Advocates say programs that connect people to services before and after release are the most powerful tool against the revolving door.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. โ Plans to reopen Jail North for juvenile offenders are on hold as Mecklenburg County leaders shift focus to a growing overcrowding crisis inside the main detention center and the organizations working inside those walls say the impact goes well beyond space and staffing.
Groups likeย Life Connections of the Carolinas and Step Up to Leadership work directly with people inside Mecklenburg County Detention Center, offering classes, mentorship and reentry support. But with the facility now housing more than 2,000 people, advocates say overcrowding is making that work more challenging.
“Classes start getting called off because officers can’t transport individuals to the classrooms,” Glenn Smith, founder and executive director of Life Connections of the Carolinas said. “Everything gets locked down.”
Smith, whose nonprofit specializes in keeping kids out of jail and keeping adults from going back, said the ripple effects are significant. ย Adding when the facility is overcrowded, access to certified peer support specialists and educational programming that help prepare them to successfully reenter the community are impacted.
Arkevious Armstrong, founder of Step Up to Leadership, said programs inside the jail can play a major role in helping people fundamentally change their outlook.
“We’re coaching them to understand the first thing that you must switch on is shifting your mindset,” Armstrong said.
A message Armstrong said comes from personal experience. Before founding his organization, Armstrong said he cycled through foster care and ultimately federal prison before the age of 25. Armstrong said he made the decision to turn his life around while still incarcerated, not after his release.
“I did not wait till I got out. I didn’t wait till I got free. I found the resources and connected with the right individuals,” Armstrong said.
Armstrong now works with both youth and adult offenders, helping them prepare for life after release. His organization, Step Up to Leadership, serves young men ages 12 to 24, focusing on cognitive behavior, leadership development and social skills.
“All it takes is the right choice and right decision, but the right information and right connections to help you change the trajectory of your life,” Armstrong said.
Both advocates stress that resolving the overcrowding issue is critical to ensuring those programs remain accessible.
“If you have support and intervention and mental health professionals to help with that transition, long-term release can be successful… it goes up for sure,” Smith said.
At the same time, advocates say they do not want the overcrowding crisis to indefinitely delay plans to bring juvenile detention beds back to Mecklenburg County. Mecklenburg youth are currently being held in facilities in neighboring counties such as Cabarrus, creating barriers for families and service providers trying to maintain contact.
In the meantime, Life Connections of the Carolinas said it is developing programs to support those youth where they are housed.
“I’d rather have them coming out with someone that they’ve built a relationship with… they can help these kids get into programs that are going to support them, feeling like they’re connecting back to their community,” Smith said.
Discussions on reopening Jail North are expected to continue in the coming week.
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