MANSFIELD, Ohio–Judge Nancy Margaret Russo, who presides over the Cuyahoga County Re-entry Court (REEC), visited Richland Correctional Institute (RiCI) March 20 to speak with offenders regarding transitional control eligibility and changes in legislation that specify eligibility for re-entry court.
Cuyahoga County REEC was implemented in 2007 and is funded through the Office of Criminal Justice Services. It is a specialized docket established to address the needs of offenders transitioning from prison back to the community.
REEC provides intensive programming and supervision to eligible offenders by preparing case plans that center on specific offender needs such as education, employment, housing, substance abuse and mental health treatment. REEC also monitors released offenders.
RiCI inmates listened as Russo explained the application procedure for the Cuyahoga County REEC and how the recent changes in legislation affect eligibility.
Russo noted that she is personally involved in REEC cases, and even interviews eligible applicants. Russo said she interviews nearby applicants in person, and others by video. “I will have a one-on-one with you by video so you and I can have a conversation,” Russo told RiCI inmates. “I do that because, too often, people look like one thing on paper, and that’s not who that person is.”
She said that once an offender is accepted, the final decision regarding participation lies with the sentencing judge.
The program is quite successful, she noted. “We have an 85 percent success rate,” said Russo. “For three years, 85 percent of the people that have been through this program don’t even get a traffic ticket.”
“This is the highest success rate you will find anywhere. I’m very serious about this program. I’m not happy until it’s 100 percent,” she added, “85 percent is good, but it’s not enough.”
Russo noted that inmates are assigned to certain facilities based on behavior, and that affects their applicant status. “The fact that you are here at Richland is good. I already know that you have demonstrated that you can get along in the institution, even though you may have had some problems.”
RiCI Correctional Wardens Assistant Jennifer Gillece noted that RiCI’s focus is reintegration, and that Russo is a popular speaker at the facility. “At Richland, our mission has always been reentry. We have attempted to bring in more people from the community that can somehow educate our offender population on the resources that would be available to them and also bridge that gap from incarceration to release,” said Gillece.
“There have been a lot of legislative changes that have gone on for our department that impact the offender population,” she continued. “Judge Russo is a very willing participant in educating the population on those changes and encouraging them to understand the legal process. We’re very fortunate to have her take the time to come out here and do this.”
House Bill 86 (H.B. 86) is responsible for many of the changes in legislation. The bill went into effect Sept. 30, 2011, and contains significant amendments to criminal and prison law. A draft of the legislation may be found here.
Gillece noted that programs like REEC may have contributed to the overall reduction in recidivism statewide, with Ohio rating 27.5 percent, nearly half the nationwide rate of 49.7 percent. Ohio is down approximately 12 percent over the last decade, she added.
“Re-entry is what has really helped push the recidivism rate,” she said. “We have people coming in because we want to bridge the gap, to make it a better transition and be more supportive. There are a lot of people in the community coming together to help with that.”
