In roughly nine months, Sunshine Ketchum will be released from incarceration into Milwaukee.
She is looking forward to it, but she also is quite scared because she remembers what happened the last time she was released.
“Before I even walked out the door, I had a panic attack,” Ketchum said.
She said that she did not receive support before or after her release, which led to her being quickly reincarcerated.
Recidivism rates reflect the complexity of obstacles faced by people leaving incarceration.
Of the people released by the Wisconsin Department of Corrections in 2019, more than 30% were reincarcerated within three years, according to departmental data.
Ketchum wants to avoid this cycle.
challenges after being released from
incarceration, especially those related to
finding adequate health care.
(Photo provided by Sunshine Ketchum)
Listen to her recount of the last time she was released as well as some of her current concerns as she thinks about her forthcoming release.
Correctional support
The Department of Corrections uses an assessment to identify someone’s risk of reoffending, which, in turn, informs “dynamic case plans” to guide the person throughout their “lifecycle in the criminal justice system,” according to its website.
Departmental data do show the success of specific programs tailored to different subpopulations.
For example, a report for fiscal year 2023 demonstrates that a program, called Opening Avenues to Reentry Success, led to a meaningful reduction in recidivism for a group of over 300 mentally ill participants.
The program is designed to provide individuals with mental illness with intensive case management, housing and psychiatric treatment. For those who participated, there was a 22% reduction in reincarceration compared to the control group.
The Department of Corrections did not respond to questions about the standard reentry support it provides and whether or not there are gaps in its support.
A nuanced approach
Rather than blame the bureaucracies involved, Adam Procell takes a balanced approach.
Procell runs a monthly resource fair, called Home to Stay, which is designed to support people who are reentering. Attendees of the fair can connect with organizations supporting their housing, employment, and health insurance needs, among others.
Procell also has reentered himself.
“The easy response for me is to say, ‘Yeah, DOC sucks,’ because that’s what everybody says. But it’s more nuanced,” Procell said. “I’m not saying there’s not gaps, but it’s not as bad as it’s perceived.”
There is correctional staff and parole officers who want to and do help, he said.
People reentering also need to be honest with themselves about the effort that they are or are not putting in, he said.
It’s never too late to start
“One philosophy that is a good philosophy is for individuals to knock on many doors in the hope that a few of them open,” said Conor Williams, facilitator of the Milwaukee Reentry Council, which coordinates local efforts to support people coming out of incarceration.
“I also think that it’s never too late to start,” Williams said. “One of the challenges for some people who are incarcerated is they struggle with their regrets and some mistakes that they’ve made earlier in their life, but assisting them to embrace a hopeful future can make all the difference in their lives
Williams recommended the Benedict Center for Ketchum’s purposes.
It serves women at any stage of involvement in the criminal justice system, including: pre-arrest; pre-trial; incarceration; reentry; probation; and parole.
Williams also recommended Project RETURN (Returning Ex-incarcerated People To Urban Realities and Neighborhoods) and Home to Stay.
Project RETURN provides employment, housing, drug and alcohol counseling, life skills training and other support to returning citizens, both men and women.
For more information
Those interested in services from the Benedict Center can call 414-347-1774 or email justice@benedictcenter.org.
Project RETURN can be reached at 414-374-8029.
Home to Stay is held on the first Wednesday of every month from noon to 2 p.m. It takes place at Partners in Hope, at 324 W. North Ave., which is a division of The Community Warehouse, a faith-based organization supporting returning citizens.
Devin Blake is the criminal justice reporter for the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service. His position is funded by the Public Welfare Foundation, which plays no role in editorial decisions in the NNS newsroom.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
