CALIFORNIA - WOMEN IN TRANSITION - VOLUNTEER COUNSELORS FOR WOMEN IN A COUNTY JAIL - A REPORT

• NCJ Number: 59459
• Author(s): ANON
• Date Published: 1978
• Length: 130 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Justice; California Office of Criminal Justice Planning
• Corporate Author: California Cmssn on the Status of Women
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

THE WOMEN IN TRANSITION (WIT) PROJECT OF THE CALIFORNIA COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN IS DESCRIBED, AND THE EFFECTIVENESS OF COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERS WORKING WITH INCARCERATED WOMEN IS EVALUATED.

Abstract

THE WIT PROGRAM WAS BASED ON THE IDEA THAT SUPPORT AND HELP FROM WOMEN IN THE COMMUNITY COULD BE INSTRUMENTAL IN COPING WITH THE PROBLEMS OF GUILT, ANXIETY, AND ECONOMIC DISADVANTAGES AND IN ASSISTING INCARCERATED WOMEN TO PLAN FOR THE FUTURE AND BUILD MORE CONSTRUCTIVE LIFESTYLES. THE PROGRAM WAS IMPLEMENTED AT SACRAMENTO COUNTY'S RIO COSUMNES CORRECTIONAL CENTER, WOMEN'S DETENTION FACILITY IN ELK GROVE. AS OF JUNE 1977, 115 COMMUNITY WOMEN COMPLETED TRAINING, 74 OF THEM BECAME ACTIVE IN COUNSELING, AND AN AVERAGE OF 10 TO 15 VOLUNTEERS PARTICIPATED PER MONTH. OVER 450 WOMEN PRISONERS HAD SOME CONTACT WITH VOLUNTEERS, STUDENT INTERNS, OR STAFF THROUGH MORE THAN 2,500 HOURS OF PERSONAL CONTACT. IN THE JAIL, THE PRIMARY ACTIVITY OF VOLUNTEERS WAS ONE-TO-ONE COUNSELING WITH PRISONERS INVOLVING DISCUSSION OF PERSONAL PROBLEMS, ADJUSTMENT DIFFICULTIES, HELPING WITH POSTRELEASE PLANNING, AND PROVIDING SUPPORT. IN THE COMMUNITY, VOLUNTEERS AND STAFF CONTINUED TO SEE SOME WOMEN AFTER THEIR RELEASE, PROVIDING OVER 1,600 HOURS OF ASSISTANCE IN LOCATING TRANSPORTATION, FOOD AND OTHER NECESSITIES, AND IN ADVOCACY WITH OTHER AGENCIES. A LEGAL RESOURCE GROUP, CONSISTING OF LAW STUDENTS AND RECENT GRADUATES, WAS ESTABLISHED TO HELP THE WOMEN WITH THEIR LEGAL PROBLEMS. CLIENT FOLLOWUP INDICATED THAT 56 PERCENT OF THE FIRST GROUP STUDIED AND 76 PERCENT OF THE SECOND GROUP HAD NOT RETURNED TO JAIL SINCE THEIR FIRST WIT CONTACT. A MAJOR FINDING OF THE PROJECT WAS THAT COMMUNITY INTEREST, EXPRESSED BY THE VOLUNTEER PARAPROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS, RESULTED IN PERSONAL BENEFITS TO MANY INDIVIDUAL PRISONERS AND INCREASED COMMUNITY RESPONSIVENESS TO THE FEMALE EXOFFENDER IN TERMS OF MORE PROGRAMS AND BETTER SERVICE. AN APPENDIX, CHARTS, AND TABLES ARE INCLUDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED). (LWM)