The United States Attorney General urged the nation’s governors to help released prisoners obtain state-issued identification – one part of a multi-pronged effort to ease reentry back into society.
AG Loretta Lynch has testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee about the Justice Department’s plan to help the 600,000 state and federal prisoners who return to society each year, according to reporter Eric Tucker of The Associated Press.
Lynch noted the federal prison system has nearly 200,000 prisoners, and the new plan will allow them to better acclimate to society upon release.
“The long-term impact of a criminal record prevents many people from obtaining employment, housing, higher education and credit – and these barriers affect returning individuals even if they have turned their lives around and are unlikely to re-offend,” the Justice Department announced in its policy statement “Roadmap to Re-entry.”
In a separate letter from the Justice Department, Lynch called for all state governors to allow federally released inmates to exchange their prisoner identification cards for state-issued identification or to accept their prison cards as documentation to get a state ID.
Without identity documents, Americans leaving prison face challenges in getting jobs, housing or opening bank accounts, Lynch wrote.
While speaking about the Justice Department’s reentry policy in Philadelphia, Lynch said, “But even more important is the message that such a program would send to returning citizens: That they are welcome back …; that their government is invested in their success; and that they can now … exchange their old identity as a federal inmate for a fresh start,” reported the AP.
Lynch said that the federal Bureau of Prisons will review its network of halfway houses, where some 80 percent of federal prisoners live upon release. Additionally, life skills, education and job training programs will be evaluated.
A new pilot program has started at four federal bureau facilities for children of incarcerated parents to keep families united.
Lynch’s pronouncements are aimed at past criminal justice policies that resulted in long sentences for drug offenders and made it difficult for released prisoners to rebuild their lives.
The Justice Department is pushing for changes in harsh drug sentences and looking at alternatives to prison for nonviolent defendants, as part of a “Smart on Crime” effort, reported the AP.
