The Legal Aid Society has officially launched the Reentry Services Unit to work with clients on returning home from incarceration. Through the country’s oldest public defense organization, the pilot program directly assists with needs ranging from applying for a state ID and developing workplace skills to connecting with mental healthcare and obtaining housing.
“The courts and the D.A. offices really want to see an opportunity for stability when clients are released, and we are here to be able to help [and] provide that support,” Alexandra Shookhoff, the Legal Aid Society’s director of post-conviction legal operations, told the AmNews in an exclusive interview. “And we’re really excited about the work that we’re going to be able to do, connecting with clients while they’re still incarcerated, and then helping with that transition home.”
Coming home remains daunting for many incarcerated New Yorkers. Services and legal protections exist, but can be patchwork for returning citizens navigating housing and hiring discrimination while rebuilding often frayed social relationships. Dealing with red tape, like obtaining necessary documents and applying for benefits, can also frustrate those returning home from prison.
Ultimately, the hope is to prevent recidivism by guiding clients through this balancing act. The unit can get a head start by working with them through the entire legal process, rather than waiting for post-release. The pilot will focus on four specific practice areas with wrongful convictions, domestic violence survivors, parole advocacy, and Sex Offender Registry Act (SORA).
“For every practice area, we have been learning more and more about barriers that people have,” said Andrea paralegal client advocate Padilla-Gonzalez. “We’ve met for [the] Wrongful Convictions Unit. We’ve met with partner organizations where we can start to see a glimpse into how that client would come back into society — for example, [with] wrongful conviction, it’s also a mental part of learning about what they went through, and also the convictions that aren’t there anymore. Every practice area comes with very distinct troubles and barriers.”
Two key unit members draw from their own experiences as formerly incarcerated individuals. Project manager Seán Dalpiaz and paralegal client advocate NahShon Jackson pointed to how a support system impacted their own reentry stories.
“I had support,” said Jackson. “Not everybody has that same support: family members coming to pick you up, having a cell phone ready for you [on] day one, having a job ready [and] lined up…Seán and I, we’ve been in those places before, so we’re at a vantage point. Because we’re actually operating as if we’re coming home ourselves.”
“I’ve seen folks after folks after folks who weren’t as fortunate as NahSean and I [who] had to take just what they could get,” added Dalpiaz. “And the reality is, not everyone, for lack of a better term, maybe has the grit to deal with a job that might not be the best fit for them for whatever reason. Or might need a little bit more support in getting to the job or the place of employment that is really best.”
So the unit plans on fostering a community through the pilot. Shookhoff mentions monthly trainings addressing issues like technology literacy, financial literacy, and workforce development. “And then we’ll also be able to create community,” she said. “Half of it will be training. Half of it will be connecting with other people.”
The post New Legal Aid Society unit tackles client life after prison head-on appeared first on New York Amsterdam News.
