Smoothing their reentry

Days before completing his five-year sentence for drunken driving in November, Allen McDonald had no idea what he would do after prison. He had no money, his wife worked full time to support their nine-year-old daughter, and the prospect of reviving his hardwood flooring business was slim.

As the joy of his release started to mix with an increasing anxiety over his future, McDonald was offered some hope by a corrections officer.

''He told me, 'When you get out, we are going to send you over to the reentry program,' " McDonald recalled in an interview last month in the Lawrence office of the state Parole Board. '' 'They can help you in different ways: a place to live, employment perhaps, get your feet back in the ground, and maybe get your license back.' "

McDonald, 44, of Newbury, is one of the first former inmates to participate in the Regional Reentry Center Initiative, a joint program of the state Department of Correction and Parole Board. The program offers counseling and support for former inmates who are not on parole and often struggle through their first months back in society.

According to state parole officials, of the 20,000 inmates incarcerated in Massachusetts state prisons, 97 percent will get out eventually. Half of them return to society without parole or supervision. Unfortunately, many of them will return to prison.

The initiative is trying to attack some of the causes that turn many unsupervised former inmates back to crime, state parole officials say. The program is voluntary and open to all inmates who do not receive supervision following their release.

''These are people that went into prison because they had behavior deficiencies. Now they are coming out and sometimes, unfortunately, their issues are not addressed properly," said Don Giancioppo, executive director of the Parole Board. ''We are trying to offer them some services."

The initiative, launched by Governor Mitt Romney on Sept. 30, established regional centers in Quincy, Mattapan, Worcester, Springfield, Lawrence, Brockton, New Bedford, and Framingham. These facilities provide a range of help to former inmates, including assistance in signing up for MassHealth, writing a resume, getting help for drug and alcohol problems, and finding free transportation to cities where the programs are available.

The new program is expected to be tested most in Lawrence, which has one of the busiest parole offices in the state. Lawrence receives 14 percent of the total prisoners released statewide.

Ken Trocki, supervisor of the Lawrence office, sees the reentry initiative as something more than a feel-good program. ''If those inmates succeed and don't commit any crimes, they will work, pay taxes, and pay child support. [That's] money that will go back to the community," he said.

Though former prisoners can take advantage of the program any time after they get out, the program focuses most intensely on the first three days following the release of an inmate, a period when the former prisoners are most vulnerable and their options are most limited.

''It has been shown in studies that [the first 24 to 72 hours] is a critical reintegration period. If [an inmate] doesn't have a place to live, a job . . . it is more likely that he will turn to crime to survive," Giancioppo said. ''We are trying to make sure they come back with a comprehensive plan."

Finding work for the initiative's clientele is key to keeping them out of prison, says Jack Levin, a professor of criminology and sociology at Northeastern University. ''It takes more than a couple of days to find a job. The inmate becomes impatient and terribly frustrated in his quest for employment. If he doesn't get the help from his family, he might very well decide to try an illegal means of survival," Levin said.

The stakes are high. A study of the Massachusetts Department of Correction published last June showed that 40 percent of the 2,820 inmates released from state prisons in 1998 returned to jail within three years. Forty-seven percent of those were convicted of another crime, others for violating parole.

The statistics show that unsupervised prisoners were more likely to return to crime than those who were supervised. According to the study, 51 percent of the unsupervised former inmates were convicted of another crime, compared with 40 percent for those on parole.

According to Giancioppo, the state spends $40,000 a year on each inmate. ''If we could keep 20 percent of the people involved in the program so they don't commit crimes, that would be positive not only for us, but for everybody," he said.

The reentry process starts 90 days before the prisoner is released. During that time, parole officers interview each one to determine his needs. The day of his release, the prisoner is taken to the regional center closest to his residence.

There, a reentry officer, who is a parole officer in charge of the newly released prisoners, talks to every inmate about the program, offering them access to rehabilitation programs, housing, career centers, and MassHealth, based on the information gathered before their release.

The former inmate has no obligation to sign up for any program. After the reentry officer talks to him, he is free to go. However, every prisoner is encouraged to call or visit the parole office if he needs help.

McDonald went through that process, but he did not sign up for a specific program immediately. The first step he took to rebuild his life was to attend Alcoholic Anonymous meetings. ''I made a personal recognition that I don't want to do the same things that got me" in jail, he said.

Realizing that Alcoholics Anonymous was not enough, McDonald approached the Parole Board for employment guidance. ''They have been really nice to me. They have been really respectful," he said. ''They genuinely want to help people who have been incarcerated."

McDonald's reentry officer mentioned that they could get him into a program that helps former inmates buy tools, but McDonald is still deciding if he feels strong enough to go back to the hardwood flooring business. He is also considering going back to school.

Like McDonald, many other former prison inmates have taken advantage of the program. In the three months since the program started, the Lawrence parole officers have seen several return for help.

''I had a man coming yesterday, I gave him some information of where he could cash a check," said, Trocki, the Lawrence parole officer. The former inmate assured him that he would call him again to sign up for MassHealth. ''He was very receptive," Trocki said.

The Parole Board doesn't have the exact number of former inmates who have requested help from the reentry officers, but reports from the eight centers are positive.

''It's early in the program to make any type of real assessment, but initially we have seen about half of the people going back" asking for help, Giancioppo said.

Giancioppo believes that every inmate who is successfully re-integrated into society is a victory.

''We don't want to have people to be returned," he said ''We do it when it's necessary, but that is not just them failing. We feel it is us failing, too. We want them to succeed because ultimately it means better public safety in the communities."

Former inmates such as McDonald also see the importance of making the program work.

''You have nothing to lose," he said, as Trocki waited in the next room to give him a ride home. ''It's not a requirement. You don't have to give any information.

''Those who really want to make an attempt to make a positive contribution to society will give it a shot," said McDonald. ''It can't hurt. It's another door open to you. so why not take advantage of it?"