goal of increasing public safety and reducing recidivist crime, we need to step up our public, private partnerships and come up with creative solutions to address some of these needs.”
“Too often, justice-involved individuals who have paid their debt to society confront daunting obstacles to good jobs, decent housing, adequate health care, quality education, and even the right to vote,” said Attorney General Lynch. “National Reentry Week highlights the many ways that the criminal justice system can work to support those who are returning to their communities.”
Key Facts
- State: Alaska
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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