Fathers and Families has been asked and has agreed to publicly endorse California Assemblymember Nancy Skinner’s AB 877, a bill designed to help former prisoners reintegrate into society. In our support letter we noted:
[AB 877 will] help California”s young mothers and fathers–many of whom have been incarcerated for nonviolent drug offenses–reintegrate back into society and become functional parents for their children.
The Bill’s supporters explain:
The number one condition of all probation and parole conditions is to obey all laws. One of the surest ways to assist defendants in reintegration in society is to assure that they are employable and able to care for themselves and their families. A defendant who is unable to obtain a driver’s license or clear up old Vehicle Code violations is less employable, less likely to pay child support, more apt to drive despite the lack of a license, unable to obtain insurance and even more troubling, inclined to return to a life of crime putting the greater community at risk.
Current California law (VC 41500) currently requires courts to dismiss any and all non-felony Vehicle Code violations of anyone who has been committed to CDCR. Expanding VC 41500 to cover anyone sentenced to a county jail or jail alternative for a period of six or more consecutive months, as well as those who have been incarcerated for 90 or more days in any consecutive 12-month period, will help formerly incarcerated individuals move toward successful re-entry into society. This will result in a decrease in crime and save associated court and incarceration costs.
Not having the ability to legally drive is a major barrier to re-entry and becoming a productive member of society. The proposed legislation will remove that barrier for over 12,000 individuals statewide, allowing these individuals to drive their children to school, secure jobs in locations not accessible via public transportation and act as healthy role models within their families.
The bill is supported by Prisoner Legal Services, San Francisco Sheriff Michael Hennessey, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi, the San Francisco Reentry Council’s Subcommittee on Community Justice and Alternatives to Incarceration, Wendy Still, Chief Probation Officer for San Francisco County, the Prison Law Office, Reginald T. Shuford, Director of
Law and Policy of the Equal Justice Society, the law firm of Rosen, Bien and Galvin, LLP, and others.