Aid Families of the Incarcerated
Both TDCJ and the Texas Legislature should make policy changes that recognize the importance of family in the rehabilitative and reentry process.
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Assess Family Impact. Quantitative and qualitative research on the impact of parental incarceration on children and on other members of the immediate family is needed. This research should address the effect of the geographic distance between the child and parent in prison, especially with regards to family visitation, when prisons are located in remote, rural locations.
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Change TDCJ Policy. TDCJ should review its regulations in regards to mail, phone calls, and visitation to ensure that they are family-friendly and do not have a negative impact on incarcerated parents’ efforts to maintain family relationships and to retain custody of their children. TDCJ should also implement parent-child visiting programs that will allow parents to spend an extended amount of time with their child on site at the prison. Lastly, TDCJ should re-train corrections administrators to sensitize them to family issues.
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Change State Policy. Texas should provide mentoring programs for children of the incarcerated to boost their educational level and help prevent criminal activity and entry into the system, as well as provide support groups for caregivers of incarcerated children, and for the children and incarcerated parents themselves.