The process of re-entering society after serving time in a federal, state or county correctional facility is a painfully frustrating and humiliating path that, for many ex-offenders, may seem deliberately designed to guarantee failure.

In California, many former inmates recently released from prison face long roads to reintegrate to society. As it pertains to ex-offenders formerly incarcerated in the Golden State, experts believe that the severity of California’s Three Strikes law, creates more barriers and obstacles that make the likelihood of failure and recidivism very high.

The Initial Release from Incarceration

In the case of former inmates released from any of the 36 state prisons managed by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), the journey to reentry begins when they are given a meager severance known as “gate money” upon release.

Typically issued in the form of a disposable debit card loaded with $200 in state funds, gate money is intended to cover a former inmate’s immediate expenses such as food and housing, presumably until they can secure assistance from elsewhere. However, the reality is that the $200 issued to former inmates is barely enough to cover a bus ticket for those who need transportation home.

As noted by journalists Mia Armstrong and Nicole Lewis in their 2019 article “What Gate Money Can (And Cannot) Buy” published by The Marshall Project, in California the gate money amount hasn’t increased since 1973, when $200 was worth the equivalent of about $1,200 today.

In addition to offering in-prison rehabilitation and services, The CDCR also offers a number of re-entry services to adult former inmates through its Police and Corrections Team (PACT). These services are available to ex-offenders and their families for a period of only three years after the inmate’s release, including computer and technology classes, drug and alcohol testing, counseling, remedial education, job search and placement, and substance abuse education and prevention.

However, former inmates are often forced to seek assistance outside of the system, from community organizations to cover basic needs like food, housing, and work dedicated to helping those released from lengthy incarcerations.

Those reentry community organizations offer different programs related to job training, substance abuse treatment and prevention, domestic violence counseling, and cognitive behavioral therapy.

Janie Hodge, founder and executive Director of Lancaster-based community organization Paving the Way Foundation, and a longtime member of the steering committee at the Los Angeles Regional Reentry Partnership (LARRP), noted that decarcerated women have more support at the institutional level than decarcerated men do.

Incarcerated women for instance get assistance from the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) in meeting the court-ordered criteria required to secure custody of or visitation rights in regards to their children.

“They have a small advantage,” Hodge said, “because of having children and the DCFS process. They have a lot more support than men.”

Other Re-Entry Barriers

Despite the vast number of various agencies and organizations that offer the multiple services and programs designed to assist ex-offenders, these are rarely located within close proximity to one another, and too often do not work in conjunction.

From substance abuse to toxic romantic relationships, the list of barriers for ex-offenders to reintegrate to society is long. But, perhaps the most difficult obstacle for former inmates is the stigmatization that comes with their status of “ex-offender” – a societal tag that severely hamstrings their chances of becoming and remaining gainfully employed.

According to Maria “Alex” Alexander, executive director of the Center for Living and Learning in Van Nuys, for many formerly incarcerated women with children, that stigmatization often starts at home.

The unexpected impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the state’s rehabilitation and reentry infrastructure has just made California’s recidivism problem even worse. Advocates agree that it’s no surprise the state’s recidivism rate has risen in recent years despite numerous efforts to curb it.

As Hodge puts it, “It’s a vicious cycle.”