defending the First Amendment against the Christian right ...

... because if Jews don't speak out, they'll think we don't mind

Web JewsOnFirst

Optional Member Code

Please email us
(click here)
catcher@JewsOnFirst.org

And "bookmark" us at
JewsOnFirst.org

Jews on First
P.O. Box 2283
Rockville MD 20847

310-910-9153

Government-funded right-wing Christian evangelical prison programs

December 2007: Court rules Iowa cannot fund religious prison programs

State by state reports on "faith-based" prison programs follow the general coverage.

National reports on faith-based prison programs

Faith-Based Mentoring Program Aimed to Help Ex-Cons Find Jobs, Stay out of Prison

By Anne Farris, The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, March 13, 2007

Each year, 650,000 prisoners are released from jail and two-thirds of them return within three years. That high rate of recidivism, and an annual invoice of $60 billion to house inmates, prompted the federal government a few years ago to look to America's houses of worship for help.

Based on a model originated in Philadelphia that matches mentors from religious congregations with the children of prisoners, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and a private research organization developed a demonstration project called Ready4Work. The government partnered with faith-based and community organizations, which provided services to ex-prisoners and served as links to the communities where they returned.

The three-year, 11-site project recently concluded. But the government and private groups are keeping it alive by integrating its blueprint into another program and touting success rates in film documentaries and public meetings. Their results show a 50 percent lower recidivism rate among Ready4Work participants. Continue.

Prisons Purging Books on Faith From Libraries

Laurie Goodstein, The New York Times, September 10, 2007

Behind the walls of federal prisons nationwide, chaplains have been quietly carrying out a systematic purge of religious books and materials that were once available to prisoners in chapel libraries.

Some Excluded Works The chaplains were directed by the Bureau of Prisons to clear the shelves of any books, tapes, CDs and videos that are not on a list of approved resources. In some prisons, the chaplains have recently dismantled libraries that had thousands of texts collected over decades, bought by the prisons, or donated by churches and religious groups.

Some inmates are outraged. Two of them, a Christian and an Orthodox Jew, in a federal prison camp in upstate New York, filed a class-action lawsuit last month claiming the bureau’s actions violate their rights to the free exercise of religion as guaranteed by the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Continue.

Ban on Prison Religious Program Challenged

U.S. Judge Ruled Evangelical Rehabilitation Effort in Iowa Is Unconstitutional

By Peter Slevin, The Washingtoin Post, February 25, 2007

Chicago -- Interested inmates at Newton Correctional Facility in Iowa receive teaching material that declares: "Criminal behavior is a manifestation of an alienation between the self and God. Acceptance of God and Biblical principles results in cure through the power of the Holy Spirit. Transformation happens through an instantaneous miracle; it then builds the prisoner up with familiarity of the Bible."

Rooted in evangelical Christianity and supported by more than $1.5 million in public funds, the method of the rehabilitation program is clear enough. A key question is its constitutionality. A trio of appellate judges, including former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, is reviewing a lower court's decision that the program violates the separation of church and state.

People on both sides of the dispute say the outcome could influence the future of President Bush's faith-based initiative, which links government and religious institutions in efforts to solve social problems. Continue.

Religion for a Captive Audience, Paid For by Taxes

By Diana B. Henriques and Andrew Lehren, New York Times, December 10, 2006

Life was different in Unit E at the state prison outside Newton, Iowa.

The toilets and sinks — white porcelain ones, like at home — were in a separate bathroom with partitions for privacy. In many Iowa prisons, metal toilet-and-sink combinations squat beside the bunks, to be used without privacy, a few feet from cellmates.

The cells in Unit E had real wooden doors and doorknobs, with locks. More books and computers were available, and inmates were kept busy with classes, chores, music practice and discussions. There were occasional movies and events with live bands and real-world food, like pizza or sandwiches from Subway. Best of all, there were opportunities to see loved ones in an environment quieter and more intimate than the typical visiting rooms.

But the only way an inmate could qualify for this kinder mutation of prison life was to enter an intensely religious rehabilitation program and satisfy the evangelical Christians running it that he was making acceptable spiritual progress. The program — which grew from a project started in 1997 at a Texas prison with the support of George W. Bush, who was governor at the time — says on its Web site that it seeks “to ‘cure’ prisoners by identifying sin as the root of their problems” and showing inmates “how God can heal them permanently, if they turn from their sinful past.” Continue.

Justice Department Yanks Proposal For 'Single-Faith' Prison Ministry After Complaint From Americans United

Church-State Watchdog Group Says Constitution Forbids Use Of Public Funds For Religious Indoctrination Or Coercion

News Release, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, October 27, 2006

Americans United for Separation of Church and State today lauded the U.S. Justice Department’s cancellation of a proposal for “single-faith” prison programs.

Earlier this year, the Justice Department said it was seeking prison rehabilitation programs for six federal prisons intended to “facilitate personal transformation of the participating inmates through their own spirituality and faith.” The Federal Bureau of Prisons’ solicitation for the programs also stated it would ask potential bidders how their approach would “foster growth” of inmates’ “spiritual development.” Continue.

'A Chance For a Fresh Start'

Rayburn inmates join the prison's faith-based programs to gain a chance at redemption, religious and otherwise

By Paul Rioux, The Times Picayune (Louisiana), January 28, 2007 via The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy

Covington resident Arlyn Dunn feared for his safety when he was sent to prison as a tall, skinny 22-year-old. But now, eight years later, he is convinced it saved his life.

"I thought it was going to be hard-core with everybody fending for themselves like the survival of the fittest," he said, sitting on his cot at the B.B. "Sixty" Rayburn Correctional Center in Washington Parish. "I didn't expect to make many friends here, and I sure didn't expect to find God."

But he said that's exactly what happened through his involvement in an array of faith-based rehabilitation programs at the prison. Prison officials said the religious activities have become so popular and successful that more space is needed, prompting them to raise money to build a chapel, an effort that begins in earnest tonight at a major fundraiser at a Mandeville-area church. Continue.

Global Ministry Supports Offenders Here at Home

Prison Fellowship Partners With Churches, County

By Candace Rondeaux, The Washington Post, August 27, 2006

This report about Charles Colson's Prison Fellowship ministries, which is headquartered in suburban Washington, DC, also looks at its local affiliate, Loudon Aftercare, which works with Virginia inmates at the Loudoun County and other jails. Click here.

Bureau Of Prisons' Plans For Single-Faith Prison Ministry Programs Violate First Amendment, Warns

AU's Lynn Urges Government To Revise Proposal

Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, News Release, May 1, 2006

The U.S. Justice Department's plans to fund single-faith prison ministry programs is constitutionally suspect and should be dropped, says Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

The Justice Department has announced it is seeking prison rehabilitation programs for six federal prisons intended to "facilitate personal transformation of the participating inmates through their own spirituality and faith." The Federal Bureau of Prisons' solicitation for the programs also asks potential bidders how their approach would "foster growth" in the "spiritual development" of inmates. Continue

Government Looks to Sponsor Faith-Based Prison Programs

The success in keeping inmates from returning to jail has officials taking notice.

Citizen Link (Focus on the Family), May 4, 2006

The U.S. Justice Department is looking to fund faith-based organizations involved in rehabilitation of prisoners — something liberal groups are opposing. The success of such programs is too great to ignore, so the federal government is appropriating $3 million to help them. Continue

A captive audience for salvation

A for-profit prison company stirs hope - and church-state issues - pursuing partnerships with Evangelical Christian ministries

By Jane Lampman, Christian Science Monitor, April 19, 2006

Corrections Corporation of America, a for-profit company that operates 63 prisons under contract with the federal, state and local governments, is using profits from those contracts to subsidize right-wing evangelical groups to work with inmates in its prisons. In some prisons, inmates can choose to live in "God pods" with special programs run by these groups. One of the programs used by the religious groups, Life Principles, is alleged by critics to teach women submission to men. Click for the report

Inmate programs raise questions

Some see official boost to religion

By Brian MacQuarrie, The Boston Globe, January 24, 2006

A look at the "InnerChange Freedom Initiative," an offshoot of the Prison Fellowship movement led by Watergate felon and religious right leader Charles Colson. InnerChange is now in four state prison systems and plans to be in two more. Americans United for Separation of Church and State is suing the Iowa program on the grounds that it promotes evangelical Christianity and grants enrolled inmates preferential treatment. Click here to read the report

Court rules Iowa cannot fund religious prison programs

Earlier reports on the Iowa prison program are here.

Court Bars State Effort Using Faith in Prisons

Neela Banerjee, The New York Times, December 4, 2007

A federal appeals panel ruled yesterday that a state-financed evangelical Christian program to help prisoners re-enter civilian life fostered religious indoctrination and violated the constitutional separation of church and state.

The decision by a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, in St. Louis, was the latest in a series of rulings over the last year to reinforce laws that bar government money from promoting religion, said Robert Tuttle, a law professor at George Washington University who is an expert on religion-based initiatives.

“The main thing it does is reaffirm the obligation of government not to fund programs that intermingle secular and religious content,” Professor Tuttle said of the new ruling. “The federal government has come to terms with that over the last year. Even when it has won cases, there hasn’t been a single decision that would allow the government to intertwine secular and religious content.” Continue.

8th Circuit Finds State Funding of Faith-Based Prison Program Unconstitutional

Professor Howard M. Friedman, Religion Clause, December 3, 2007

Yesterday in Americans United for Separation of Church and State v. Prison Fellowship Ministries, Inc., (8th Cir., Dec. 3, 2007), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a faith-based inmate rehabilitation program operated in an Iowa prison by InnerChange violates the Establishment Clause. The 3-judge panel included retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

Even though inmate entry into the InnerChange program was voluntary and state funds were used only to pay for non-religious aspects of the program, the court held that direct payments to InnerChange for the years 2002-04 funded religious indoctrination in violation of the Establishment Clause of the U.S. and Iowa constitutions. It also found an Establishment Clause problem because participation in InnerChange was available only to inmates professing Christian beliefs. Click here to continue reading and for links to numerous sources relevant to the case.

Federal Appeals Court Strikes Down Public Funding Of Evangelical Prison Program In Iowa

Americans United Praises Court Ruling That Upholds Separation Of Church And State

Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, December 3, 2007

A federal appeals court today ruled that tax funding of an evangelical Christian rehabilitation program at an Iowa state prison violates the separation of church and state and must end.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that government support for the InnerChange Freedom Initiative at Newton Correctional Facility -- a program operated by Chuck Colson’s Prison Fellowship Ministries -- advances religious indoctrination at state expense. Americans United brought the litigation against InnerChange on behalf of inmates, their families and taxpayers.

The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, Americans United executive director, hailed the ruling. "This is an extremely important decision," said Lynn. "Government officials have no business paying for religious indoctrination and awarding special treatment and benefits to those willing to embrace one religious perspective. Continue.

Americans United for the Separation of Church and State vs Prison Fellowship Ministers

Transcript of the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eigth Circuit, December 3, 2007

Please click here to read the decision, a PDF file. Continue.

Appeals court bars Iowa prison ministries program

David Pitt, Associated Press, Houston Chronicle, December 3, 2007

Des Moines, Iowa - A federal appeals court ruled Monday that the state of Iowa cannot fund an evangelical Christian prison ministry program because doing so advances or endorses religion, violating the Constitutional separation of church and state.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt's June 2006 ruling that a Prison Fellowship Ministries Inc. program at the Newton Correctional Facility was unconstitutional if paid for with taxpayer dollars and should be shut down.

Barry Lynn, executive director of the Washington-based advocacy group Americans United For Separation of Church and State, which brought the lawsuit, said the ruling would have major implications for the Bush administration's policies of allowing faith-based groups to offer services to government institutions. Continue.

Court: State can't pay for religious prison treatment

William Petroski, The Des Moines Register, December 3, 2007

Spending taxpayer money on a faith-based treatment program in which Iowa prisoners immerse themselves in evangelical Christianity is unconstitutional, a federal appeals court ruled today.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 28-page decision, concluded that the program at the Newton Correctional Facility has advanced religious indoctrination at government expense.

However, the appeals court rejected a lower-court order that would have required the faith-based treatment group to repay about $1.5 million to $1.7 million in program expenses to the Iowa Department of Corrections. Continue.

An Interview with Chip Lupu and Bob Tuttle on Legal Changes Affecting Church and State in 2007

The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, December 4, 2007

In this interview, Professors Lupu and Tuttle review significant cases including Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), ACLU Foundation of Louisiana v. Blanco, FFRF v. Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch, and Americans United for Separation of Church and State v. Prison Fellowship Ministries. Click here.

An Interview with Mark Earley, President and CEO of Prison Fellowship

Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, August 22, 2006

The Roundtable interviewed Jack Earley, President and CEO of Prison Fellowship. Mr. Earley explained, "that The InnerChange Freedom Initiative is a 501(c)(3) corporation. It began its programs 10 years ago. It was launched by Prison Fellowship (Ministries). It began in Texas. It's now in Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Arkansas, and soon to be opening in Missouri.

It is a Christian faith-based program that is holistic in providing not only opportunities for spiritual formation, but academic training, vocational training, life skills, substance abuse training and post-prison employment services. And the goal is to help inmates turn their life around so when they leave prison they won't come back. Continue.

Former Supreme Court Justice Leads Eighth Circuit in Overturning Federal Judge's Ruling to Shut Down Effective Faith-Based Prison Program

Appeals Court Reverses Ruling Requiring Closure of Effective Prisoner Rehabilitation Program and Repayment of $1.5 Million to Iowa

InnerChange Freedom Intiative, December 3, 2007

ST. LOUIS, Dec. 3, 2007—Today former United States Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and two appellate judges, Judges Roger L. Wollman and Duane Benton, reversed major parts of a federal district court judge’s ruling against a voluntary faith-based pre-release program for prisoners launched by Prison Fellowship. Ruling for the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, they found that District Court Judge Robert Pratt over-reached in much of his 2006 decision in a lawsuit brought by Americans United for Separation of Church and State against the InnerChange Freedom Initiative (IFI), Prison Fellowship and the State of Iowa. Today's decision overturns Pratt's order for the program to be shut down and for IFI to repay Iowa the $1.5 million paid by the state under a contract for services from 2000-2006.

"We are grateful to the Eighth Circuit for refusing to handcuff people of faith who are helping corrections officials turn inmates' lives around," said Prison Fellowship President Mark Earley. "What was at stake here, at its heart, is public safety. The keys to reducing recidivism and protecting the public from repeat offenses are the very kinds of effective rehabilitation and re-entry services provided by the InnerChange Freedom Initiative." Continue.

Both sides cheer court's prison program ruling

Tom Strode, Baptist Press, December 4, 2007

Washington (BP)--Both sides of a church-state legal battle found something to celebrate in a federal appeals court's opinion on a Christian ministry in an Iowa prison.

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, based in St. Louis, ruled Dec. 3 that a federal judge was correct in deciding the state's support of the InnerChange Freedom Initiative operated by Prison Fellowship violated the bans on government establishment of religion in both the U.S. and Iowa constitutions. The court, however, reversed the part of Judge Robert Pratt's 2006 decision that ordered Prison Fellowship to shut down the program and return to the state $1.5 million it received to help run it.

Both sides indicated they do not expect to appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, The Washington Post reported. Continue.

Earlier reports on the Iowa prison program are here.

Arkansas

Ark. Begins Faith-Based Inmate Program

Ark. to dedicate faith-based program for female inmates despite lawsuit, objections from group

By ANDREW DeMILLO, Associated Press, Fox News, December 1, 2006

LITTLE ROCK, Ark., Dec. 1, 2006 (AP) Arkansas correction officials are dedicating a Bible-based program for female prisoners, but a national group said it's a risky move while a similar system is being challenged in federal court.

Forty-nine women have enrolled in the InnerChange Freedom Initiative at the Wrightsville prison, which officials will dedicate Friday.

Under the program, inmates live in a separate unit and attend classes on subjects including computer skills and anger management. They also participate in religious devotionals.

After being released from prison, participants receive guidance from a mentor and a local religious group for at least six months. Continue.

Florida

Ex-Insider Shares Rest of Faith-Based Prison Story

Tom Siebert, Commentary in The Ledger, August 12, 2007

Editor's Note: The Ledger and news agencies in Florida and the nation have featured stories about faith-based prisons, a trend in which inmates are placed in specialized units that encourage the practice of their religious beliefs. Advocates have said the effort helps with prisoners' behavior while incarcerated and in their assimilation back into society when they get out. Former journalist Tom Siebert served part of a sentence for drug possession and robbery in a faith-based Florida prison. In a first-person account, he describes problems with the program. The following is his story. The Ledger asked for and received a response by the Florida Department of Corrections, and it accompanies Siebert's piece.

On Nov. 23, 2005, then-Gov. Jeb Bush visited Wakulla Correctional Institution near Tallahassee to dedicate the entire 1,600-inmate prison to the development of faith and character.

One of the guest speakers that day was corrections chief James Crosby, who would later be sent to prison himself for accepting more than $130,000 in kickbacks. Many of Crosby's employees would also be indicted, demoted or fired.

As an exemplary participant in the prison's faith-based dormitory program, I was selected to be interviewed by the Capitol press corps. As a former newspaper reporter, I longed to expose the corruption of the faith-based program by many inmates, as well as the abuses of some corrections officers. Continue.

Progress the Focus for Prison Inmates

Ex-Insider Shares Rest of Faith-Based Prison Story -- Editor's Note: The following is the Florida Department of Corrections' response to former inmate Tom Siebert's account.

Alex Taylor, director of chaplaincy services, Florida Department of Corrections, The Ledger, August 15

Religious services are always voluntary for every inmate. The DOC would be overstepping its statutory authority to require inmates to participate in specific religious activities. However, the department does make religious services and activities available to all inmates at all of the state's correctional institutions as required by constitutional obligation.

Siebert's comments imply he is troubled that the program wasn't Christian enough. The fact is there are 50 different religious preferences among inmates in the Wakulla program. The intent is to create an open forum, tolerant and expressive for all represented religions. Often, as volunteers deepen their commitment and relationship with an inmate, the inmate's attendance at services and attention to religious matters may increase. Continue.

Iowa

Controversial Christian Prison Program Loses Public Funding

By Claire Hughes, The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, June 5, 2007

The state of Iowa is cutting off funding to a Christian prison program that was found last year to violate the Constitution.

The state's move eliminates the last chunk of government funds going to the InnerChange Freedom Initiative, a Bible-based pre-release program operated by Prison Fellowship Ministries in six states. Kansas and Minnesota had also contributed public funds to InnerChange prison programs, but cut off their financial support last year after the court ruling against the Iowa program, according to Prison Fellowship Vice President Norman Cox.

The program has operated entirely on private donations in Texas, Arkansas and Missouri, and hopes to continue operating in Iowa that way, Cox said. Continue.

Bible-based prison program in doubt after state halts money

The Associated Press State & Local Wire, June 1, 2007 via The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy

A Bible-based prison program at the state prison in Newton is in doubt after lawmakers decided not to renew the money to pay for it, The Des Moines Register reported in a copyright story on Friday.

The program could be shut down July 1 because the Legislature decided not to renew its $310,000 state appropriation.

A bill signed May 23 by Gov. Chet Culver eliminated the money. The program's existing appropriation ends June 30.

The Newton program is sponsored by Virginia-based Prison Fellowship Ministries. Continue.

Laird: Case from Iowa is new battle front in church-state war

By Rox Laird, Editorial writer, Des Moines Register, February 13, 2007

When U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt of Iowa's Southern District ruled a prison-ministry program unconstitutional, he was accused of ordering God out of America's prisons. Those critics are no doubt praying that a federal appeals court that is scheduled to hear arguments in the case today will vote to let God back in.

Judge Pratt's decision last June in Americans United For Separation of Church and State v. Prison Fellowship Ministries ignited a firestorm of criticism that continues to rage on the Internet. (Typing the words "Robert" "Pratt" "Iowa" "prison" and "ministries" into Google's search engine produces more than 60,000 hits.)

The ruling was seen as yet another example of an activist judge siding with a secular-humanist campaign to drive religion out of the public square. Legal briefs urging the court to reverse Pratt have been filed by several religious-liberties groups, including the National Association of Evangelicals and the Catholic League for Civil and Religious Rights. Joining them are Virginia and seven other states and the U.S. Justice Department. Continue.

Religion for a Captive Audience, Paid For by Taxes

By Diana B. Henriques and Andrew Lehren, New York Times, December 10, 2006

Life was different in Unit E at the state prison outside Newton, Iowa.

Attorneys General Come to Defense of Faith-Based Prison Program

Federal judge ordered InnerChange Freedom Initiative in Iowa shut down

Focus on the Family, October 5, 2006

In June a federal judge ruled unconstitutional the InnerChange Freedom Initiative (IFI). Attorneys General from nine states have filed friend-of-the-court briefs in support of the faith-based prison program's appeal to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Continue.

Ministry Fights Court Ruling against Faith-Based Program

Allie Martin & Jenni Parker, Agape Press, August 8, 2006

Prison Fellowship will appeal a recent court ruling that ordered the shutdown of its faith-based InnerChange Freedom Initiative (IFI) program in Iowa. In its ten years of operation, IFI has helped bring about a drastic reduction in the number of former inmates returning to prison; but liberal opponents sued, claiming the Christ-centered prison outreach violated the so-called separation of church and state Continue

Ministry Fights Court Ruling against Faith-Based Program

Allie Martin & Jenni Parker, Agape Press, August 8, 2006

Prison Fellowship Takes Aim at Judicial Activism

by Pete Winn, Focus on the Family, August 4, 2006

If a ruling by a federal district judge in Iowa stands, the future of all faith-based ministries working in the public square is at stake.

It's been just over a month since a federal judge in Iowa declared unconstitutional Prison Fellowship's InnerChange Freedom Initiative (IFI), ordered the program booted out of Iowa prisons and told the ministry to repay the state.

Prison Fellowship is fighting back in defense of the Christian-based prisoner-rehabilitation program, according to president and CEO Mark Earley. It's doing so on behalf of all faith-based ministries that get funds from the government -- or which work in government facilities like prisons. Continue

Judge says Christian prison program must end

InnerChange Freedom Initiative will continue at the correctional center in Newton during an appeal.

By William Petroski, The Des Moines Register, June 3, 2006

A faith-based Iowa prison treatment program in which inmates immerse themselves in evangelical Christianity is unconstitutional and must be shut down, a federal judge said Friday.

U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt of Des Moines, in a 140-page ruling with national implications, said the Innerchange Freedom Initiative at the Newton Correctional Facility violates the First Amendment's clause barring government from the establishment of religion. Continue

Judge Rules Christian Prison Program Unconstitutional

Jody Brown, AgapePress, June 8, 2006

Evidently it matters not that a well-known and highly successful prison ministry believes one of its premier programs is constitutional and well within the guidelines of the First Amendment, or that statistics bear out the effectiveness of the program. A federal judge has ruled the program is unconstitutional -- and now the program that equips prisoners to successfully re-enter society is in jeopardy. A federal judge has ruled that an Iowa prison program that involves inmates immersing themselves in evangelical Christianity is unconstitutional and must be shut down. Continue

Federal judge strikes down Prison Fellowship program

Baptist Press, June 5, 2006

This report quotes extensively from the decision by U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt that the Charles Colson-affiliated Christian prison program is unconstitutional. It then quotes Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission saying that Pratt "doesn't get it" and expecting that the decision will be reversed. Click here for the article.

Missouri

Vandalia Prison Gets Interchange Freedom Initiative

By Bob Priddy, MissouriNet.com, June 3, 2007

The corrections department is expanding a faith-based program that prepares inmates for the outside world.

The Interchange Freedom Initiative debuted in Missouri in March at the Algoa men's prison near Jefferson City. Today it extends to the women's prison in Vandalia. It's a special program for inmates within 18 to 24 months of release. It's entirely voluntary. It's a high discipline program that features extensive teaching, counseling, and personal preparation to help inmates stay out when they get out.

Corrections department spokesman Brian Hauswirth says it's not a requirement for release....and not everybody will want to be in the program. He says the program, based on Christian principles, focuses on six values: responsibility, community, productivity, integrity, restoration, and affirmation. Although it's a faith-based program, inmates are not required to be religlious to take part. Continue.

Ohio

Report urges faith-based prison programs

Top corrections officials see bigger roles for church groups

By Reginald Fields, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, November 21, 2006

Columbus- The heads of Ohio's state prisons and youth detention centers say they will open their facilities to religious groups that want to have more prayer programs for inmates and delinquents.

A report released Monday by the Correctional Faith-Based Initiative Task Force, co-chaired by prisons director Terry Collins, offers 16 recommendations urging the religious community to help with everything from counseling inmates to helping them find work when they are released.

Collins and Tom Stickrath, director of youth services and a member of the task force, stressed that inmate participation will be voluntary and said the programs will not violate the constitutionally mandated separation of church and state. Continue.

Oklahoma

Can prisons keep the faith?

News Release, NewsOK.com (The Oklahoman), August 9, 2007

A law giving state dollars to faith-based and other volunteer organizations to help criminals while in prison and once they are out is unconstitutional, a House lawmaker asserted Wednesday.

This is not the first time Rep. Al Lindley has argued that House Bill 2101, which was signed into law this year, violates the state's constitutional requirement that the church remain separate from the state. The new law includes $100,000 of state funds to help these groups with their prison ministries. Continue.

Pennsylvania

Liberal Groups Drop Suit Against Faith-Based Ministry

Focus on the Family, June 11, 2007

After two years of legal battle, a faith-based prison ministry in Bradford County, Pa., again will be allowed to serve.

Firm Foundation, which provides employment and life skills as well as mentoring to prisoners, was challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State. The liberal groups argued it was unconstitutional for Firm Foundation to receive federal grants.

The Center for Law & Religious Freedom and the Alliance Defense Fund provided legal assistance to the ministry.

Steven Aden, chief litigation counsel for the Center for Law & Religious Freedom, said Firm Foundation did nothing wrong.

"Faith-based community groups are not second-class charities that have to give up their religious identity to receive federal funds," he said in a statement.

Now that the lawsuit has been lifted, Firm Foundation can continue its voluntary skills training program. Continue.

Federal lawsuit against county is in discovery phase

BY Eric Hrin, The Daily and Sunday Review (Towanda, Pennsylvania), December 10, 2006

A lawsuit contending a vocational training program that had been in place for Bradford County Correctional Facility inmates was an “evangelical ministry” that shouldn’t have been supported by public money is now in the discovery phase of fact finding. Continue.

Virginia

Global Ministry Supports Offenders Here at Home

Prison Fellowship Partners With Churches, County

By Candace Rondeaux, The Washington Post, August 27, 2006

ACLU Seeks End to Jails' Deals With Ministries

By Candace Rondeaux, The Washington Post, May 22, 2006

The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia is calling on jail administrators to end contracts with private evangelical chaplain services which, in some cases, have barred representatives of other faiths. Click for the report.