Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment
A Proposal to Reinvest Corrections Savings in an Employment Initiative

Submitted to:

Representative William Dyson
Chair, Appropriations Committee
Connecticut General Assembly

Herbert Welte Hall
Central Connecticut State University
New Britain, CT

Council of State Governments
Criminal Justice Programs

January 15, 2003

The Council of State Governments (CSG) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization that serves all
elected and appointed officials in the three branches of state government. Founded in 1933, CSG is unique in
both its regional structure and its constituency-which includes state legislators, judges, and executive branch
officials. The organization is funded largely through state government dues.
Points of view, recommendations, or findings stated in this document are those of the authors and do not
necessarily represent the official position or policies of the Council of State Governments.

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2

Table of Contents

Proposed policy options.............................................................................................................................. 4
James Austin, Ph.D., George Washington University
Michael Jacobson, Ph.D., John Jay School of Criminal Justice

Supporting charts and tables......................................................................................................................10
James Austin, Ph.D., George Washington University

Maps...........................................................................................................................................................24
Eric Cadora, Open Society Institute

Biographies of presenters.......................................................................................................................... 33

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3

PROPOSED POLICY OPTIONS

To:

Rep. William Dyson, Chair, Appropriations Committee

From: James Austin, Ph.D.
Michael Jacobson, Ph.D.
Date: January 8, 2003
Re:

Conference Regarding the Employment of Ex-Offenders

We appreciate your invitation to participate in the landmark conference you will convene
on January 15 regarding the employment of ex-offenders. We know of few, if any, jurisdictions
in the U.S. in which key policymakers at your level (together with your staff and the various
state government officials serving on the planning committee) have invested such considerable
time and resources in this critically important issue.
To prepare our presentations, we requested extensive data files from the Department of
Corrections, the Court Support Services Division, and other government organizations. We are
grateful to the officials at these agencies, who spent considerable time fulfilling our requests for
these data.
Based on the data we received and analyzed, and as per your request, we have developed
several options for you and other state officials to review. In developing these options, we
considered the current context of an initiative to employ ex-offenders in Connecticut. Despite
some of the lowest crime rates in decades, the inmate census is at an all time high and continues
to grow. In turn, the number of people who have been incarcerated, return to the community,
and seek jobs increases steadily. Providing this swelling segment of the population with the
services—such as life skills, job training, and job placement—that will translate into
employment will require the allocation of additional resources. Of course, it is unrealistic to
think that such resources can be made available for new or expanded programs when the state
(like nearly every state) faces such a severe budget crisis. Every government agency and
nonprofit organization receiving state funds is bracing itself for significant cuts in funding and
potential layoffs.
Given this situation, we have organized the options we prepared under six headings: 1)
new prison population management strategies; 2) cost savings; 3) reinvestment of some of the
savings in an employment initiative; 4) development of a program model for a particular
community; 5) additional resources for the initiative; and 6) obstacles to the employment of an
ex-offender.
These options are presented here with only the briefest of explanations. Each, in its own
right, is complicated, and we would be happy to discuss the implications of each in greater detail.
To discuss these options and their implications for Connecticut with considerable insight,
however, would require more than just the short review we conducted of the data files. Before
providing that degree of analysis, we would request additional data, conversations with various
policymakers and practitioners, and case studies.

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

4

Furthermore, we recognize that at least some of these options may not be appropriate for
Connecticut. After all, every state is distinct, and simply analyzing data files does not begin to
enable us to appreciate fully either the unique organization of the Connecticut’s criminal justice
system or the history of previous attempts to experiment with some of the ideas presented here.
1.

New Prison Population Management Strategies

Like states across the country, Connecticut’s prison population has increased
dramatically over the last two decades. Today, the state’s prison system continues to grow,
despite a crime rate that has declined steadily since 1990 and despite a fluctuating number of
admissions. Several aspects of the prison population present state officials opportunities to
decrease the prison population without compromising public safety: the very limited size of the
parole population; the relatively small percentage of the prison population charged or convicted
with a violent crime (30 percent); and the nearly 25 percent of prison beds occupied by probation
violators.
Implementing any one or more of the following options could enable the Department of
Corrections to reduce significantly the state’s inmate population.
a.

Require all prisoners with sentences greater than two years to serve no more than
85 percent of their sentence unless they are special management problems.
Bed Savings: 1,100 released prisoners with sentences greater than two years who
were released via “time served” x 9.2 mos = 843 beds.

b.

Reduce, on average, the amount of time paroled prisoners are incarcerated beyond
their parole eligibility date from nine to five months (or a net savings of 4
months).
Bed Savings: 1,377 prisoners released to parole per year x 4 mos. = 459 beds

c.

Reduce the number of probation technical violation admissions by 25 percent.
Bed Savings: 1,820 admissions x 25% x 13 mos = 488 beds

d.

Reduce, on average, the length of stay for the remaining technical probation
violators by three months.
Bed Savings: 1,820 admissions x 75% x 3 mos = 341 beds

e.

Release 25 percent of the prisoners with sentences under two years who are not
being released via Transitional Supervision or Community Release who are now
serving 6-7 months.
Bed Savings: (4,466 time served releases x 25% x 3 mos = 279 beds

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f.

The other major action that could be taken that would have further and
independent effects on the prison population would be to reduce the 1,700 persons
being returned to the DOC from Transitional Supervision, Community Release,
and from parole as technical violators and to reduce their current lengths of stay.
Divert 25% of each type of violator from prison.
Bed Savings: (700 parole violators x 25% x 10 mos = 146 beds) + (975
transitional supervision/community release violators x 25% x 6 mos = 122 beds)

Although implementation of any of the above options is certainly feasible, each depends
in part on extensive coordination with the courts, corrections, and parole. In addition,
implementation of many of these options requires the reallocation of some resources to create
community-based programs for the increased numbers of probationers and parolees.
2.

Cost Savings Generated by the New Strategies

The Department of Corrections’ Web site states that the average cost of incarcerating
someone is about $75/day. Nevertheless, in most cases, DOC officials will not, in fact, be able
to recoup 100 percent of this cost for each bed per day saved. As the chart below indicates,
however, with a more conservative estimate of $50/day for each bed saved, exercising any one or
more of the options still could generate considerable savings.
Bed
Savings
843

Cost Savings
(In millions)
$15.4 M

b. Parolees released, on average, no later than 5
months after their parole eligibility date

459

$ 8.4 M

c. Reduce probation technical violation admissions,
average, by 25%

488

$ 8.9 M

d. Reduce, on average, the LOS of probation
technical violators by three months

341

$ 6.2 M

e. Release short term sentenced prisoners after
having served 50% of the sentence

279

$ 5.1 M

f. Reduce transitional supervision/community and
parole technical violations

268

$ 4.9 M

2,678

$ 48.9 M

Option
a. 85 Percent Release Restriction

Totals

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3.

Reinvestment of Some of the Savings in an Employment Initiative

Options such as those above present policymakers looking for ways to balance the budget
with ways to cut costs without reducing services to the community or laying off state employees.
Accordingly, if state officials exercise any of the above options, they would no doubt return a
certain percentage of the savings generated to the general fund. At the same time, state officials
should also keep in mind the importance of investing some of these resources in improving
community safety and in ensuring the successful transition of the ex-offenders to the community.
For example, as indicated earlier in this paper, implementation of some of these options will
require the expansion of alternative to incarceration programs. Some of the savings will need to
be applied to these efforts.
The quality and availability of employment and job placement services will also have a
significant impact on the extent to which probationers and parolees succeed in the community.
In New York State, for example, 83 percent of all probationers and parolees who violate the
conditions of their release and are returned to prison were unemployed.
State officials seeking to ensure that at least a portion of the savings generated through
one of the new population management strategies described in this paper are protected for an
employment initiative for ex-offenders have at least three options:
a.

4.

Move the savings "off budget" into a newly created economic development
corporation or other authority.

b.

Create a budget line or code in the central budget (or miscellaneous budget)

c.

Appropriate funds directly to a state agency and charge officials there (possibly in
collaboration with other agency officials and community leaders) with the
administration of the initiative.

Development of an Employment Services Program Model for a Community to
which a Large Percentage of Ex-Prisoners Return

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) analyses of the neighborhoods in which
probationers live (and in which inmates cite as their address when they were incarcerated) reflect
that the majority of people with criminal records in the state hail from a few major urban areas in
the state: Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, Waterbury, and Stamford. GIS analysis also
illustrates that, within these urban areas, probationers and inmates are concentrated in particular
communities.
Two other findings are relevant. These analyses demonstrate that probation caseloads
are sufficiently concentrated in a limited number of small neighborhood areas to allow for
caseload re-assignment according to probationer place of residence. Second, comparison of
Department of Labor data with criminal justice data show that the populations served by each of
these government agencies overlap substantially within these same small neighborhoods. It is
also highly likely that a GIS analysis of Department of Social Service (DSS) data would show

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

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that populations receiving TANF and other government needs-based program services also
overlap substantially with criminal justice and Dept. of Labor populations.
States, local governments, and nonprofit organizations across the country have developed
a number of program models, which vary in scope, to facilitate the employment of people
released from prison or jail. Among the key issues that successful programs address include:
x
x
x

Subsidized community service and transitional employment beginning on the day
of release;
Employment skills training and job placement linked to outreach and pre-arranged
agreements with specific employers;
Family strengths based counseling to involve the family or other intimates in
helping the individual ex-offender overcome substance abuse and other barriers to
employment.

Two basic options exist for policymakers considering program models for an initiative to
employ people released from prison.
a.

Develop a low-cost initiative that will have some impact on the employment
prospects of an offender.

This type of program model would include one week of life-skills training, which
addresses topics such as interviewing skills. It also includes, for between three and six months,
one day per week of job development and job placement until the person obtains employment.
Operation of such a program typically costs about $2,000 per participant.
b.

Develop a medium-cost initiative that will have a significant impact on the
employment prospects of an ex-offender.

This type of program model also provides one week of life-skills training, but, in
addition, includes 3-4 months of paid, supported work at minimum wage and one day a week of
job training and job placement. Operation of this type of program averages around $5,000 per
participant.
Of course, there are considerable variations of each of these basic models; some
programs include intensive housing elements, support for fathers, or other components. In
addition, the costs described above can be somewhat misleading. For example, the additional
expense of operating the medium cost initiative is often at least partially offset by the savings it
generates: providing the state or city with free employees or reducing welfare rolls are two such
examples.

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5.

Additional Investments to Support the Employment Initiative

The community selected as the pilot site, which will almost certainly already suffer from
high unemployment rates, will likely have limited job opportunities even for people without
criminal records. To develop and maintain job opportunities for that population and the moredifficult-to-employ ex-offender, state officials will need to transform the savings generated from
the population management initiative into a larger pool of resources. The following describes
three options for Connecticut state officials to leverage the funds made available to the
employment initiative so that they have a far greater impact.

6.

a.

Leverage funds set aside for the initiative by investing in community development
financial institutions that will place investments in small businesses, job creation
and general community development targeted to low-income neighborhoods
and/or criminal justice populations

b.

Match resources made available through the population management strategy
with funds available through federal “pass through” grant programs such as the
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the Workforce Investment
Act (WIA)

c.

Capitalize on tax incentives established to assist employers hire people without
jobs or receiving public assistance

Obstacles to Employment Unique to People with Criminal Records
a.

Conduct an inventory of state statutes and regulations that prohibit the
employment of people with criminal records

b.

Modify those laws and regulations that employers and criminal justice officials
alike agree unnecessarily impede the employment of people with criminal records

c.

Provide a mechanism (e.g., certificate of rehabilitation) that enables certain
categories of people with criminal records to demonstrate to employers and others
that they have successfully completed their obligations under the criminal justice
system

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SUPPORTING CHARTS AND TABLES
James Austin, Ph.D., George Washington University

Major Crime and Correctional Trends in Connecticut
1. Connecticut’s crime rate has been steadily declining since 1990 –
similar to the reduction reported for the nation and other states.
2. One major reason for the decline in the crime rate has been an
associated decline in the “at-risk” population.
3. Connecticut has substantially lower crime rates and prison
incarceration rates than other states.
4. Among the northeastern states, Connecticut has the highest
incarceration rate.
5. Connecticut’s overall disparity in incarceration rates between whites,
blacks and Hispanic is among the highest in the U.S.
6. The incarceration rate for whites is among the lowest in the nation,
while the black incarceration rate is above the national average. The
Hispanic rate is twice that of the national average.
7. For those sentenced to prison for a year a more for crimes of violence,
the state has the nation’s longest length of stay and the highest
proportion of prison sentences served.
8. The parole board "grant rate" is relatively high compared to other
states (65-70 percent).
9. The size of the parole population, while increasing, is one of the
lowest in the U.S.
10. The Connecticut prison system is continuing to increase in size
despite a fluctuating number of admissions. The major increases are
within the sentenced population, which is being caused by longer
lengths of stay. The un-sentenced population is relatively stable

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

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11. A major reason for the increased length of stay for sentenced felons is
directly related to the abolition of good-time policies by the
legislature.
12. Of the 31,766 admissions to the DOC in 2002, nearly 4,000 were
listed as probation violators, approximately 385 were Community
Release violators, approximately 660 were technical parole violators,
and another 590 were technical violators of Transition Supervision.
In total, about 5,600 (or 18%) of all admissions are technical
violations of some form of community supervision.
13. There are a minimum of 2,250 prisoners who are there for violating
either the terms of probation or conditional discharge (Community
Release, Transition Supervision, or Parole.)
14. Prisoners who are paroled and released via parole are incarcerated an
average of nine months beyond their Parole Eligibility date.
15. Over 6,500 prisoners are 35 years or older and over 40 percent of the
sentenced population is in the lower custody levels of I (9 percent) or
II (32 percent).
16. Given that only 30 percent of the prison population has been
convicted or charged with a violent crime, and that the largest other
“offense categories” are drug distribution (17%), probation violation
(14%), drug possession (6%), and theft/larceny (6%), it would appear
that there is a significant portion of the prison population that could be
managed in the community without jeopardizing public safety.

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TABLE 1
COMPARISON BETWEEN UNITED STATES AND CONNECTICUT ON KEY
POPULATION, CRIME AND CORRECTIONS INDICATORS
Total Population (7/1/01) 1
Change in Population
1-year change (7/1/00-7/1/01)
10-year change (7/1/91-7/1/01)
UCR Part 1 Reported Crime Rates (2001) 2
Total
Violent
Property
Change in Total Reported Crime Rate
1-year change (2000-2001)
10-year change (1991-2001)
Total Inmates (2001) 3
1-year change (2000-2001)
6-year change (1995-2001)
Average annual change (1995-2001)
Incarceration Rate (Rate per 100,000 inhabitants)4

United States
284,796,887

Connecticut
3,425,074

0.9%
12.9%

0.4%
4.1%

4,160.5
504.4
3,618.3

3,117.9
335.5
2,782.4

0.9%
-29.5%

-3.6%
-41.9%

1,406,031
1.1%
24.7%
3.8%
470

19,196
4.6%
29.7%
4.8%
387

Inmates by Offense Type (State Prisons Only
2000)5
Violent
49%
29%
Property
20%
12%
Drug
21%
23%
Other
10%
33%
* Other offense types consist of probation violation, criminal attempt, immigration charges and other status
offenses.

1

U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division. Population estimates for July 1, 2001.
Uniform Crime Reports, Crime in the United States, Federal Bureau of Investigation.
3
Prisoners in 2001, Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin (July 2002). Figures represent prisoners under
state or federal correctional authorities.
4
Prisoners in 2001, Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin (July 2002). Rate represents prisoners under state
or federal correctional authorities.
5
Prisoners in 2001, Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin (July 2002). Connecticut data provided by CTDOC
2

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TABLE 2
CONNECTICUT DOC INMATE POPULATION
BY TOWN OF RESIDENCE
JULY 2002
Town of Residence

N=19,216

%

Non-Connecticut

1,672

8.7%

Bridgeport

2,364

12.3%

346

1.8%

Hartford

2,729

14.2%

Meriden

461

2.4%

New Britain

749

3.9%

New Haven

2,882

15.0%

New London

307

1.6%

Norwalk

346

1.8%

Stamford

500

2.6%

1,326

6.9%

307

1.6%

5,227

27.2%

East Hartford

Waterbury
West Haven
Other

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TABLE 3
CONNECTICUT ADMISSIONS POPULATION
BY OFFENSE
2002
Offense

VIOLENCE

N

%

4,952

16%

Murder/Manslaughter

172

1%

Sex

497

2%

3,411

10%

872

3%

5,725

19%

Drug Possession

2,380

8%

Drug Distribution

3,345

11%

4,475

14%

Theft/Larceny

2,414

8%

Burglary/Other

2,061

6%

16,624

51%

641

2%

DWI & Related

2,405

8%

Probation Violation

3,998

12%

Other Non-Violent

9,580

29%

31,776

100.0%

Assault
Robbery
DRUGS

PROPERTY

OTHER OFFENSES
Weapons

TOTAL
Source: CT DOC produced data files

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TABLE 4
CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS
CROSS TAB OF ADMIT TYPES WITH LEGAL STATUS
2002

Admit Type
New Admits
New Admits-Other
New Admits-Civil
Parole-Return
Parole Viol-Tech
Return Other
Return from Trans/Com
Readmission-Other
Readmission-Sentence
Readmission Continued
Return with New Charge
Readmission Parcom/Cuscom
Total

Legal Status
Sentenced>2 Sentenced<2
Unyear
year
sentenced
436
2,280
5,929
184
200
511
25
60
1,040
7
7
68
529
42
60
60
34
8
487
693
130
41
22
80
706
3,051
171
1,975
3,484
7,620
270
61
60
3
2
37
4,723
9,936
15,714

Federal
111
606
80
14
69
8
12
383
20
75
7
8
1,393

Total
8,756
1,501
1,205
96
700
110
1,322
526
3,948
13,154
398
50
31,766

Source: CT DOC produced data files

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TABLE 5
CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS
CROSSTABULATION OF RELEASE TYPES WITH LEGAL STATUS
2002
Release Type
Discharge to Court
Discharge to Feds
Discharge to Immigration
Fine Paid
Time Served
Escape
Death
Parole to Feds
Other Release
Release to Community
Release to Parcom
Release to Re-entry Furlough
Released to Supervised Parole
Transfer to Trans Supv
Un-sentenced Discharge on Bond
Total

Sentenced>2
year
319
1
3
2
1,677
92
34
16
906
1,102
51
69
1,110
306
395
6,083

Legal Status
Sentenced<2
Unyear
sentenced
845
6,195
1
9
3
11
26
136
5,488
766
59
4
11
12
857
428
1
29
33
604
495
8,880

990
8
3
22
26
5,689
13,871

Federal
109
381
824
14
1
1
45
3
1
158
1
14
1,552

Total
7,468
392
841
164
7,945
156
57
17
2,798
1,533
60
102
1,323
937
6,593
30,386

Source: CT DOC produced data files

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TABLE 6
CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS
INCARCERATED POPULATION BY OFFENSE
DECEMBER 2002
Offense
Violent
Murder/Manslaughter
Sex
Assault
Robbery
Drug
Drug Possession
Drug Distribution
Property
Other Property
Theft/Larceny
Burglary
Fraud
Weapons
DWI & Related
Failure to Appear
Purge/Civil Commitment
Probation Violation
Other Non-Violent
Lifer
Total

N
5,749
1,186
950
2,157
1,456
4,453
1,193
3,260
2,288
98
1,103
964
123
460
534
329
31
2,641
2,740
139
19,364

%
29.7%
6.1%
4.9%
11.1%
7.5%
23.0%
6.2%
16.8%
11.8%
0.5%
5.7%
5.0%
0.6%
2.4%
2.8%
1.7%
0.2%
13.6%
14.1%
0.7%
100.0%

Source: CT DOC produced data files

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

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Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

18

Inmates

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

1991

1,701

1,709

1990

112

8,500

140

7,285

455

9,589

501

10,814

1992

1,712

147

8,691

472

11,022

1993

1,954

180

9,133

502

11,769

Total Male Accused

Total Female Accused

Male Sentenced

Female Sentenced

1994

2,227

239

11,049

610

14,125

1995

2,602

247

11,266

774

Year

1996

2,679

274

11,229

785

14,889 14,967

1997

3,068

301

11,362

857

15,588

1998

3,172

367

11,618

752

15,909

1999

3,010

283

12,673

810

16,776

Historical Inmate Population by Gender

2000

2,774

321

13,445

919

2001

3,077

393

13,376

854

17,459 17,700

2002

3,587

441

13,897

948

18,873

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

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Inmates

1990

1,849

7,740

9,589

st

1991

1,813

9,001

10,814

st

1992

1,859

9,163

11,022

*Data for Jan. 1 vs. July 1

1,000

3,000

5,000

7,000

9,000

11,000

13,000

15,000

17,000

19,000

1993

2,134

11,659

1994

2,466

9,635

11,769

14,125

1995

2,849

3,369

1998

3,539

12,370

15,909

12,219

1997
Year

1996

2,953

12,014

14,967

12,040

14,889

15,588

1999

3,293

13,483

16,776

2000

3,095

2001

3,470

Total Sentenced

Total Accused

4,028

2002

Total Incarcerated

14,845

18,873

14,230

17,700

14,364

17,459

Historical Inmate Population by Legal Status (1990-2003*)

2003*

3,628

15,220

19,216

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

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Grant Rate

65.0%

66.0%

67.0%

68.0%

69.0%

70.0%

71.0%

72.0%

73.0%

74.0%

75.0%

AR

73.6%

Hearing

Full

68.0%

CONNECTICUT DOC GRANT RATE BY HEARING TYPE

Series1

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

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Population

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2,500,000

3,000,000

3,500,000

4,000,000

Year

90 991 992 993 994 995 996 997 998 999 000 001
2
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
19

At-Risk Population (20-34)

Total Population

05
20

CONNECTICUT POPULATION VS. AT RISK POPULATION
(HISTORICAL & PROJECTED)

10
20

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

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No. of Inmates

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

1990

6,379

9,589

15,968

1991

6,587

1992

5,699

1993

4,640

1994

1,704

1995

1,205

Year

1996

1,215

1997

1,608

1998

1,593

1999

1,656

2002

1,401

2001

1,336

2000

1,702

Total Community Inmates

Total Incarcerated

Total Supervised

18,873

20,529

17,700

19,101

17,459

18,795

16,776

18,478

15,909

17,517

15,588

17,181

14,967

16,182

14,889

16,094

14,125

15,829

11,769

16,409

11,022

16,721

10,814

17,401

Historical Supervised Population

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15,000

16,000

17,000

18,000

19,000

20,000

21,000

2000

17,305

2001

17,137

2003
Base Forecast

2002
Actual

17,999

2004

18,855

19,226

Alternative Forecast

18,671

19,216

Actual and Projected Inmate Population

2005

18,646

19,782

2006

18,320

20,338

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

Bridgeport

Waterbury

New Haven

Hartford

Persons Sentenced and Admitted to Prison
Connecticut Towns, 2002

MAPS
Eric Cadora, Open Society Institute

24

Building Bridges: From Conviction to Employment

25

Yale &
Central Business District

New Haven Neighborhoods, 2002

Race and Single Parent Households

Federal
Empowerment Zone

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Dwight

Hill

Newhallville

Persons Sentenced and Admitted to Prison
New Haven Neighborhoods, 2002

Dixwell

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New Haven Neighborhoods, 2002

Prison Expenditures

Probation Violations = $6.2 million

Total Admissions = $19.8 million

Hill

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New Haven Neighborhoods, 2002

Persons on Probation

Hill
3% of New Haven Neighborhoods
are Home to 18% of Probationers

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Hill

142 Level (2) Probationers
Assigned to 22 Probation Officers

New Haven Probation Office

Level (2) Supervision Officer Caseload: 93 cases

New Haven Neighborhoods and the Hill Community

Probation Caseload Distribution Example

Probationers, Unemployment Insurance Claimants,
and TFA Recipients
Probationers
Neighborhoods

Probationers per 1000
233.3
30.1 - 51.8
20.1 - 30.0
10.1 - 20.0
0.0 - 10.0

UI Claimants

TFA Recipients

Neighborhoods
Neighborhoods

TFA Recipients per 1000

UI Claimants per 1000
100.1 - 183.3

334

70.1 - 100.0

50.1 - 80.0

50.1 - 70.0

30.1 - 50.0

30.1 - 50.0

10.1 - 30.0

1.3 - 30.0

0.0 - 10.0

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New Haven Neighborhoods, 2002

Employment Agencies and Banks

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New Haven Neighborhoods, 2002

Non-Profit Organizations and Faith-Based Institutions

BIOGRAPHIES OF PRESENTERS

James Austin
Director, Institute on Crime, Justice, and Corrections, George Washington University
Dr. James Austin is the director of the Institute on Crime, Justice, and Corrections
at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining the GWU, he
was the Executive Vice President of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency
where he was employed for 20 years. He began his career in corrections in 1970 when he
was employed by the Illinois Department of Corrections as a correctional sociologist at
the Joliet and Stateville prisons.
Dr. Austin was named by the American Correctional Association as its 1991
recipient of the Peter P. Lejin's Research Award. In 1999 he received the Western
Society of Criminology Paul Tappin award for outstanding contributions in the field of
criminology. Since 2000, he has served as the Chair of American Society of Criminology
National Policy Committee.
Dr. Austin has authored numerous publications including three books. His most
recent book, It's About Time: America's Imprisonment Binge, was first published in 1996
(co-authored with Dr. John Irwin). The third edition was published this spring.
Each year the ICJC is awarded approximately $1.5 million in research contracts
from federal and state correctional agencies. Many State departments of correction,
including those in Texas, Georgia, and California, have sought Dr. Austin's assistance in
analyzing their prison population. Dr. Austin has also directed studies in 25 states that
entail projections of correctional populations based on current and proposed sentencing
reforms. In addition, the ICJC has recently conducted national evaluations of "Three
Strikes and You're Out" laws, the privatization of prisons, juveniles in adult corrections,
and prison classification systems. In 1999 Dr. Austin was designated by the U.S.
Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division to serve as the Federal Monitor to oversee
major reforms in the Georgia juvenile correctional system.

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Michael P. Jacobson
Professor, John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Dr. Michael P. Jacobson teaches at the City University of New York Graduate
Center and the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in the Department of Law, Police
Science, and Criminal Justice Administration. He has also served on the Graduate
Faculty of the Wagner School of Public Administration at New York University, where
he taught courses on public policy analysis and governmental budgeting. He has a Ph.D
in Sociology from the CUNY Grad Center.
Dr. Jacobson retired from government administration in 1997. He had been
appointed Correction Commissioner in 1996 by Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, after
serving as Acting Correction Commissioner beginning in January 1995. While Acting
Correction Commissioner, he continued to serve as Commissioner of the New York City
Probation Department, having been appointed to that position in 1992.
Prior to his appointment as Probation Commissioner, he served as Deputy Budget
Director at the City’s Office of Management and Budget, where he worked for seven
years. He previously served as Deputy Director of the Mayor’s Arson Strike Force for
five years, where he helped plan and coordinate the City’s anti-arson strategies.
For two decades, Dr. Jacobson has specialized in the field of criminal justice,
particularly in the areas of financial issues, technology initiatives, multi-agency
operations and victims’ rights. He also is a member of the Vera Institute of Justice Board
of Trustees.

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