By Polly Wright (P. Wright Consultancy).

For the purposes of this report we refer to the individual in custody as the ‘patient’, as their experiences are considered in terms of their health and wellbeing needs. Families’ experience of the impact of the criminal justice system on the health and wellbeing of patients.

Messages from families Where patients present complex and/or significant mental health needs, alternative diversionary treatment should be more readily considered (in line with Public Protection requirements). This should be informed by all agencies currently working with the patient, as well as their family/ significant others (where appropriate). Care not custody required Many of the families consulted felt that their loved ones’ involvement in the criminal justice system was as a result of persistent, systemic failure of services (education, social care, health and/or criminal justice) to meet their needs. Almost a third of families described their loved one as having an acute mental health crisis immediately prior to their contact with the criminal justice system. While families acknowledged patients had committed a criminal offence, many felt that the criminal justice system had failed to effectively consider alternative diversionary treatment appropriate to the patients’ needs. Potential for positive health outcomes Families acknowledged that when the criminal justice system works well, positive health outcomes can be achieved and for some patients, contact with the criminal justice system had had a positive impact as it had provided: consistent access to ongoing support the opportunity to receive mental health diagnosis and treatment that had not been forthcoming in the community removal of risks associated with previous lifestyle quicker access to healthcare access to peer support. Custody as a barrier to positive health outcomes The majority of families witnessed a significant decline in their loved ones’ mental and physical health during their custodial sentence. They attributed this to numerous and inter-related systemic factors including: the pr

London: PACT (Prison Advice and Care Trust) 2023. 80p.

By Jessica Meyerson and Christa Otteson

To incorporate the broad and diverse range of research that speaks to families affected by incarceration, the remainder of this literature review is organized into three sections:  A brief review of the service needs of families affected by incarceration  A review of the most widely agreed upon research-based “practices” related to families affected by incarceration  An inventory of specific evidence-based programs, service models, and curricula that have been used to provide supportive services to incarcerated parents, their children, and their children’s caregivers

Stt. Paul, MN: Wilder Research, 2009. 40p.

By The Council on Crime and Justice

In 2003 the Council on Crime and Justice (CCJ) received funding from the U.S. Department of Justice to study racial disparities in the Minnesota criminal justice system. Seven studies were conducted in total. Some of these studies were aimed at defining racial disparities within the criminal justice system, while others examined the collateral effects of such disparities. The following study fell into the latter category. The purpose of this study was twofold: first to examine the effects of imprisonment on the family relationship from the perspective of the fathers, along with these men’s strengths and struggles during incarceration and reentry into the community; and second to examine the community dynamics and resources within a neighborhood experiencing a high concentration of prison mobility (i.e. residents either leaving for or returning from prison). The Hawthorne neighborhood in North Minneapolis was chosen for our study because of its racial diversity and high prisoner mobility. An analysis of the neighborhood was conducted from the resident’s perspective in order to better understand the physical and social environment to which many previously incarcerated fathers return.

Minneapolis: Council on Crime and Justice, 2006. 81p.

By Amy Dworsky, et al.

This brief describes the results of a project undertaken by a team of researchers from the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration and Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago. The purpose of the project was to inform the development and implementation of gender responsive policies and practices that will address the needs of incarcerated mothers in the Illinois Department of Corrections and reduce the impact of incarceration on their children.

Chicago, IL: Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago and the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration, 2020. 38p.

Edited by Julie Poehlmann-Tynan and Danielle H. Dallaire

This Brief focuses on mothers in the U.S. criminal justice system and their children. After decades of mass incarceration, the United States now incarcerates more women than any other country in the world, and the vast majority of incarcerated women are mothers of minor children. The growing involvement of mothers in all forms of the criminal justice system, including arrest, incarceration, reentry, and community supervision, requires a better understanding of how such involvement impacts children and families. This Brief presents six new empirical studies, most of them longitudinal, designed to address gaps in our knowledge base about maternal criminal justice involvement and maternal and child well-being. We apply an intergenerational lifespan developmental perspective and discuss the attachment-related themes of separation, loss, and reunion in the introductory chapter and throughout the volume. In addition, issues related to prevention and intervention, gender-responsive programs, and themes of trauma, addiction, child welfare involvement, low resource environments, and resilience are integrated throughout and highlighted in the concluding chapter. The Brief closes by presenting policy and practice implications of the research for mothers involved in the criminal justice system and their children and families.

Cham: Springer Nature, 2021 167p.

By Sarah Schirmer, Ashley Nellis and Marc Mauer

Mass incarceration has had significant and long-lasting impacts on American society, and particularly on communities of color. There is now a growing awareness that parents who go to prison do not suffer the consequences alone; the children of incarcerated parents often lose contact with their parent and visits are sometimes rare. Children of incarcerated parents are more likely to drop out of school, engage in delinquency, and subsequently be incarcerated themselves.1 In 2007 there were 1.7 million children in America with a parent in prison, more than 70% of whom were children of color. Children of incarcerated parents live in a variety of circumstances. Some were previously in homes of two-parent families, where the non-incarcerated parent can assume primary responsibility for the children. Many children, especially in cases of women’s incarceration, were in single-parent homes and are then cared for by a grandparent or other relative, if not in foster care. And in some cases, due to substance abuse and other factors, incarcerated parents had either not lived with their children or not provided a secure environment for them. Following release from prison both parents and children face challenges in reuniting their families. Parents have to cope with the difficulty of finding employment and stable housing while also reestablishing a relationship with their children.

Washington, DC: The Sentencing Project, 2009. 14p.

By Creasie Finney Hairston

What is it like to grow up with a parent in prison? What are the immediate and long-term effects of parental incarceration on children? How can we best serve the needs of these children and ensure that they receive the support they need to thrive under challenging circumstances? These are questions that still need to be answered. Research that focuses on children whose parents are incarcerated has been quite limited, despite the growing numbers of children who are affected by the imprisonment of their mother or father. Over 1.5 million children in the United States have a parent who is in prison. Several million more have grown up with a parent in prison during some part of their formative years. The children of incarcerated parents have long been an almost invisible population, but in recent years, they have begun to receive attention from public policymakers, traditional social service providers and academic researchers. Some, concerned about the rapidly growing correctional population of more than two million people, fear that these children are at a higher risk to become incarcerated themselves as adults. Others are motivated by a desire to better understand and promote the well-being of children living in challenging life circumstances. This overview is based primarily on research published during the last 20 years, though some earlier works are included. It also draws on several years of consultation on programs and research involving prisoners and their families.

Baltimore: Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2007. 44p.