ATLANTA — Members of a group charged with coming up with suggestions to reform the federal corrections system on Tuesday sought advice from the leaders of Georgia’s criminal justice reform initiative.
The Charles Colson Task Force on Federal Corrections is a nine-person, bipartisan group that is congressionally mandated to analyze data and make recommendations to tackle challenges in the federal corrections system. The members have been meeting this year with groups that would be affected and plan to finalize their suggestions in December and to release their final report in January.
In the public round table meeting at the Georgia Capitol, task force members heard from Georgia Court of Appeals Judge Michael Boggs and State Bar of Georgia director of governmental affairs Thomas Worthy, co-chairs of the Georgia Council on Criminal Justice reform. The discussion was moderated by former state Rep. Jay Neal, the executive director of the Governor’s Office of Transition, Support and Reentry.
The Georgia initiative began in 2011 and has become a signature project for Republican Gov. Nathan Deal. It has led to the passage of comprehensive laws to overhaul the adult and juvenile criminal justice systems and to aid the re-entry of offenders into society once they are released.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal Keys to success in Georgia included executive leadership from the governor, the will to get past politics and partisanship, collaboration, and inclusion of those affected, Boggs told the federal task force members.
Neal and Boggs stressed that simply looking at sentencing, probation and diversion programs isn’t enough, that meaningful efforts need to be made to help offenders while they are in prison so they are adequately prepared for their release.
“Our re-entry initiative starts when they enter the system, not when they get out,” Boggs said.
Worthy noted the importance of having a data-driven conversation, not only to make well-informed decisions but also to help bolster arguments presented to stakeholders and the public.
The members of the federal task force said they were impressed by the executive and legislative cooperation and bipartisan nature of Georgia’s effort. They also praised the use of data.
Task force member Jim Liske, president and CEO of Prison Fellowship Ministries, said he was glad to hear the Georgia initiative leaders talk about the moral aspect of criminal justice reform.
“Georgia has come around to the reality of human dignity,” he said.
The members of the task force also planned to visit the federal penitentiary and to meet with inmates during their visit to Atlanta.