Drafter
Clerk 07/12/2010
Title
A MOTION requesting the departments of community and human services and adult and juvenile detention along with public health, superior court, district court, the prosecuting attorney, the sheriff's office and the public defender to develop and submit for council acceptance, a strategic plan for offender reentry from jail facilities and community corrections programs in King County.
Body
WHEREAS, in 2008, President George W. Bush signed into law the Second Chance Act, which provides $100 million annually to local and state governments for the implementation of reentry programs for released prison and jail inmates, and
WHEREAS, the goal of the Second Chance Act is to provide ex-offenders with needed services in order to reduce recidivism and improve public safety, and
WHEREAS, to apply for these funds, local governments must have in place a strategic plan for reentry developed through collaboration with key stakeholders and jurisdictions must also have in place a reentry task force with representatives from the community and the criminal justice system, and
WHEREAS, reentry is identified by the Council of State Governments as "the process of transitioning from jail to community for individuals leaving incarceration," and
WHEREAS, successful reintegration into the community from jail requires that the released individual obtains stable housing and employment; receives services for and works toward mental health or chemical dependency recovery, or both; and chooses not to engage in criminal behavior, and
WHEREAS, each day King County releases over one hundred thirty offenders back into the community, and
WHEREAS, King County's Countywide Strategic Plan calls for the county to provide a continuum of jail diversion programs, such as education and treatment, as well as alternatives to secure detention to appropriate offenders, and
WHEREAS, King County participates in a number of collaborative and coordinated bodies such as the ...
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