Implementing The Life Line Concept: Report Of The Task Force On Long Term Offenders

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Summary of Recommendations

Commencing in the early 1980's, St. Leonard's House in Windsor began discussing improved and comprehensive methods to respond to the needs of offenders on life sentences. These efforts culminated in a 1990 report prepared in partnership with the Correctional Service of Canada, National Parole Board and non-governmental organizations and funded by the Donner Foundation. This report set out the Life Line Concept (In-Reach Workers, Community Resources, Public Education). The first In-Reach Worker in Canada began work in 1991. In 1991, Correctional Service of Canada adopted the report of the Task Force on Long Term Sentences. Its major recommendation was to adopt an overall strategy for managing long term sentences, defined as ten years or greater, developed according to four stages of the sentence: adaptation, integration, preparation for release, reintegration.

In 1992, a report was produced ("More Than a Matter of Time"), which outlined how the Life Line Concept could support implementation of most aspects of the 1991 Correctional Service Task Force Report. In 1996, the Correctional Service of Canada re-established the Life Line National Resource Group, a group made up of senior CSC and NPB officials and non-government partners, whose general mandate is to guide the development of programs aimed at assisting the offender to make more productive use of his or her time while in custody with a view to increasing the likelihood of timely release and safe reintegration to the community.

The work of the current Task Force advances implementation of key aspects of the 1991 and 1992 reports, with the major shift in emphasis of doing so in a partnership made up of the Correctional Service of Canada, the National Parole Board and the non-governmental proponents of the Life Line Concept. It is also intended to set out a framework for the adoption of the Life Line Concept by the Correctional Service of Canada and by the National Parole Board.

As directed in the terms of reference, the Task Force report contains a number of recommendations of substance where there is ready consensus. The report provides an overview or directional approach and identifies areas where further study, development, consideration and action is required. Since the support and agreement of a large number of stakeholders is required to expand the Life Line Concept, consultation should be the major priority immediately upon the completion of this Report.

The Task Force established a profile of the institutional and community population of offenders serving life sentences, indeterminate sentences and those serving determinate sentences of ten years or greater. There are 3800 life and indeterminate sentence offenders, 31% of whom are supervised in the community. Since the Fall of 1990, when statistics were collected for the completion of the report of the 1991 Task Force on Long Term Offenders, the population of life sentenced and indeterminate male offenders in federal institutions has increased by 26%. In 1990, this group made up 16% of the incarcerated male offender population. Today, that proportion is 18%. The Task Force recommends that comprehensive profiles of lifers and long term offenders be produced at least every three years.

An overview of existing In-Reach services was not possible to prepare, as the various workers collect statistics according to differing levels of detail and definitions of terms. Nine workers are providing services to lifers and long term offenders in four regions. Community resources dedicated exclusively to lifers are rare, with only one such residential centre in Canada. Nearly all Community Residential Centres will accept lifers, except those who may be bound by agreements with communities to refuse certain types of offenders, such rules are not based on sentence length but rather type of offence. While In-Reach services do not currently reach all incarcerated lifers, they are much more commonly available than are community services specifically designed for and dedicated to lifers.

In examining the feasibility of expanding Life Line services, the Task Force identified issues to be resolved. The first was the status of Life Line. It was agreed that trying to apply the term "program" to Life Line would be self-defeating, as this has come within the correctional community to have a very specific meaning related to dealing with factors or problems affecting offenders' criminal behaviour. However, the term "service" also has meaning for effective corrections, and the Task Force is recommending adoption of this designation.

A second issue was the target group. Life Line was originally targeted at those serving life sentences, however, offenders with indeterminate sentences, or those serving long determinate sentences, may share many of the same problems as lifers. The Task Force recommends that the target group include all those serving life sentences plus the approximately 260 offenders with indeterminate sentences. This target group should be reviewed after a period of experience with it to determine whether it should be changed or expanded.

The Task Force was specifically required to develop detailed standards for In-Reach Workers. A common scope of work, list of qualifications, ratio for Workers, and minimum compensation level are submitted. The Task Force also believes that contracts for In-Reach services should address the funds required for compensation, travel and administration, and should set out the parties' respective obligations for information-sharing and protection. The major responsibilities of In-Reach Workers would be working with the lifers in the institutions to make the most of their time, maintaining a team-work relationship with case management and participating in public education initiatives inside institutions and in the community.

Proposed standard qualifications would require In-Reach Workers to be lifers or long term offenders with integrity and credibility with the Correctional Service of Canada, the National Parole Board, lifers and the community, and who have demonstrated the knowledge, skills and experience needed to deliver the responsibilities of the job. They must be eligible for enhanced reliability screening.

The In-Reach Workers consulted by the Task Force suggested that they could deal with a ratio of one Worker for every 125 lifers, since not all offenders will opt to use their services, and the intensity of services to individuals will fluctuate over time depending on their needs. This ratio does not define caseload, rather it will allow Correctional Service of Canada operational managers and contract providers to mutually determine the level of human resources required to deliver In-Reach services. It should be subject to periodic review to determine if it remains appropriate.

The proposed minimum compensation level is $38,000 for full-time work on an annual fee-for-service basis, and this includes the value of benefits. Specific benefits would depend on the employment policies of the contracting agencies, and any compensation levels above this minimum would be subject to local contract negotiations.

The Task Force was also asked to provide a draft approach to orientation and training for In-Reach Workers. A three part package (required reading, skills training and on-the-job orientation) was developed and should form the basis of consultations at various levels to determine the most effective ways to deliver the training.

In reviewing the expansion and consolidation of Life Line services, the Task Force was particularly concerned that the special needs of Aboriginal offenders and of women be addressed. For Aboriginal offenders, it recommends that consultations take place involving the Correctional Service of Canada, National Parole Board, liaison workers and their agencies, Aboriginal offenders, Elders and the CSC Aboriginal Advisory Committee to determine the best direction to meet the needs of Aboriginal lifers. The Task Force also feels that it is important on an ongoing basis to seek input from those with expertise on Aboriginal issues in managing the Life Line Concept.

To address the special needs of women, the Task Force recommends that the Deputy Commissioner for Women of the Correctional Service of Canada take the leadership role in consultations and other work leading to developing services for women lifers and long term offenders. The Task Force is also concerned that the ongoing elaboration of direction and policy applying to federal offenders in the Life Line Concept should address and reflect the special needs of women.

The Task Force developed draft standards and guidelines describing the three components of Life Line and how they could operate. It is recommended to use these drafts as the basis for extensive consultation within the Correctional Service of Canada and National Parole Board and among the agencies who are now, or may in the future be interested in, providing the services. In developing these standards and reviewing the progress to date in implementing the Life Line Concept, it became increasingly apparent to Task Force members that creating specialized, dedicated community residential facilities for lifers across the country is not a realistic goal. It therefore recommends that the community component of Life Line recognize that achieving safe, gradual and progressively independent release for lifers can be done using a variety of community residential and program resources in combination.

The Task Force looked at ways to achieve better sentence planning and make more constructive use of time for all incarcerated long term offenders or lifers. The concept of lifers and long term offenders participating in correctional careers offers a constructive alternative to allowing offenders to drift within the system for ten or fifteen years before they become the focus of real attention immediately prior to their release. These offenders can support and assist staff in the conduct of their correctional work while at the same time contributing significantly to their own personal growth. They should have the opportunity to acquire and practice the skills to contribute to society while incarcerated.

Correctional careers must be consistent with the offender's correctional plan and must directly and measurably contribute to the reduction of risk. The development of these careers should be done within the framework of the four sentence stages proposed in the 1991 report of the Task Force on Long Term Sentences. The Task Force recommends that the Correctional Service of Canada further operationalize the career concept, and that attention focus on, but not be limited to, the areas of: personal development programs, health care, inmate-operated businesses, services to community charitable or voluntary agencies, and Corcan.

The outline of a research project is provided in the Task Force report. It is intended to provide a view of the successful and the unsuccessful lifer and long term offender from three perspectives:

1) Demographic view, i.e. those things that cannot change (such as age, sex, race, etc.)

2) Sociological factors which might be influenced, such as mental health, employment skills, etc.

3) A picture will be provided of the offenders from their own perspective and an identification of the factors they believe were most significant in re-entry into the community.

This will also provide a view of the offender at three points in the sentence, i.e. entry to the federal system, at release, and several years later. Each of these perspectives should be analyzed in the final report to determine how the various sets of factors within each of them interact, and whether or not there are correlations. The most important results will be the identification of what makes the difference for the offender between success or failure in reintegration. The Task Force suggests that the research results can be of assistance in the areas of institutional programs and placement, release policies and community resources and programs.

The process proposed by the Task Force for the development of an overall public education strategy related to lifers and long term offenders has important characteristics. It will be a serious exercise in consultation, with a wide range of individuals and groups, to develop, approve and implement an effective public education plan. Thus, the overall goals, messages and timeframe have to be open to discussion and debate with potential partners, who must know that their concerns and views are being taken seriously in these discussions. To be effective, the strategy must be developed and implemented at all three levels - national, regional and local.

The central defining characteristic of the Life Line Concept is that it is based on an equal partnership among Correctional Service of Canada, National Parole Board and the non-governmental proponents of the Life Line Concept, this partnership being reflected in the role and in the composition of the Life Line National Resource Group. It is time for the National Resource Group role and mandate to be reviewed and updated. While it is clear not all the existing long term goals of the National Resource Group have been met, their magnitude, and the fact that expansion of Life Line services is becoming a reality, should lead to a review of the overall role and mandate of the Group. The Task Force therefore recommends an immediate review of the role and mandate of the National Resource Group.

Further expansion of any of the three components of the Life Line Concept requires building a large network of non-governmental organizations, nationally, regionally and locally. The Task Force recommends that the Life Line National Resource Group should:

• provide expertise on lifers, long term offenders and on special offender groups (at a minimum, women offenders and Aboriginal offenders);
• reflect the diversity of Canada and
• engage national non-governmental organizations involved in corrections.

Within the limited terms of reference and short time frame, the Task Force was aware that its work was not happening in a vacuum. Staff, offenders and managers in all parts of Correctional Service of Canada; staff and members of the National Parole Board and staff and managers of non-governmental organizations involved in the justice system are working on a daily basis with lifers and other long term offenders. Their knowledge, expertise, opinions and responses are what will determine how the Life Line Concept moves forward. Collectively, their contributions will also determine how effectively and completely the three components of the Concept will be implemented. The Task Force therefore believes that all of these people should have an early opportunity to see and provide feedback on this report. The Task Force recommends that the final report of the Task Force be widely shared within the Correctional Service of Canada and the National Parole Board and among non-governmental organizations active in the criminal justice system, as the first step in a broadly-based consultation effort to develop effective responses to the needs of lifers and long term offenders in prisons and in the community.

Summary of Recommendations:

1. It is recommended that detailed profiles of offenders serving ten years or more, including life and indeterminate sentences, be produced on a regular basis, at a minimum every three years.

2. It is recommended that Life Line be recognized as a service to offenders as part of the overall strategy for working with long term offenders.

3. It is recommended that the initial target group for Life Line services be offenders who do not have a warrant expiry date.

4. It is recommended that once In-Reach services have been extended to this target group and some time has passed to gain experience and analyze the impact, as well as complete the research recommended in this report, this target group could be reviewed to consider adding offenders serving ten years or more.

5. It is recommended that the general responsibilities in the scope of work for In-Reach Workers be as follows:

• 1. Establish contact with newly sentenced or re-admitted lifers during the reception and initial placement stage of their sentence.
• 2. Actively encourage individual lifers to contribute to the management of their own sentences by informing them of the programs available, the case management process, and other appropriate resources in institutions and in the community; and by encouraging offenders' meaningful participation in conditional release programs for which they are eligible.
• 3. Maintain a regular interview and contact schedule with lifers and provide encouragement and advice throughout their sentences.
• 4. Maintain ongoing liaison with case management staff and keep up-to-date on Correctional Service of Canada and National Parole Board policies in order to assist in the co-ordination of the lifer's correctional plan, productive use of institutional time, preparation for release and reintegration into the community.
• 5. Assist lifers with preparation for legal hearings and, by mutual consent, attend or participate in such hearings.
• 6. Participate in education and awareness sessions for Correctional Service of Canada and National Parole Board staff and managers, community organizations and the general public.

6. It is recommended that the planning ratio of In-Reach Workers to offenders be set at 1:125. This ratio should be reviewed every three (3) years to ensure it remains realistic and feasible.

7. It is recommended that the qualifications for In-Reach Workers be as follows:

In-Reach Workers should:

• be lifers or long term offenders who have demonstrated successful reintegration by responsible, crime-free living in the community while on full parole for a minimum of five years;
• be accepted and recognized by the Correctional Service of Canada, National Parole Board, lifers, and the community as a responsible role model;
• demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of the needs of lifers and long term offenders during the incarceration and community phases of their sentences, as well as a knowledge of the correctional system;
• possess effective verbal and written communication skills;
• demonstrate the ability to work both independently and within a team;
• demonstrate the willingness to conform to the rules governing the operation of Correctional Service of Canada institutions, Escorted and Unescorted Temporary Absences and parole supervision; and
• be eligible for enhanced reliability security screening.

Training and/or experience in the field of social sciences, communications, or community development is advantageous but not a prerequisite.

8. It is recommended that the minimum level of compensation for an In-Reach Worker be set at $38,000 per year for a full-time worker.

9. It is recommended that there be an initial orientation period for new In-Reach Workers of up to six weeks in duration, and that Appendix B to this report be the basis for developing a common approach to orientation and ongoing training.

10. It is recommended that tripartite consultations take place involving Correctional Service of Canada, National Parole Board, liaison workers and their agencies, Aboriginal offenders, Elders and the CSC Aboriginal Advisory Committee to determine the best direction to take to meet the needs of Aboriginal lifers. This consultation would be most appropriately led by Correctional Service of Canada's Director General, Aboriginal Issues.

11. It is recommended that the Deputy Commissioner for Women of Correctional Service of Canada take the leadership role in tripartite consultations and other work leading to developing services for women lifers and long term offenders.

12. It is recommended that contracts for In-Reach services address funds required for compensation, travel and administration.

13. It is recommended that the implementation of the Community component of the Life Line Concept consider combinations of community resources that will ensure a process of gradual phased day parole leading to full parole.

14. It is recommended that the draft set of standards developed by the Task Force be used as a starting point for broad consultations among Correctional Service of Canada, National Parole Board and all non-governmental organizations who are or may be interested in providing services under the umbrella of the Life Line Concept.

15. It is recommended that the review process that measures compliance to standards allow for the following steps:

• service providers conduct a self-audit to determine if they meet the standards;
• service providers make adjustments according to their review;
• external reviews are conducted to measure compliance;
• regular contract compliance reviews be undertaken by service providers and contract managers.

16. It is recommended that Correctional Service of Canada develop standard operating practices to provide an operational reality f or the correctional career concept, and develop this within the sentence stages model accepted in 1991, examining in depth the following areas:

• personal development programs
• health care
• inmate-operated businesses
• services to community charitable or voluntary agencies
• Corcan.

17. It is recommended that research on factors affecting the reintegration of lifers and long term offenders be conducted using the Task Force's outline as part of the framework.

18. It is recommended that a public education strategy be developed jointly by the three partners in this Task Force, using the Task Force report as a starting point.

19. It is recommended that the role and mandate of the Life Line National Resource Group be reviewed now.

20. It is recommended that the Life Line National Resource Group should:

• include expertise on lifers and long term offenders; and on specific offender groups, at a minimum on women and Aboriginal offenders;
• reflect the geographic, social, linguistic and cultural diversity of Canada; and
• engage national non-governmental organizations involved in corrections.

21. It is recommended that the final report of the Task Force be widely shared within Correctional Service of Canada and National Parole Board and among non-governmental organizations active in the criminal justice system, as the first step in a broadly-based consultation effort to develop effective correctional responses to the needs of lifers and long term offenders in prisons and in the community.