Advocates urge expansion of reentry programs, raise problems with MOUD and program access inside prisons

Advocacy groups and program providers urged the Joint Prison Oversight Committee to expand programming that supports rehabilitation and to fix gaps that block continuity of care at release.

Carla Crowder of Appleseed presented a report summarizing programs in five states and urged the committee to study mentorship‑based housing units, graduated reentry models and other programs that have reduced violence and solitary confinement in other systems. Crowder noted California’s GRIP program and South Carolina’s Restoring Promise as models and asked the committee to arrange site visits before opening a large new prison complex.

Jeremy Miller, senior prison ministry manager for Prison Fellowship, described the Prison Fellowship Academy, a yearlong curriculum that the organization says reduced recidivism by 53.8 percent in a Texas study. Miller thanked the Department of Corrections for increasing programming in some facilities and encouraged the department to broaden structured offerings.

Several witnesses reported that individuals eligible for programs face long waiting lists or administrative failures that block participation. Rachel Elledge, who was sentenced in 2021 and now works for the Love Lady Center, said Tutwiler’s waiting lists for substance‑use and crime‑bill programs exceed a year, leaving short‑term inmates without access to services. Colleen Howell described her son’s parole hearing, saying staff initially denied that a MOUD program existed and that her son was enrolled; after the family presented evidence, the board reversed the decision. Howell also said the prison released her son with only 7 days of MOUD medication even though Rx Outreach and program guidance indicated 30 days should be provided on release.

Committee members asked witnesses to submit written recommendations and said they will continue oversight. Several legislators noted that constituent testimony has already produced some legislative and administrative changes to increase transparency and assistance for families.