With a current network of ten facilities in the Denver Metro area, Community Corrections is celebrating over forty years of successful co-existence with the Denver Sheriff Department.
Catering to both adult male and female felony offenders within the state of Colorado, the Community Corrections facilities admit clientele ranging in age from 18 to 75. The facilities pride themselves not only on their safety methods and positive community standings, but also on their ability to successfully reintegrate ex-offenders into the community. They implement the use of counseling, cooperation and support from family members and intensive supervision while providing the necessities of shelter, food services, emergency financial assistance, etc. Positive behavior is rewarded through an incentive-based system of graduated privileges. Residents are permitted community access only with staff approval and for restricted periods of time. Monitoring is systematically applied to maximize safety, including the use of sophisticated electronic paging devices that track resident movements on a continual basis, and the application of Antabuse (an alcohol inhibitor), breath analysis and urinalysis testing. Personal searches, employer and regular facility checks are also utilized.
Residents are required to seek and maintain employment, and from these wages, required to pay any court restitution or child support orders. While these facilities and corresponding programs receive compensation from the Department of Safety, they also collect $17 per day subsistence, as required by law, from each client. For those participants unable to work, additional community services and extra chores are required.
Each facility is operated by experienced independent business organizations. They are responsible and accountable to the state for each client. The standards required by the Division of Criminal Justice must be met and maintained by each facility, which includes but is not limited too, first and foremost, ensuring public safety. They must also meet stringent staff and facility requirements, provide for appropriate in-house client programming and management, and the design, implementation and facilitation of active participation in community services within their neighborhoods. All Community Corrections operations are monitored by regulatory agencies, including the Division of Criminal Justice, the Department of Corrections, the Denver County Community Corrections Board, and other departments within the state of Colorado and the City and County of Denver. Facilities are located throughout the Denver Metro area. Each facility prides itself on providing high security capabilities while emphasizing different and necessary elements that contribute to an aggressive, safe, successful and fiscally streamlined rehabilitation program.
Facilities:
Correctional Management, Incorporated (CMI)
Correctional Management Incorporated (CMI) is a privately owned corporation delivering comprehensive and effective community based correctional programs since 1984. CMI operates effective programs in Arapahoe and Boulder Counties, in addition to the four (4) programs based in Denver.
CMI-Denver based programs began in 2000 when three Alpha Center facilities located in Denver were merged with CMI.
Two facilities, CMI Fox at 570 West 44th Ave. and CMI Columbine at 4280 Columbine Street, have remained male programs for diversion and transition offenders. One facility, CMI Dahlia at 4511 East 46th Ave., was a juvenile detention program until 2003 at which time it was converted to a male diversion and transition program. In 2003 CMI opened a new facility, CMI Ulster at 3955 Ulster Street also for male diversion and transition offenders.
The principles on which CMI operates are based on sound correctional philosophy developed by experts in the field. CMI takes great pride in the supervision program that integrates reduction of danger to the community through further offender crime and law abiding reintroduction of the offenders back into the community. CMI’s basic principles are:
· Public safety much be maintained through effective 24/7 security procedure.
· In addition to acquiring employment and housing and being drug and alcohol free, offenders must acquire a modest savings, complete their supervision program and complete life skills training.
· All offenders must be carefully assessed to determine their level of risk for further offenses, the factors in their lives that contribute to criminal behavior, special treatment needs that must be addressed by outside agencies, and most of all the offender’s motivation to change.
· Case managers develop Individualized supervision plans that address all the assessment results.
· CMI Staff must be adequately trained to administer the program.
CMI Denver considers community outreach essential to client reintegration into the community. Staff urges offenders to become involved in community work on an individual and group basis. Offenders must complete a certain number of community hours to advance in the program level system. As offenders advances in the level system they are granted more privileges. Through working in the community on a voluntary basis, offenders gain a sense of helping to restore victims for the damage done to them and a sense of empathy for the plight of the victims of crime.
Community Education Centers/Williams Street Center/Tooley Hall
Community Education Centers (CEC) is a leading provider of treatment and educational services throughout the country. CEC operates two facilities in Denver, Williams Street Center (1763 Williams Street) and Tooley Hall (4280 Kearney Street). Both programs are licensed by the State, Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division, as a Transitional Care Facilities. Felony Offenders referred for services either are near release and eligible for parole or require supervision beyond the scope of traditional probation.
The Program’s focus is public safety while assisting them to transition back into the community. The Program believes that it is possible to provide an economical and effective community-based correctional alternative for select offenders, and that appropriate community protection can be maintained when the conduct of each offender is monitored rigorously within the facility and community. The goal is to provide a highly structured environment which promotes individual accountability, responsibility, positive self development, and which assists individuals to prepare for and adjust to independent community living.
Williams Street Center was established in 1977 as an 84-bed program for males. Williams Street Center provides gender-specific substance abuse treatment, life skills classes, anger management classes, GED-preparation, employment assistance, and other transitional needs. Williams Street Center also provides an electronic monitoring program and day reporting services.
Tooley Hall was established in 1994 as a 60-bed program for females. Tooley Hall is designed to address issues specific to the female offenders and to facilitate each offender’s transition from incarceration or criminal conduct to independent community living and a lawful lifestyle. Tooley Hall is accredited by the American Correctional Association with a 100% audit rating.
Treatment includes, drug and alcohol therapy, counseling, life skills, family reintegration, self management, parenting, rational emotive behavior therapy, self esteem, healthy relationships, employment assistance and other educational groups. Community involvement is encouraged to help the offenders learn from others and have information and resources to use upon their release.
Residents of Williams Street Center and Tooley Hall are allowed community access only with staff approval, and then only for approved purposes to specific destinations, for restricted periods of time. Residents place of employment are contacted on a regular basis to determine that the residents report as scheduled, and random checks are made to confirm that residents are at their approved destinations. Appropriate offender conduct is encouraged via an incentive-orientated system of graduated privileges.
Resident behavior is further monitored by various internal monitoring systems including the use of monthly behavior evaluations, weekly treatment team monitoring, medication monitoring, breathanalysis and urinalysis to detect the use of drug and alcohol, community and facility monitoring, personal searches and regular facility checks.
Independence House, Incorporated
Since 1977, Independence House has provided community corrections treatment services to clients referred by federal, state, and local criminal justice agencies. The overall goal of Independence House is to assist ex-offenders and all other clients in successfully re-entering the community as productive, adjusted citizens. We presently maintain three residential and three non-residential facilities throughout Denver.
Independence House Pecos, located at 4101 Pecos St., Denver, CO 80211, is a 75-bed facility housing males from the City and State levels. Independence House Pecos works with the DOC Heavy Equipment program, which places clients in jobs paying $15 to $22 per hour. The Sex Offender Management program and the CARE Grant Program both have had successful beginnings. The average length of stay ranges from 6 to 12 months for all clients.
Independence House Fillmore, located at 1479 Fillmore St., Denver, CO 80206, houses a co-ed population of 40 clients at the City and State levels and serves as the Federal overflow facility. Independence House Fillmore established Modified Therapeutic Community for the Seriously Mentally Ill, a prototype for future programs of this nature. A maximum of 20 beds are dedicated to our TC clients with length of stay ranging from 9 to 12 months. This study began in 1998 at our South Federal facility and transferred to Fillmore, May 18th, 2002.
Independence House South Federal, located at 2765 S. Federal Blvd., Denver CO.80236, is a 60-bed facility housing a co-ed population of clients at the Federal, State, and City levels.
All facilities provide GED classes and drug and alcohol classes within the facilities at no cost to the clients. The staff includes Spanish speaking individuals, and highly trained staff familiar with dealing with a wide array of clients with a variety of issues. Each client is individually assessed and placed in treatment that is most appropriate for the client’s need.
Independence House has met the challenges that arose when faced with budgetary cuts, and consistently provided another year of quality services. Our company is especially proud of staff commitment and dedication, which is reflected in the quality of our programs and we look forward to an equally successful year in 2004.
Peer I/Therapeutic Community
3762 W. Princeton Circle
The Peer-I Therapeutic Community is a long-term residential treatment program for adult male Colorado residents with substance abuse problems. In operation since 1977, the program has the capacity to treat 82 men. The duration of treatment is individualized, with lengths of stay lasting from nine to twelve months. Referrals to Peer-I are made through the Judicial System, which include Community Corrections, Department of Corrections, Probation and Parole.
Peer-I is a highly structured, nurturing program that utilizes an array of treatment approaches to help individuals eliminate drug use and related anti-social behavior. Examples of specific empirically based treatments include: cognitive-behavioral, contingency management, and cognitive skills training, applied within a therapeutic milieu. Clients move through a privilege system, or hierarchy, which provides incentives to achieve tangible benefits and privileges as they move from one stage of treatment to another. Peer-I provides a protective environment where the client is taught and practices new values, behaviors, and ways of interacting with others. Peer pressure, mutual self help and confrontation/sensitivity groups are important tools that aid members in becoming more aware, expressive, responsible and self-reliant. Program members define themselves as a “family” because they work closely together as a team to achieve group and individual goals providing support to one another, much as a healthy family would. Following the residential stay, a client progresses to our outpatient treatment component (non-residential) where he lives in the community and continues treatment at the Peer-I Outpatient Therapeutic Community. When a member has completed his treatment plan and achieved his individual goals; in addition, being drug-free, stable and productive, he is eligible for graduation. Graduation is a major accomplishment that is celebrated by the client's peers, friends and family. Graduates who have completed their legal sentence may continue in aftercare at the Peer-I non-residential program as a voluntary client and are always welcome to use the support of the Peer-I residential program. Those graduates, still serving a community correction sentence after graduation, continue to receive services for the duration of their criminal justice sentence.
Peer-I/The Haven Outpatient Therapeutic Community
1725 High Street
The Haven is located in Denver on the Fort Logan Campus and is part of the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, Addiction Research and Treatment Services. The Haven is a unique long term therapeutic community for women and children, with special interest and ability to serve pregnant and post-partum women. The Haven houses 38 women and The Haven Mother’s House serves an additional 26 women with their infant children who reside with their mothers in treatment. The Haven serves women with chronic substance abuse disorders; over 60% of the women display a co-occurring mental health diagnosis. The Haven offers the following services: intake assessment; group treatment; individualized treatment; psychosocial evaluation/individualized treatment planning; psychological evaluations; psychological testing; psychiatric services; cognitive behavioral therapy; parenting education and skill building; mothers therapy group; on-site vocational/educational services; infant developmental evaluations and services; on-site child care; medication monitoring; methadone monitoring; antabuse/naltrexone monitoring; HIV and Hepatitis C testing; urinalysis /breathalyzer testing; couples counseling; on-site medical services; dental care; prenatal care; family planning; case management; supervised children’s visitation; exercise and recreational activities; relapse prevention groups; gender specific/trauma informed women’s treatment services; transitional housing; and day treatment. There is a strong emphasis on learning how to have fun without the use of alcohol or drugs and thus, clients are encouraged to experience a variety of recreational activities such as hiking, camping, skiing, mountain climbing, biking, museums, sporting events, zoo, and other family activities.
Clients at the Haven attend substance abuse treatment groups for 9-12 months prior to moving into the transitional phase of treatment where they seek outside employment. When clients have saved enough money to live independently the program assists clients in obtaining housing and aftercare treatment thorough our Outpatient Treatment Services (OTC) program. Graduation from the program is a very special event and clients are encouraged to invite friends and family members.
Phase I/Mountain Parks Work Program
In 1976, the Denver Sheriff Department Phase I residential facility, consisting of only twelve beds was built on the grounds of the Denver County Jail. The program introduced a combination of high structure with incentives in place to provide offenders the opportunity to earn their way to the residential community based (Phase II) programs.
Today, the DSD Phase I Program offers up to 90 beds specializing in short term stabilization and remediation programming for Denver Community Corrections offenders.
The stabilization period is important because it affords offenders their first access to the community under a more restrictive environment than a traditional program offers. During this initial stabilization period, usually 4-6 weeks, diversion and transition placements are cleared of any outstanding court cases or warrants that would become disruptive if discovered after they would enter a longer term residential treatment facility. Afterward, staff begin to focus on employment needs assisting offenders with obtaining necessary employment documents such as a social security card and state identification card. Employment services may also include job search workshops, organizing an employment search plan, and providing referrals to community based programs that will assist with other items such as transportation and appropriate work clothing. Prior to movement to a Phase II program, staff may also begin assisting offenders with money management skills or other
The remediation component of the program provides an option other than a return to prison for offenders who are having difficulty adjusting to the structure of a residential community corrections program. Offenders who are committing technical violations of placement may be returned to this more restrictive setting, where they may be placed on a work crew for up to 90 days before returning to a Phase II program.