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Improving life for children with jailed parents is goal for Lincoln senator

Star-Herald - 9/17/2017

Lincoln Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks thinks changes in contacts between jailed parents and their children could help stressed families.

An estimated 2.7 million children in the United States have a parent in jail or prison. In Nebraska, about 41,000 children have had a parent in jail or prison at some point in their childhood. According to Voices for Children in Nebraska, the state has one of the highest rates in the country.

A study resolution (LR198) introduced by Pansing Brooks is looking at the impact on children and families of having nearly 9,000 people - many of them parents - in Nebraska jails and prisons. In the state prisons, 66 percent of female inmates are parents, and 65 percent of the male prisoners.

The study includes examining jail visitation and phone call policies for parents and their children, opportunities in sentencing and placement to ease the physical and emotional trauma children experience, and child-friendly visitation policies in prisons.

Julia Tse, policy coordinator with Voices for Children in Nebraska, told the Judiciary Committee on Friday that in talking to young people, parents and grandparents, it became clear that decades of "tough on crime" policies has negatively impacted children, often pushing them into the justice system later, too.

The loss of physical contact of such a key figure can permanently damage relationships. Visitation policies are not child friendly, nor do they contribute to parent-child bonding, Tse said.

There's no opportunity for parents to interact with their children in a way that leads to positive development and bonding, she said, other than a few parenting classes and parent-child programs in the men's and women's prisons.

For example, physical contact is limited to a single kiss and hug at the beginning and end of each visit for anyone age 4 and older. Those 3 and under can remain on their parents' laps during the visit.

"A 4- or 5-year old is not going to understand that it's a rule why mom or dad is not touching them," Tse said.

Those children may think the parent likes the younger sibling more, she said.

"I think we know that we're talking about love," Pansing Brooks said, "and withholding of love does not lead to rehabilitation of a criminal. So I don't understand what's happening."

The ACLU of Nebraska pointed out some county jails inmates can pay as much as $20 to make a 15-minute phone call to their children. The state prisons charge only 19 cents to make that 15-minute call. In some counties, inmates must also pay extra fees for having an account, adding funds to an account or for billing.

"High call rates have real-life impacts on the parents and the children, since the average length of stay for a county jail prisoner is 55 days," the ACLU said in written testimony.

The stressful experience of having a parent in jail may go so far as to affect a child's brain and adversely impact development, mental and physical health, Tse said. And it could lead to risk-taking behaviors.

Nearly all men and women in prisons and jails will be released at some point, she said, and Nebraska must not fail to support parents in taking up their roles when they get out, she said.

Inspector General for Corrections Doug Koebernick said the solution should include more than just the Department of Correctional Services, but should include schools, child welfare, behavioral health and parole agencies and programs.

Koebernick also noted that nearly all of the approximate 345 female inmates reside in York, which is not where the vast majority are from, and the distance to their home communities is a barrier to family visits.

About one-third of women in the prison are from the Omaha area, which has about 20 prison beds for women who could qualify for work detail or work release. But the department has said it is going to convert those to beds for men when they open additional beds for women in Lincoln in 2019.

"This will make it even more difficult for those women to build positive relationships with their children as they transition back to their home community," he said. "I would definitely encourage the department to rethink this decision."

Other recommendations from those testifying included:

* Increase minimum age for physical contact during visits;

*Create child-friendly physical spaces and allow for natural age-appropriate interactions, including games, toys, books;

* Reduce barriers to visiting and contact, such as transportation assistance, allowing parents to have prison placements closer to home and reducing cost of phone calls in county jails;

* Provide training for correctional staff in interacting with children and communicating with family members;

*Increase phone call time limits for children.