ISSUE BRIEFS
Written by New Connections staff, interns and volunteers, these short documents highlight key issues related to incarceration, homelessness, and/or reentry. We offer them to provide background information and potential solutions for each issue. We welcome new information and will update materials as needed.
Please feel free to print or distribute.
Critical Documents for Reentry
Many poor people, particularly those experiencing homelessness, are released from county and municipal jails without identification or the means to acquire ID.
Every correctional agency in Washington State should ensure that individuals have a state issued identification card upon release or should provide them with an identification card or documentation that can be easily exchanged for a state issued identification card upon release.
Late Night & Early Morning Jail Releases
Late-night and early morning releases from jails throughout Washington State are common despite the serious health and safely risks related to such releases. While some people leaving the jail have friends or family who can meet them, others are left to wander the streets until services open.
Alternatives to Money Bail
Thousands of residents are currently behind bars not because they have been convicted of a crime, but because they have been arrested and charged with a crime. Most of them are charged with non-violent crimes, and have been granted bail.
They remain in jail, sometimes for many months, solely because they are too poor to pay the required bail or bond amount.
Future Briefs
Issue briefs are in process on the topics below, which we include with some pertient links. Please contact us if you are interested in collaborating.
Legal Financial Obligations (LFOs)
J-Pay