Brothers Back Restorative Justice
Halfway house would help offenders avoid the ‘prison industrial complex’
One of the nation’s top criminal justice experts lauded the Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s dedication to restorative justice during a June meeting in Philadelphia.
Edwin Davis, PhD, is chairman of Restorative Justice Ministries of Texas and coordinator of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas’ Restorative Justice Ministries. Davis leads the 150-inmate Brotherhood chapter at the Wayne Scott Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in South Texas. He spoke to Brothers attending the ministry’s triennial conference at the Philadelphia Airport Marriott, where he was elected the Brotherhood’s Vice President of Restorative Justice Ministries.
“The way our nation handles criminal justice wounds victims and offenders alike,” Davis said. “Because we are turning our prisons over to corporate America, there is no incentive to reduce recidivism rates. In fact, it’s just the opposite. The more prisoners society creates, the better it is for these businesses.
“President Eisenhower would have called it the prison industrial complex.”
Davis noted that only Russia and China have higher incarceration rates. And no state has more prisoners than Texas, which had 24 prisons in 1990 and 112 today. “There are more prisons in Texas than the entire continent of Europe.
“Your plans for a restorative justice center will play a role in reducing the recidivism rates in Texas prisons. The prisons themselves have no incentive to do anything. They profit from people returning to prison.”
After a year of planning, Brothers will apply for tax-exempt status from the IRS and seek a site for a halfway house to help recently paroled inmates make a successful return to civilian life.
“Prison ministries are just a piece of the puzzle,” Davis said. “Places such as the Brotherhood Restorative Justice Center are sorely needed for those with no family to return to.” It’s needed even for those who do have families because current laws disallow convicted felons from living in public housing.
“So where does a man go whose family lives in public housing?” Davis asked. “This is just one example of how flawed our system is. Restorative justice is about restoring families, even dysfunctional families. Dysfunctional families produce fewer criminals than having no family does.”
He added: “Restorative justice helps the victims as well as the offenders. After time in prison, most offenders want to apologize to the victim. But under Texas law it’s a felony for the offender to communicate in any way with the victim. It’s the same in 17 states.
“There’s no opportunity for redemption.”
Davis recommended that Brotherhood chapters adopt an inmate who is soon to be paroled.
“It takes more than one person to counsel an inmate,” he said. “I’d recommend at least three to five Brothers to mentor each prisoner. They will not be up to date on the latest technology, they will be extremely needy and whatever outside church they attend will not be as satisfying as their prison church.”
Switching topics, Davis said our society must find a way to end the “school-to-prison pipeline.”
“This is a direct result of turning school discipline over to police departments,” he said. “Kids are being handcuffed and arrested for things you and I would get three licks for. Once they have a felony conviction, they can’t get jobs.”
More problems stem from the widespread use of plea bargains.
“So we are sending people to prison for a crime they did not commit. A big part of restorative justice has to do with accountability,” Davis said. “Offenders must take responsibility for their actions. But our current legal system doesn’t allow this to happen by ignoring the real criminal act and sending people to prison for something they didn’t do.”
The rest of the world’s civilized nations utilize restorative justice techniques to rebuild human lives, he said.
“All of Europe, including the Eastern bloc of nations that were a part of the old Soviet Union, use restorative justice,” Davis explained. “So does New Zealand and Australia.
“It’s time that we listen to God’s word and turn to restorative justice,” Davis said. “One way to start is to designate the last Sunday in Advent as Restorative Justice Sunday and preach about Matthew 25:36: I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came unto me.
Davis was appointed to head the national council’s restorative justice ministry.
Goodson is editor of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s publication St. Andrew’s Cross. He can be reached at jimgoodson@aol.com.
One of the nation’s top criminal justice experts lauded the Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s dedication to restorative justice during a June meeting in Philadelphia.
Edwin Davis, PhD, is chairman of Restorative Justice Ministries of Texas and coordinator of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas’ Restorative Justice Ministries. Davis leads the 150-inmate Brotherhood chapter at the Wayne Scott Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in South Texas. He spoke to Brothers attending the ministry’s triennial conference at the Philadelphia Airport Marriott, where he was elected the Brotherhood’s Vice President of Restorative Justice Ministries.
“The way our nation handles criminal justice wounds victims and offenders alike,” Davis said. “Because we are turning our prisons over to corporate America, there is no incentive to reduce recidivism rates. In fact, it’s just the opposite. The more prisoners society creates, the better it is for these businesses.
“President Eisenhower would have called it the prison industrial complex.”
Davis noted that only Russia and China have higher incarceration rates. And no state has more prisoners than Texas, which had 24 prisons in 1990 and 112 today. “There are more prisons in Texas than the entire continent of Europe.
“Your plans for a restorative justice center will play a role in reducing the recidivism rates in Texas prisons. The prisons themselves have no incentive to do anything. They profit from people returning to prison.”
After a year of planning, Brothers will apply for tax-exempt status from the IRS and seek a site for a halfway house to help recently paroled inmates make a successful return to civilian life.
“Prison ministries are just a piece of the puzzle,” Davis said. “Places such as the Brotherhood Restorative Justice Center are sorely needed for those with no family to return to.” It’s needed even for those who do have families because current laws disallow convicted felons from living in public housing.
“So where does a man go whose family lives in public housing?” Davis asked. “This is just one example of how flawed our system is. Restorative justice is about restoring families, even dysfunctional families. Dysfunctional families produce fewer criminals than having no family does.”
He added: “Restorative justice helps the victims as well as the offenders. After time in prison, most offenders want to apologize to the victim. But under Texas law it’s a felony for the offender to communicate in any way with the victim. It’s the same in 17 states.
“There’s no opportunity for redemption.”
Davis recommended that Brotherhood chapters adopt an inmate who is soon to be paroled.
“It takes more than one person to counsel an inmate,” he said. “I’d recommend at least three to five Brothers to mentor each prisoner. They will not be up to date on the latest technology, they will be extremely needy and whatever outside church they attend will not be as satisfying as their prison church.”
Switching topics, Davis said our society must find a way to end the “school-to-prison pipeline.”
“This is a direct result of turning school discipline over to police departments,” he said. “Kids are being handcuffed and arrested for things you and I would get three licks for. Once they have a felony conviction, they can’t get jobs.”
More problems stem from the widespread use of plea bargains.
“So we are sending people to prison for a crime they did not commit. A big part of restorative justice has to do with accountability,” Davis said. “Offenders must take responsibility for their actions. But our current legal system doesn’t allow this to happen by ignoring the real criminal act and sending people to prison for something they didn’t do.”
The rest of the world’s civilized nations utilize restorative justice techniques to rebuild human lives, he said.
“All of Europe, including the Eastern bloc of nations that were a part of the old Soviet Union, use restorative justice,” Davis explained. “So does New Zealand and Australia.
“It’s time that we listen to God’s word and turn to restorative justice,” Davis said. “One way to start is to designate the last Sunday in Advent as Restorative Justice Sunday and preach about Matthew 25:36: I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came unto me.
Davis was appointed to head the national council’s restorative justice ministry.
Goodson is editor of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s publication St. Andrew’s Cross. He can be reached at jimgoodson@aol.com.
From Around the Country
Camp Allen: Camp Serves Up Hope in Abundance
by Drew Day
[Dialog, June 2013]
Diocese of Texas
Thirteen summers ago, the Diocese of Texas’ Restorative Justice Ministry collaborated with Camp Allen to create a summer camp session for children with an incarcerated parent in a county, state or federal prison. Founders recognized these children are six times more likely than their peers to become incarcerated and hoped that Camp Good News would eliminate some of that possibility.
Beginning in 2000, the staff counselors looked forward to serving these children. The summer camp program at Camp
Allen had played an enormous role in their lives, and they wanted to share that gift. The staff was hopeful that the camp experience would have a profound effect on the campers. Allie Sherwood has been a counselor for several years. Each session, she said, counselors share their testimony at an evening gathering with campers to encourage the children to share their own stories. She recalled one particular young girl. “Liz (not her real name) came to me with wet eyes and asked if we could go off and talk privately. Everyone liked Liz. She was energetic and goofy, but she never really opened up. This evening something had changed,” Allie said. Through a deluge of tears, Liz’s story poured out. Liz had never experienced someone sharing their stories in order to help others and she was amazed.
“Liz lived with her mother, her mother’s boyfriend, her sister and her uncle. Her father had been in jail for stealing and she had only seen him several times in her young life. Liz said that her uncle had been molesting her for 12 years, threatening her until the molestation just became a way of life for her. Even though this was her third year to attend Camp Good News, she had never told anyone about her uncle, until she sat with me that evening under the stars at Camp Allen.”
Liz’s uncle no longer lives in the family home and Liz has begun to overcome the eating disorder that has always plagued her. Allie keeps in touch and said that Liz’s faith has grown along with her strength to stand up for herself. “Camp Good News has been a positive force in her life and she is a changed person.”
Lynnette is sweet, caring and loving—a real people pleaser. “She told me she loved Camp Allen, especially the warm water at night and breakfast in the morning.” Lynnette gets bullied a lot at school and her parents leave her alone at home without sufficient food or a cell phone for long periods of time. “But at camp, she wants to share her story and encouraged others to not lose faith, that there are people who do care and will help you through rough times,” Allie said.
Last summer, at dinner, I sat down next to 10-year- old Demetrius and noticed he had carefully placed more green beans on his fork than I thought possible. He stared intently at his creation before he boldly proclaimed, “Ya’ll all dead!” followed by a skillful lunge toward his food. It was so unexpected I fell out of my seat and laughed harder than I ever had in my life. Demetrius had adapted to summer camp like a duck to water.
That night as the staff and I swapped stories from the day, there was an almost tangible excitement. Two of our campers had really connected with one another. They thought they knew each other but weren’t sure. Turned out, they share a biological father who is now in prison, but their mothers had never allowed the girls to meet. Their time at Camp Allen brought them together in their friendship and in their faith.
Our concerns about how these campers would respond to summer camp quickly turned into conversations about their incredibly optimistic attitudes. Our Good News kids were participating and thriving within this community. In fact, I would venture to say these incredible campers found a deeper appreciation for summer camp than nearly all our other children.
Allie agrees. “These kids take on the shame of their parents and yet they are sweet, loving kids. We are blessed by them,” she added, remembering one camper who was grateful for the stillness at Camp Allen. It was her first time to sleep all night without hearing gunfire.
Over the years I have come to believe these campers find something here that is scarce in their world: hope. This is not the “cross your fingers and make a wish” kind of hope. I’m referring to a hope the Bible describes as the joyful and confident expectation of what is to come (ελπιζο). As these children are woven into the fabric of Camp Allen, they begin to believe that something good can happen to them. And as the name “Good News” implies, something extraordinarily good does take place as the Gospel of Jesus Christ is shared.
Day is Summer Camp Director.
Today Camp Good News is stronger than ever, thanks to the steady leadership of Ed Davis. Davis serves as the network chair for Province VII’s Restorative Justice Ministry and as the session director for Camp Good News. Many thanks are owed to the unyielding financial and spiritual support given by the Episcopal Diocese of Texas and its churches. To find out more about Camp Good News or to contact Davis, visit the Camp Good News website campgoodnews4kids.org.
[Dialog, June 2013]
Diocese of Texas
Thirteen summers ago, the Diocese of Texas’ Restorative Justice Ministry collaborated with Camp Allen to create a summer camp session for children with an incarcerated parent in a county, state or federal prison. Founders recognized these children are six times more likely than their peers to become incarcerated and hoped that Camp Good News would eliminate some of that possibility.
Beginning in 2000, the staff counselors looked forward to serving these children. The summer camp program at Camp
Allen had played an enormous role in their lives, and they wanted to share that gift. The staff was hopeful that the camp experience would have a profound effect on the campers. Allie Sherwood has been a counselor for several years. Each session, she said, counselors share their testimony at an evening gathering with campers to encourage the children to share their own stories. She recalled one particular young girl. “Liz (not her real name) came to me with wet eyes and asked if we could go off and talk privately. Everyone liked Liz. She was energetic and goofy, but she never really opened up. This evening something had changed,” Allie said. Through a deluge of tears, Liz’s story poured out. Liz had never experienced someone sharing their stories in order to help others and she was amazed.
“Liz lived with her mother, her mother’s boyfriend, her sister and her uncle. Her father had been in jail for stealing and she had only seen him several times in her young life. Liz said that her uncle had been molesting her for 12 years, threatening her until the molestation just became a way of life for her. Even though this was her third year to attend Camp Good News, she had never told anyone about her uncle, until she sat with me that evening under the stars at Camp Allen.”
Liz’s uncle no longer lives in the family home and Liz has begun to overcome the eating disorder that has always plagued her. Allie keeps in touch and said that Liz’s faith has grown along with her strength to stand up for herself. “Camp Good News has been a positive force in her life and she is a changed person.”
Lynnette is sweet, caring and loving—a real people pleaser. “She told me she loved Camp Allen, especially the warm water at night and breakfast in the morning.” Lynnette gets bullied a lot at school and her parents leave her alone at home without sufficient food or a cell phone for long periods of time. “But at camp, she wants to share her story and encouraged others to not lose faith, that there are people who do care and will help you through rough times,” Allie said.
Last summer, at dinner, I sat down next to 10-year- old Demetrius and noticed he had carefully placed more green beans on his fork than I thought possible. He stared intently at his creation before he boldly proclaimed, “Ya’ll all dead!” followed by a skillful lunge toward his food. It was so unexpected I fell out of my seat and laughed harder than I ever had in my life. Demetrius had adapted to summer camp like a duck to water.
That night as the staff and I swapped stories from the day, there was an almost tangible excitement. Two of our campers had really connected with one another. They thought they knew each other but weren’t sure. Turned out, they share a biological father who is now in prison, but their mothers had never allowed the girls to meet. Their time at Camp Allen brought them together in their friendship and in their faith.
Our concerns about how these campers would respond to summer camp quickly turned into conversations about their incredibly optimistic attitudes. Our Good News kids were participating and thriving within this community. In fact, I would venture to say these incredible campers found a deeper appreciation for summer camp than nearly all our other children.
Allie agrees. “These kids take on the shame of their parents and yet they are sweet, loving kids. We are blessed by them,” she added, remembering one camper who was grateful for the stillness at Camp Allen. It was her first time to sleep all night without hearing gunfire.
Over the years I have come to believe these campers find something here that is scarce in their world: hope. This is not the “cross your fingers and make a wish” kind of hope. I’m referring to a hope the Bible describes as the joyful and confident expectation of what is to come (ελπιζο). As these children are woven into the fabric of Camp Allen, they begin to believe that something good can happen to them. And as the name “Good News” implies, something extraordinarily good does take place as the Gospel of Jesus Christ is shared.
Day is Summer Camp Director.
Today Camp Good News is stronger than ever, thanks to the steady leadership of Ed Davis. Davis serves as the network chair for Province VII’s Restorative Justice Ministry and as the session director for Camp Good News. Many thanks are owed to the unyielding financial and spiritual support given by the Episcopal Diocese of Texas and its churches. To find out more about Camp Good News or to contact Davis, visit the Camp Good News website campgoodnews4kids.org.