Halfway Houses

If I were to tell you that a group of federal inmates guilty of a variety of crimes that included, embezzlement, drug manufacturing, child pornography, and murder were in your community, the average person would want to know where those criminals were located and shut that location down. In many cities across the United States, there are facilities that house these convicted inmates. The facilities are called halfway houses, and they were created to help an inmate that is released from prison transition into a community under supervision. The halfway house program can be a beneficial step in the process of an inmate’s release, and can reap lasting rewards for the inmates, the correctional system, and the communities they reside in.

First, the inmate themselves benefit greatly from the opportunities given to them by a halfway house. The first time an inmate walks through the door, they are given a place to sleep, eat, and clean themselves up. The inmate is assigned a case manager, who is trained to help these individuals in the steps they take to become a productive member of society. The inmates at halfway houses are helped in obtaining a job, going to school if available, and finding a suitable residence. The steps of the program also help the inmates by requiring them to save 30 percent of their earnings allowing them to get a vehicle, pay for deposits on utilities, or even a deposit on a residence. When they are released, a resident will have found responsibilities, routines, and a way to leave their old life behind them.

The next benefit is to the Bureau of Prisons and the correctional system in general. Every year there is an increase in the prison population, and many convicted felons are required to wait to ente...

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... Springfield, Missouri. The halfway house employees 25 people, and it is in a stable aspect of the job market. It also purchases food from a local grocer for over 50 inmate’s meals. All the installations and repairs for the building are done by local small businesses. The bedding and hygiene supplies are all purchased at a local department store. These are just a few examples of the financial benefits that are brought to the communities by halfway houses.

Having a halfway house in your community may not seem like an ideal situation, but given the success to the inmate, the financial savings to the Bureau of Prisons, and the financial benefits to the community, it seems likely that in the future there will be many more of these facilities. Its kind of like the waste water plant, you may not want to live next to it, but I would not want my town to go without it.