Congress Restores Second Chance Act Funding

(Chicago, IL)– Federal funding for Second Chance reentry programs, which had been cut by the Senate in September (see Sept. 16 post), has been restored. The House originally had approved $70 million for the Second Chance Act, but the Senate had eliminated the funding, leaving programs across the country in jeopardy for the 2012 fiscal year that began October 1.  

As reported in an electronic press release by the Legal Action Center on November 18, “In a dramatic victory for advocates and stakeholders who support smart approaches to reentry that reduce recidivism and improve lives and communities, the House and Senate negotiated the differences between the two bills and today passed legislation, signed into law by the President, that includes $63 million in funding for Second Chance in FY 2012. The funding level is remarkably close to the $70 million high-water mark set by the House…”

Persistent phone calls and emails from reentry advocates across the country made a difference.

“The restored funding is not only a testament to the value and necessity of evidence-based reentry services, but it’s also a reminder that our voices are heard in Washington,” said TASC President Pamela Rodriguez.  “We commend the members of Congress and our colleagues and fellow citizens across the country who recognized what’s at stake and insisted on the funding restoration.”

For details of the legislation, including funding for other criminal justice programs, please visit the Council of State Governments‘ Knowledge Center.

 

TASC President Featured in Cover Story of Alumni Magazine

(Chicago, IL) — June 9, 2011.   Bemidji State University profiles TASC President Pam Rodriguez in the cover story of its 2011 Spring/Summer alumni magazine, Horizons.

Excerpt: 

“In addition to shaping policy, Rodriguez works to broaden TASC’s reach and affect change within the communities where discharged offenders or recovering addicts will return…

“‘It’s not just about individuals who need support; it’s also about making the communities they return to stable enough to support and sustain them…’ she says. ‘We create opportunities for people to be restored to their families, to their communities, as taxpayers and parents.’”

Rodriguez earned her undergraduate degree in social work from Bemidji State University and her master’s degree in social service administration from the University of Chicago. She has served as TASC’s president since 2009.

Please read the full Horizons story here.

Tribute to Noel Dennis, Longtime TASC Board Member

(Chicago, IL) — June 6, 2011.  TASC Board Treasurer Noel Dennis, who had served on TASC’s board of directors since 1983, passed away on June 3. He was 68.

“Noel understood TASC from our roots,” said TASC President Pamela F. Rodriguez. “He first came in contact with TASC in the late 70s when he was a sheriff’s deputy. He went on to become a lawyer and soon thereafter a member of TASC’s board.”

A U.S. Army veteran and graduate of the John Marshall Law School, he practiced law in Illinois for more than 35 years.

“Thanks to his keen knowledge of the law and his commitment to TASC’s work, Noel was instrumental in our agency’s growth and development over the past three decades,” recalled Rodriguez. “He volunteered his legal expertise in a range of areas, from advocating for just processes for TASC clients in court to offering legal counsel when we purchased our offices on Halsted Street and Roosevelt Road in Chicago.”

Over the past few years, Dennis continued to serve on the board despite a battle with cancer.

“Noel was part of our TASC family for many years, and he was a personal friend,” she said. “We will miss him.”

African Americans 5 Times More Likely than Whites to Go to Prison for Low-Level Drug Offenses in Illinois, New Report Reveals

State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago) and TASC, Inc. President Pamela Rodriguez address the findings of the Illinois Disproportionate Justice Impact Study Commission at a press conference.

(Chicago, IL) – January 31, 2011

A state commission today released a report that reveals that African Americans charged with low-level drug crimes were sent to prison at a rate almost five times greater than whites in 2005, the most recent year for which the comprehensive data set was available.

The Illinois Disproportionate Justice Impact Study Commission, established in 2008 to examine the impact of Illinois drug laws on racial and ethnic groups, found in its independent research that, among defendants charged with a Class 4, low-level drug possession, 19 percent of African-American defendants were sentenced to prison, compared with 4 percent of white defendants.

In Cook County, the disparity was even greater. African Americans in Cook County arrested only for Class 4 possession were eight times more likely than whites to be sentenced to prison.

Additionally, statewide arrest data indicated that disproportionality in drug arrests occurred in 62 of Illinois’ 102 counties, including urban, suburban, and rural areas. Racial disparities for drug arrests varied widely by county but tended to be greater in jurisdictions with smaller populations of nonwhite residents.

“The Commission has found that people of color, particularly African Americans, are disproportionately arrested, prosecuted, and imprisoned for low-level drug crimes in Illinois,” said State Senator Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago), co-chair of the commission.

“We need to change certain policies and practices so that justice is administered fairly across racial and ethnic lines,” said Hunter. “We need to divert non-violent drug offenders from expensive incarceration to rehabilitation programs, such as court-ordered drug treatment.”

“When it comes to arrests and prosecution for drug crimes, racial disproportionality affects communities in urban, suburban, and rural areas across Illinois,” said Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities (TASC) President Pamela Rodriguez, whose organization provided research support to the Commission.

“The problem of disproportionate incarceration undermines the fundamental principles of a just society,” Rodriguez said. “It also creates a burden for every taxpayer.”

Both Hunter and Rodriguez emphasized that the focus now needs to be on solutions, contending that the Illinois General Assembly and Governor Pat Quinn should get behind the commission’s key recommendations to erase the disproportionate arrest and imprisonment of African Americans involved in low-level drug crimes in Illinois.

“We need to mitigate the lasting harm to families and communities created by the disproportionate administration of justice,” said Hunter. “The commission has identified practical recommendations, such as expanding sentencing alternatives that include drug treatment.”

TASC’s 2010 Luncheon Celebrates Vision and Leadership, with Thanks to Donors

(Chicago) – TASC Board Chairman Rev. Calvin Morris and TASC President Pamela Rodriguez greeted more than 250 donors, volunteers, colleagues, board members, and staff who gathered at the Westin Michigan Avenue on December 1 to honor the work of two extraordinary leaders, Melody M. Heaps and Hon. George W. Timberlake.

TASC President Pamela Rodriguez (left) with 2010 Leadership Award Honorees Judge George Timberlake and Melody Heaps

TASC’s 2010 Leadership Awards Luncheon was a celebration, Ms. Rodriguez said, of “our leaders of vision, those we honor today and countless others, who see the challenges in families and communities across the state and are not content to sit complacently by, but rather push themselves and others to create and implement new ideas that are based on collaboration, research, proven practice, and fiscal responsibility.”

TASC President Pam Rodriguez (left) and Rev. Calvin Morris (right) present TASC's 2010 Public Voice Award to Judge George Timberlake

Judge Timberlake, chair of the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission and retired chief judge of the Second Judicial Circuit, received TASC’s Public Voice Leadership Award. A resident of Mt. Carmel, Illinois, he was recognized for his commitment to addressing the distinct challenges facing adolescents.

“His leadership and vision are evident in many successful youth initiatives today,” said Ms. Rodriguez, “from the Mission Possible substance abuse prevention coalition in Jefferson County to a wing at the Franklin County Detention Center where young people’s health and social needs are evaluated to be addressed locally, rather than in the more costly confines of state prisons.”

Melody Heaps (2nd from right) receives TASC 2010 Justice Leadership Award from TASC President Pam Rodriguez, Congressman Danny Davis, and Rev. Calvin Morris

Ms. Heaps, founder of Illinois TASC and the agency’s president from 1976 to 2009, received TASC’s Justice Leadership Award.  Congressman Danny K. Davis (D-Chicago) praised TASC’s leadership team and introduced Ms. Heaps as “one of the most visionary persons I have ever encountered.”  In accepting the award, Ms. Heaps conveyed her passion for building systems that address addiction as a public health issue and public policies that confront the disproportionate incarceration of people of color.

TASC Executive Vice President Peter Palanca (left) thanks Antanya Knapp for her words of inspiration and courage.

Speaking from personal experience, TASC case manager Antanya Knapp  said she’d known years ago that she wanted to work for TASC one day, since it was TASC that had helped turn her mother’s life around. Ms. Knapp described the confusing and frightening experiences that she and her young siblings faced when her mother was actively using. After her mother was sent to TASC and began her path to recovery, “from that point on, all the memories were positive.”

More than 250 attended TASC's 2010 celebration at the Westin Michigan Avenue

In addition to being a celebration of TASC’s partners, clients, and staff throughout Illinois, the event also raised nearly $100,000 for TASC’s programs and services. TASC gratefully acknowledges our donors, including patrons, friends, supporters, raffle donors, and all who contributed to TASC’s work this year.

Photos by Boris Uk.

Survey: Drug Use Among 8th-Graders Surges; IL Treatment, Prevention Funding Cuts Aggravate Problem

(Chicago, IL) – Driven by increases in marijuana use, a new national survey says the rate of eighth-graders saying they have used an illicit drug in the past year jumped to 16 percent, up from 13 percent in 2007, but in Illinois, funding cuts to drug abuse prevention and treatment have left communities ill-equipped to respond to the spike, says a leading Illinois drug prevention advocate.

The survey, conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan under a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), also shows that about half of 12th-graders have tried an illicit drug, with about one in 16 using marijuana on a daily or near-daily basis. Marijuana has surpassed cigarette smoking in some measures. In 2010, 21.4 percent of high school seniors used marijuana in the past 30 days, while 19.2 percent smoked cigarettes.

“Increased youth use of marijuana risks long-term addiction, education failure, and, in too many cases, criminal activity,” said Pamela Rodriguez, president of Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities (TASC), a Chicago-based non-profit that advocates for people in courts, jails, prisons, and child welfare systems who need treatment for alcohol and drug problems.

“In fact, more than nine times out of 10, kids who are referred to TASC by the justice system are using marijuana. Often they’re having trouble with school or have already dropped out. They’re on a risky path toward addiction and crime.

“The Obama Administration recognizes the critical role that prevention and treatment play in reducing demand for illicit drugs, proposing this year a 13.4% increase in spending on alcohol and other drug prevention programs and a 3.7% increase for addiction treatment,” she said.

And yet in Illinois, the funding trend has gone in reverse.

“The State of Illinois has cut drug prevention and treatment funding by 30 percent in the past three years,” said Rodriguez, noting that the use of illicit drugs among youth has gone up during the same period that funding for prevention and treatment have gone down. “With unprecedented funding cuts, our efforts to curb the demand for illicit drugs are severely hampered.”

Most measures of marijuana use increased among eighth-graders, and daily marijuana use increased significantly among all three grade levels tested in the survey. The 2010 use rates were 6.1 percent of high school seniors, 3.3 percent of 10th-graders, and 1.2 percent of eighth-graders compared to 2009 rates of 5.2 percent, 2.8 percent, and 1.0 percent, respectively.

“These high rates of marijuana use during the teen and pre-teen years, when the brain continues to develop, places our young people at particular risk,” said NIDA Director Nora D. Volkow, M.D. “Not only does marijuana affect learning, judgment, and motor skills, but research tells us that about one in six people who start using it as adolescents become addicted.”

“The increases in youth drug use reflected in the Monitoring the Future Study are disappointing,” said Gil Kerlikowske, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. “Mixed messages about drug legalization, particularly marijuana, may be to blame. Such messages certainly don’t help parents who are trying to prevent kids from using drugs.” 

The survey also showed a significant increase in the reported use of MDMA, or Ecstasy, with 2.4 percent of eighth-graders citing past-year use in 2010, compared to 1.3 percent in 2009.  Similarly, past-year MDMA use among 10th-graders increased to 4.7 percent in 2010 from 3.7 percent in 2009.