By New Haven Independent
When someone is released from prison, when their sentence has ended, where should they go if they do not have a place to live? Who should they turn to for help with basic necessities?
What is the humane way to treat someone who has served their time in prison and is now trying to restart their life? Would you believe that individuals in Connecticut, when released from prison, are often dropped off in the middle of our cities and towns with their bags, which might be all of their possessions…with no place to live, no place to go?
Yes, believe it.
Right before the pandemic, I (Representative Porter) received a phone call from a friend and community health worker: A man had been released from prison, end of sentence, and was dropped off near the New Haven Green.
When we arrived downtown to meet him, we watched as a state vehicle from the Connecticut Department of Correction opened the door and dropped off him and his belongings.
This man was an amputee, who walked with crutches, and there he arrived alone. It’s obvious that he wouldn’t be able to carry his bags by himself. He didn’t have anywhere to stay, didn’t have any money, and he didn’t know where he was going to receive his next dialysis treatment on Monday.
I stood in shock wondering what he would have done without our help. How would he have managed?
In fact, hundreds of individuals finishing their prison sentences are similarly dropped off in our cities and towns across Connecticut each month. They are left holding their bags with nowhere else to go and no place to live. This is immoral and inhumane.
So, what do we expect to happen to a person in this situation? A person who might have spent several years in prison and is now left in the middle of a city center with no means of work and no place to sleep. Should we then be surprised when individuals released from prison under these circumstances are soon after rearrested?
READ MORE This article was originally posted to New Haven Independent
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