Pathways for Change: reducing recidivism and saving tax dollars

A few weeks ago, we published a story on proposed changes to our criminal justice system – Florida’s Criminal Justice System.

Since 1970, the number of Floridians in prison has grown more than four times as quickly as the state’s population overall. There are more people serving life without parole here than anywhere else in the nation, and those who are released don’t fair well—one in three released convicts return to prison within three years.

Pathways for Change, a local non-profit, has worked for the past 10 years to reduce Escambia County’s recidivism rate. In a press release sent out today, the organization estimates it has saved Escambia County residents an estimated $4.2 million in the last decade through its residential treatment program for drug offenders.

“We deal with the real problem,” chief operations officer Chris Collins said. “The real problem is addiction, but also things like a lack of education and job training. We take a holistic approach and try to remove every obstacle so they are more likely to become productive citizens.”

The Inweekly article was triggered by Florida Tax Watch’s annual government efficiency report that was released last month. Tax Watch recommended the state invest in building web-based tools that would help judges, prosecutors and others analyze the costs and risks of incarceration compared to other sentencing options. Its researchers estimated that every 1 percent reduction in recidivism would translate to $8 million in taxpayer savings.

Pathways for Change is one such option that could make a difference is instituted statewide.

“They’re throwing money at a broken system, only to have a bigger broken system,” Pathways Director Connie Bookman said. “Legislators need to pay attention to reality.”

Collins agreed. “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” he said. “The judges in our county see this as a better option than sending a man to prison. I think the introduction of programs like ours throughout the state would help turn the tide of a bloated system.”