According to the 2012 report From One System to Another: Crossover Children in Waterloo Region, “Children living in the care of the child welfare system have a higher likelihood of justice system involvement in comparison to children living with their biological parents” (WRCPC, pg.2). Children who enter out-of-home care often come from disadvantaged families and have been subjected to maltreatment and neglect. The impact of trauma experienced from abuse, neglect, and being removed from their family home can affect a child’s cognitive functioning and may also result in challenging behaviors that jeopardize their development (Reid & Dudding, 2006; Stone, 2007; Trout et al., 2008). As a result youth-in-care are often at higher risk of:
Involvement in the youth justice system
Homelessness
Substance use
Becoming parents earlier
Living in poverty
Using social assistance
Experience emotional and behavioural difficulties
Four out of ten young people in care have a parent who was a client of the child welfare system as a child. (Leschied et al. London Study, 2003)
Family and Children’s Services of Waterloo Region (FCS) is keenly aware of these research results and is working hard to help improve outcomes for children and youth in care. Admitting a child into care is always a last resort for workers, however when a child is not able to remain safely in their own home, FCS must provide a safe alternative. One of our FCS key service priorities is to ensure that all children have the permanent support of a safe, loving and nurturing family (preferably their own family) in which they can grow and develop towards successful adulthood.
Children in care numbers remained fairly consistent with some modest increases and decreases between the years 2007/08 to 2010/11. However, in the year 2011/12 the agency experienced a significant increase in children in care numbers – 6% over the previous year. As part of a regular review of our service trends, we examined the increase in child admissions to care in 2011/12. Despite the increase, many of these admissions were for short period of time (i.e. five days or less). The increased number of children in care was driven by a number of factors. The economic downturn is felt to have contributed to an increase in referrals and protection applications. The agency also experienced an increase in parents abandoning their children to society care due to lack of resources in the community – particularly resources related to respite services for teens and children with complex developmental/medical needs. In 2011/12 there was also a lack of regional subsidized day care spaces in the community – daycare is often viewed as a protective factor for young vulnerable children who are more visible in the community when they regularly attend daycare.
Agency and Provincial Response to Youth in Care Outcomes
For those children who do require out of home care, Family and Children’s Services works hard to ensure that these children have every opportunity to develop to their full potential. Each child in care has an individual plan developed by the youth, the family, the worker, and key supports in the youth’s life. The plan of care focuses on improving a child/youth’s well-being and resilience. Family and Children’s Services of the Waterloo Region, along with other CAS’s across the province, use The Ontario Looking after Children (OnLAC) model to help improve the outcomes for children placed in out of home care. A key focus of OnLAC is the assessment, documentation and tracking of a child’s developmental progress through an annual assessment (AAR-C2: Flynn, Ghazal, & Legault, 2006).
In addition to planning for individual children, the data gathered through OnLAC is useful at the agency and provincial level to inform service planning on many different levels. Review of data by staff, foster parents and community partners provides assistance with evaluation and future planning and helps raise awareness and increases the attention given to improving outcomes for children in care.
Prevention of Adolescent Admissions
FCS is attempting to work collaboratively with our community partners to reduce adolescent admissions to care. While we recognize the stress that many parents face when dealing with challenging teens, admission to care is rarely the best answer. There are numerous unintended consequences of admitting adolescents to care. Once admitted, youth are;
Less likely to return home to their family
Less likely to successfully work through family issues
In addition, having an adolescent youth in care may lead to decreased feelings of competence and confidence for the parents and may lead to decreased feelings of safety and security for youth.
What Can be done by the Community?
When for whatever reason, parents/caregivers of youth do not feel capable of responding to the youth’s behaviour the caregivers turn to the larger systems to help contain that behaviour
The larger systems available to them are education, child welfare, youth justice
Those systems need to be able to come together in a way that helps support the family in responding to the youth’s distress, rather than taking a punitive stance or removing the youth from their (wider) system of support
It is important for these systems to respond from a trauma and attachment informed lens (i.e look to what is underneath the behaviour, help parents understand the impact of trauma and disrupted attachments in their own lives). This will guide the systems in helping the family to maintain the youth
Interventions need to be aimed at helping the family to return to a place of emotional and physical safety
Jill Stoddart is the Senior Manager of Innovation, Research and Development at Family and Children’s Services of the Waterloo Region. Jill has a Master’s degree in Social Work from Wilfrid Laurier University and is currently engaged in her Doctoral studies. Jill has spent the last 25 years in the Waterloo Region working with children and families in Developmental Services, Mental Health and Child Welfare.
Posted on: June 25th, 2013 by Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council
Our Waterloo Region community has a lot to say about most any topic you can think of, but, we are particularly passionate when it comes to talking about making change for a healthier and stronger community. We’re pretty good at moving to action too, not just talking about it!
The Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council believes monitoring the root causes of crime can aid the community in addressing crime, victimization and fear of crime through awareness, discussion, leadership and action. Once the root causes are understood more clearly, resources can be applied to areas where the community is doing poorly. A Snapshot in Time: The Root Causes of Crime in Waterloo Region identifies the root causes of crime right here in Waterloo Region and provides a tool to aid local policy makers in targeting interventions to where they are most needed and where they can have the greatest impact.
In addition to being a monitoring tool the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council is using this report to aid members of the public in comprehending the complex connection between social and economic circumstances and crime. The report was written in a straightforward manner with each of the root causes containing an explanation of why it was included, a graph showing the statistics for Waterloo Region and a short story giving details on what is going on behind the numbers. Additionally, Wade McAdam created the following information graphic to help tell the story of the root causes in an easily accessible format.
A Snapshot in Time is also designed to be a catalyst for conversations in Waterloo Region about the root causes of crime. Over the next ten weeks tune in to this discussion through our blog series where community leaders, community residents and leading experts across Waterloo Region weigh in on the root causes of crime outlined in the report. Numbers only tell part of the story. It’s the human stories and context that make them come alive, create insight and move us to action.
I hope you will join us. We’re standing by… waiting to hear what you have to say!
Posted on: April 24th, 2013 by Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council
This is the official position statement of the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council given at a public consultation on the question of a casino in the City of Kitchener. The remarks below were given by WRCPC Executive Director, Christiane Sadeler on behalf of the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you tonight on the topic of a casino in Kitchener or the Waterloo Region. I am representing the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council; I also live in downtown Kitchener.
The Crime Prevention Council opposes the opening of a casino within Waterloo Region. However, in the event that a casino should be opened here, we recommend that the development and operations of the casino must incorporate crime prevention considerations and harm reduction strategies from the very beginning.
We have provided you with a full copy of the position statement and also included some materials that we believe are relevant in this context. The position statement is also available on our website (www.preventingcrime.ca). In the interest of time I can only highlight a few aspects of the position.
There has been no dialogue that did NOT at some point mention the concern that crimes increase in the proximity of casinos. Your own city online survey mentions safety along with considerations of health, city image and so on. Fear of long term impact on our quality of life is often as detrimental as crime itself. Perceptions can become reality. Right or wrong the connection between casinos and crime is part of public discourse. And perceptions are hard to change. We know that by now.
But what does the evidence tell us?
This is where it gets a little more grey. The research findings about a connection between crime and casinos are mixed, if not inconclusive. It would not be correct to claim that casinos have a DIRECT impact on crime, at least not an impact that would differ from that of other large entertainment facilities, at first sight. Direct links between crime and any one community action are hard to come by and must always be seen in the context of decreasing crime rates in the last decade.
We therefore must look beyond the direct connections to what we know about risks. What puts us at risk of crime, victimization, and fear of crime? It is here that the public health research is compelling and worthy of your in-depth consideration. We know that over 30% of profits in gambling come from problem gamblers and those at risk for gambling addictions. We know that these individuals share characteristics that are best defined as root causes of crime. We have detailed them in our position statement along with a report about root causes. We encourage you to consult both.
Simply put, whenever we increase the vulnerability of those already at risk, the financial and human burden to them and their families are quickly matched by the community and social costs. While casinos may not directly lead to increases in street level crime, they do lead to increases in other social ills and crimes, such as, intimate partner violence, addictions, etc. From a prevention standpoint these should concern us as much as public safety and disorder issues.
Problem gambling erodes the health of individuals and those close to them and by extension, of the communities in which they live.
The Ontario Lottery Gaming Commission does not deny that gambling addictions exist and that they come at a cost. These are brochures that are provided right at the Windsor Casino entrance, alerting patrons to these risks.
So, gambling facilities come with warning label. They also come with treatment recommendations if the warning labels were not effective. This is not forward thinking. This is resigning ourselves to the fact that along with these facilities will come problems.
Prevention is cross-generational. Are we OK with a baby born in 2013 becoming the casino patron of 2033? If the answer is, even remotely, “we are not sure”, then we need to hit pause and look more deeply at the research and the rationale for considering a casino here in the first place. Will the benefits justify the costs? Are we informed by the “8-80” concept? Is it a good decision for the 8 year old in our community AND for the 80 year old in our community no matter what walks of life they come from?
Most people who gamble may not engage in criminal activities. But those at risk of gambling addictions are vulnerable to many other issues that come at a social cost, crime among them.
We believe that for the crimes committed by the offender he or she is responsible; for not dealing with the root causes of crime when these are known to us, all of us are responsible.
However, if the decision is to bring a casino to our city the Crime Prevention Council recommends that prevention and harm reduction methods are included in the development and operations from the very beginning. In the position paper, we have outlined 12 harm reduction recommendations. These include considerations about alcohol consumption, placement of ATM machines, opening hours, self exclusion programs etc. The first recommendation is to establish a region wide advisory group with expertise in problem gambling prevention to provide input from the beginning, including during the RFP process.
In conclusion, the decision that you are faced with, in the mind of the Crime Prevention Council, is not to be taken lightly. It is a decision that will affect the well being of generations beyond all of us present here tonight. Waterloo Region is one of the safest and ultimately prosperous communities in Canada. We have become known for innovation and forward thinking. There is little innovative about a casino. We are on a solid path of creating and maintaining a safe and healthy community. It is hard to imagine that we can lose by passing on the idea of a casino. It is easier to imagine what we might lose if we take this on.
Thank you for your time and we wish you well in your decision making.
My recent trip to Canada held one major surprise and the image, vivid after more than two weeks, of a kid in a red shirt.
I returned from a meeting-packed three days in Winnipeg, where I keynoted two conferences (one at Winnipeg University’s “Thinkers’ Conference”), participated in panels, shared thoughts with people working with at risk kids, and engaged in discussions with political and policy leaders. I also had the pleasure of spending a good bit of time with the Conference’s closing keynoter, Shulamith Koenig, an absolutely amazing woman, the recipient of the 2003 UN Prize for Human Rights.
When I’m on a speaking trip, I always want a jammed schedule: I refuse to air-drop in, give a speech and leave. I’m eager, no, more, I need to steep myself in what’s going on locally: I always learn, returning home spurred on by new ideas, new approaches.
I asked Bob Axworthy, the tireless conference coordinator and my “minder” for the three days, to give me in addition to everything else he had scheduled, the opportunity to speak with a few young people. “I’ll take you to Saint John’s in the city’s North Side,” he said. “Good bit of crime. Low graduation rates. Located in the highest crime area of the city.”
I had difficulty pulling myself away from a conversation at “New Directions“, and so arrived late at North High. The principal quickly took me upstairs, where I met a somewhat guilty-looking Axworthy. “Here’s a microphone. You’re on!” “I’m on?” He held open the door, which led to a stage in front of which sat “a few kids” – about 350 of them at a school assembly.
After whispering to Axworthy that I was going to get even with him, I began with a personal note, describing the profound influence Dr. Martin Luther King had on me and my career. Not much resonance. So I shifted to them.
I had no notes, but this is what I recall of the hour with the kids. “I’m glad you’re here,” I began. “Many of your friends aren’t. Many, if not most of you, have been through a lot of stuff. Some of you have mothers on crack. Some of you may have a dad in jail. Some of you may have seen friends or relatives hurt badly, maybe even killed. Some of you have been on drugs. And some of you have been abused physically or even sexually.
“But guess what? You’re here. You’re in school. And for some of you, that takes about every ounce of strength you’ve got. What’s even more important is this: what you’ve been through, the tough stuff, gives you a skill. You’ve got a friend who’s into drugs? If you’ve been there, you can help. If you’ve been hurt or lost a dad you can help another who’s going through the same thing. You’ve got pain. We all have some. You have more than most. It’s not going to go away fast, so use it to help others. You see, your pain must not be wasted. And helping another go through the hard stuff will ease your pain like nothing else.
Then I shifted. “Let’s look at what it takes to make it. We’re going to share thoughts about resiliency. A big word. Who knows what it means?” Most hands were in total lock down until one kid ventured, “Hope.” “Close. We’re getting somewhere.” Then this, from a half-slouching, half-grinning kid in a red tee shirt: “It means making it when you’re not supposed to.” “Brilliant,” or something like it, I replied.
The Search Institute, the nation’s premier strength-based/resiliency research entity, points to 42 resiliency characteristics. I have my top five, and began to share them with the kids. I tried hard to involve as many of them as possible, but got only six or seven hands, maybe more. But one thing was clear: Red Shirt dominated, legitimate domination, for without wanting to show it, he watched me like a hawk, and was right on top of most questions…and the answers.
“Number one, a goal,” I began. “You are bound and determined to complete something. It can be small, like making the soccer team, passing your English class. Or it can be larger: graduating, getting a job, being the first in your family to go to college. The point is this: you are determined to make your goal. You are focused. You’re going to get there. Nothing’s going to stop you. If you don’t have a goal, anything can knock you over or knock you down.
“Second, an adult who is always there. Can be a parent, a coach, one of your teachers here, an uncle, a grandmother. Someone you can go to always, especially when you’re hurting”. I didn’t ask for hands, as this is a conversation for an intimate group.
“Third, a skill, something you can point to”. ‘I can sing. I can shoot hoops. I can make people laugh. I am a brilliant mathematician, and can I ever act! Discover what you’re good at and celebrate it.
“Fourth, optimism.” Got a few hands on the definition of optimism. “Optimism can be a form of hope. I have hope. I know things will get better. Or optimism can be described in a theological way as in ‘I know God holds me in his hand.’
“Fifth, altruism.” No takers on the definition of altruism. I told them that it meant that they had something that someone else needed and that they had a responsibility to help, that real living meant being there for others, too. “It also means that you know you have good stuff. If you share it, it means you feel good about yourself, that you have something someone else needs.”
We ended. I was given a Saint John’s “Tiger” tee shirt and “Tiger” mug just before the kids poured down from the tiers.
I asked the principal to grab Red Shirt. I had to talk to him. She steered him to me. I took his hand in both of mine, and I pulled him close. “I don’t know who you are. But I know this: you’re smart, really smart. And you read a lot.” Slight nod and an almost embarrassed smile. “And,” I said. You’re trouble. I can feel it. But man, you’re brilliant and you can do something huge with your life. Look at what you did today. You were the star. Some big words and big concepts. And you nailed most of it”. I got an ambiguous half-smile and a curious look. He moved on and out, leaving with a knot of his buddies.
As we walked down the stairs to the car, the principal told me that Red Shirt was the biggest gang banger in the school.
Scott Larson, President of Straight Ahead Ministries, works with the toughest kids in the State of Massachusetts (among many other states). In a recent article, “The Power of Hope,” written for the Winter 2013 edition of the journal “Reclaiming Children and Youth,” Larson said, “…having a sense of vision for a future is much more powerful [a] motivator than the mere commitment NOT to repeat the painful past…Hope requires saying yes to a future worth having, rather than merely no to that which is not wanted. And generally that future is one that is beyond the limits of past experiences. This is where the challenge to finding hope lies.” Larson asserts that staying out of trouble, getting out of the gang, staying away from drugs and not getting locked up is not enough. We’ve got to help kids see a different future and then “…have someone walk with [them] through the changes necessary to access that future.”
Strange. I’ve seen and interacted with thousands of kids over my life time. But for some reason Red Shirt sticks with me.
I’m going to ask Axworthy to follow up with him. Maybe become his mentor. Axworthy owes me that. Someone owes Red Shirt that.
Jack Calhoun was a keynote speaker at the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council Annual Justice Dinner in April 2010.Reprinted with permission from Jack Calhoun and Hope Matters.
Fans of the television show The Simpsons will remember an early episode where a casino opens in Springfield and Marge becomes addicted to gambling.
The episode continues with Marge neglecting the Simpson family and Homer ultimately declaring “the only monster here is the gambling monster that has enslaved your mother! I call him Gamblor, and it’s time to snatch your mother from his neon claws!”
Oh Gamblor, the problem gambling demon that many fear moves into town when a casino opens. With the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation considering a new casino somewhere in southern Ontario, possibly even Woolwich Township in our region, we started looking for evidence of the link between casinos, crime and the impact on communities.
Do casinos increase crime?
Ontario’s casinos are government owned and operated which likely decreases the presence of organized crime in casinos. Street-level crimes such as money laundering, counterfeiting, theft, assault, robbery, drug dealing, and prostitution sometimes occur in and around casinos. There is disagreement in the research as to whether or not street-level crime increases when a casino opens.
In Ontario there is no clear link between casinos and crime. Since opening casinos in the 1990’s Ontario casino towns have not experienced increased crime. However individuals with criminal records may be attracted casinos. There is a lot of research from outside of Canada that indicates robbery and theft increase when a casino opens. The largest U.S. study on casinos and crime found that crime decreased for the first two years of casino operations and then increased three to five years after a casino opened, spilling over to neighbouring communities. Another U.S. study found that violent crime increased by 10% after a casino opened.
Casinos increase problem gambling
What is clear in the research is that the presence of a casino increased problem gambling in the community. Problem gambling, like any addiction, can lead to crimes such as fraud, theft, drug dealing, or prostitution. The impacts on family can be severe as problem gambling has been linked to increased domestic violence and child abuse.
Casinos decrease social capital
Casinos can erode the level of trust in a community by increasing fear of crime and therefore decreasing social capital. Calls to police reporting suspicious person are greater in casino areas, suggesting people may be less trusting around casinos.
So what can be done to ensure that Gamblor does not take hold of your loved ones? Casinos can take steps to promote responsible gambling including: information to gamblers, casino policies, and the physical casino space.
Having information on problem gambling visible and available to all gamblers. This includes putting gambling helpline numbers and websites on slot machines
Limiting the size of bets
Posting the odds for games and increasing awareness of how random chance works. Just for fun… here’s a great video on how random chance works and how to gamble responsibly (produced by Gambling Awareness Nova Scotia in cooperation with the Ontario Problem Gambling Research Centre (OPGRC) and in partnership with Addiction Services, Nova Scotia Health and Wellness)
Not serving refreshments at gaming tables or machines
Training casino staff to identify and intervene with problem gamblers
Allowing players to set their own loss and time limits
Closing the casino for at least 6 hours a day
Having a gambler tracking system that helps identify problem gamblers and sends all gamblers regular statements on their winnings and loses
Having self exclusion programs that are well promoted and easy to use
The physical casino space
Having a registration desk where gamblers must sign in and present identification
Only having one ATM in a casino that does not take credit cards and has a withdrawal limit of $250 dollars per person per day
Modifying slot machines to eliminate features that encourage excessive play
Having fewer tables and gaming formats
The discussion about casinos and crime needs to be informed by evidence and we found that alongside problem gambling there are other problems that come with a casino such as the possibility of increased crime and likelihood of social capital decreasing. However some of these impacts can be lessened by casinos implementing best practices in responsible gambling. If Waterloo Region does choose to host a casino considering these best practices could lessen the harmful effects of problem gambling.
Gamblor will happily move in with a casino but we might be able to prevent his neon claws from getting a hold of the community. Do you know of examples where communities have successfully preserved their social capital and prevented the potential negative impacts of casino may bring?
NB: If you are curious about the full list of sources used for this article, email us at info [at] smartoncrime.ca and we’ll send you the whole list!
Keely Phillips is a Masters of Social Work candidate at Wilfrid Laurier University and has spent the past four months completing her practicum placement with WRCPC. She was excited to be able to use her love of The Simpsons to discuss casinos, crime, and problem gambling, marking the second time she has used The Simpsons as academic fodder. Previously, she used The Simpsons in her undergraduate degree to examine the gendered experience of leisure.
Posted on: December 17th, 2012 by Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council
I’ve been asked this question. Not these “exact’ words, but it certainly felt that way when I was asked to ‘provide a rationale’ as to why we use yoga as part of our programs at inREACH, a street gang prevention program in Waterloo Region. Here’s the rationale I gave… which also seems to be backed up by a lot of good solid evidence.
All of the youth we work with at inREACH have deficits in the area of emotion regulation. In its most problematic form this may result in anger and aggression which can cause them to come into conflict with the law; less obviously, but just as seriously, many of the same youth suffer from chronic anxiety and depression. Additionally, many of the youth turn to heavy substance use as the only tool at their disposal to manage powerful feelings. In order for youth to reduce their drug use and manage their emotions well enough to enable them to make good choices when problem solving, they must learn self-calming techniques.
Yoga teaches relaxation and breathing techniques which youth are able to use in a variety of settings as strategies to regulate their stress-response system. By decreasing their level of physiological arousal (heart rate, blood pressure) youth are able to increase their capacity to stay calm in stressful situations and thus make better choices about their behaviour. Evidence suggests that yoga can reduce maladaptive nervous system arousal, thus making it easier for youth to strengthen healthy coping strategies and reduce their dependence on substances to maintain emotional equilibrium. As a result of its efficacy, yoga is increasingly being offered in accredited children’s mental health treatment centres such as Lutherwood in Waterloo, in custody facilities such as Roy McMurtry Youth Centre in Bramptom, and in community-based gang prevention programs, such as Breaking the Cycle in Rexdale.
One of the best parts of working on the inREACH project has been the opportunity to collaborate with local service providers, businesses and community residents to expose the young people we work with to experiences that they would not otherwise have access to. The results have sometimes been surprising. For example, last winter we began working with Meaghan Johnson at Queen Street Yoga to teach yoga and mindfulness to one of our groups for young people at-risk for gang activity.
The youth we work with have responded very well to the experience. We found that by beginning our groups with yoga and mindfulness exercises they were more grounded and focused for the psycho-educational material that followed. Many learned that they could use breathing as a strategy in stressful situations, while others continued to practice yoga on their own time. Beyond the tools they may have taken from it, however, all were able to experience what, to me, is the most powerful aspect of yoga – accepting and honouring who you are, in your body, at this particular moment in time, without judgment.
Now, I could have provided a purely economic rationale for teaching yoga to “thugs”. Something along the lines of… Yoga – 1 teacher @ $100/hour x 6 sessions/5 youth = $600.00 ($120 per youth ) Incarceration – 5 youth @ $350/day x 5/days = $8,750 ($1,750per youth)
… and let the math speak for itself.
However, wouldn’t you rather see a young person who can understand the connection between emotional triggers and behaviour, self-regulate emotions with consciousness, make healthy decisions and learn body awareness techniques that can be used for a lifetime?
I know I would. I believe our community would be a safer place if more of our young people had the opportunity for this kind of experience.
This is an excellent talk from New Leaf Yoga teacher Laura Sygrove about the power of yoga to connect the mind & body in very practical ways and start a healing journey in a healthy constructive way.
Author: Shanna Braden is a social worker at Lutherwood who works for inREACH, a collaborative project of local community partners to prevent gang activity in the Region of Waterloo.
Posted on: November 1st, 2012 by Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council
Being tough on crime often means talking about keeping criminals off the street, protecting the rights of victims and deterring offenders from either offending in the first place, or re-offending upon release. All of these things, however laudable, sound great on talk radio. In my very unscientific poll listening to a recent local talk radio program where the host interviewed the Honourable Rob Nicholson, Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of Canada about toughening the Safe Streets and Communities Act (Bill C-10) about 90% of the callers supported this tough stance that would result in more offenders going to prison. Now, these are serious offenders, not joy-riders or B+E specialists. These are the people found guilty of violent offences. Tough to argue against that. But, have these callers thought about where we are sending these offenders and at what cost, or do they give much thought at all to prison, beyond it being the destination for bad guys (and girls in increasing numbers)?
“Canadians should be interested in who is ending up behind bars. Questions about whom we incarcerate and for how long and why are important public policy issues…Visible minorities, Aboriginal people and women are entering federal penitentiaries in greater numbers than ever before. Twenty-one percent of the inmate population is of Aboriginal descent and 9% of inmates are Black Canadians. In the last five years, the number of federally incarcerated women has increased by about 40% while the number of Aboriginal women has increased by over 80% in the last decade. In fact, if not for these sub-groups, the offender population growth rate would have flat-lined some years ago.”
Think about that for a moment. Does this not seem out of whack to you? How often have we heard our politicians or talk show hosts calling attention to these stats? Not very, at least in my memory. How long can we keep sweeping this issue under the proverbial rug before we need an SUV to climb over it? Why is this not on the national radar?
Mr. Sapers goes even further to paint a picture of today’s inmate:
“More offenders are admitted to federal penitentiaries more addicted and more mentally ill that ever before. 36% have been identified at admissions as requiring some form of psychiatric care of psychological follow-up. 63% of offenders report using either alcohol or drugs on the day of their current offence…These needs often run ahead of the system’s capacity to meet them.”
Given this, would it not make sense for the government to invest some of the money it is using after the fact to house these people to invest at the front end in some form of proactive therapy that can address alcohol and substance abuse issues as these are often linked to mental health problems? We know that it currently costs the government (in reality you and me, the taxpayer) about $98,000 to incarcerate one male (female prisoners are much more expensive to house, in fact about twice the cost) for one year in a medium security federal prison. By the way, these figures come from Public Safety Canada. I am not making them up. If that money were invested in mental health and addictions counselling (and it wouldn’t even cost near that amount) for a person when symptoms first arise, it would save exponential amounts of money after the fact in costs of incarceration. This isn’t bleeding heart liberalism. It’s simple mathematics. You should know that there is a range of costs for persons incarcerated that is dependent on whether or not they are in a federal or provincial institute, whether they are male or female and the level of security and so on. I think there are more options out there that are less expensive and arguably more effective.
Look for example at InREACH, the anti-gang project running in Waterloo Region. In 2009, the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council received nearly $3.8 million from the National Crime Prevention Centre (Canada) for a 45 month time period to create and implement a collaborative street gang prevention project that involved a collaboration among various community agency partners. You can read about the initiative yourself so I won’t take you through all it offers in terms of its programs like addictions counselling, mental health supports, job skills training, community mobilization and so on. Visit the site though. You will be impressed.
In a recent monitoring report of the project prepared by Karen Hayward, she notes that 210 youth have been referred to the program since 2010. If, and it’s a very big if, all of these youth would have gone on to commit crimes which would land them in a medium security federal penitentiary the cost to the taxpayer would be $20,580,000. Okay, that’s a stretch. It depends on lots of factors so I am asking you to give me some leeway here. So, let’s say only a quarter of these youth could be diverted successfully. The cost is still $5,145,000. Oh, by the way, this is per year. So, if for example we say that the program diverted 25% of these youth from a federal penitentiary over three years, at a program investment of roughly $3 million and without it, the government (again, you and me) would be on the hook for $15,435,000 – does it not look cost effective? And, interestingly enough, inREACH is scrambling for funding since the money is running out. It begs the question as to why, when simple economics tells us it makes more sense to invest upfront dollars that will save the taxpayer huge amounts later on. I know there are a lot of suppositions in my example that may fail to take various factors into consideration, but the message is still clear: pay now or pay a lot more later.
Mr. Sapers helps make my argument. “Expenditures on federal corrections totalled almost $2.5 billion in 2010-11, which represents a 43.9% increase since 2005-06.” Have we seen the same percentage increase going to mental health and addictions support? Well, it appears not. According to the Canadian Psychiatric Association, the federal government has cut mental health services at Correctional Services Canada including three doctors, 28 nurses, six psychologists, three social workers and two occupational therapists. These numbers don’t include the 18 nurses and five psychologists affected by the closure of Kingston Penitentiary who will lose their jobs.
When one considers, as Mr. Sapers’ report notes, that 4 of 5 offenders have substance abuse problems, 50% of federally incarcerated women report a history of self-harm, over half identify a current or previous addiction to drugs, 85% report a history of physical abuse and 68% experienced sexual abuse at some point in their lives, any cuts to mental health supports seem short-sighted. And I am not even touching on the story of Ashley Smith, as an example of what can happen to a person with mental health needs in our prison system.
As much as I think many callers to talk shows debating the tough on crime agenda reasonably want to protect victims, it might be time for them to think about what happens after the cell door slams. After all, at some point these people are coming out and will be standing in line with us at Tim Hortons or riding the bus with us. From a strictly selfish point of view, do we want them to come out healthier, more able to handle stress and addictive tendencies, more compassionate and remorseful, or just angrier and more damaged?
Is it time to stop pretending prison is our best option? What are we pretending not to know?
Author: Frank Johnson is a regular guest writer for Smart on Crime in Waterloo Region. Frank is a retired principal with the local Catholic school board, a dad, and sometimes runner who possesses an irreverent sense of humour that periodically gets him in trouble. He lives in Waterloo, Ontario.
Frank Johnson’s writing reflects his own opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views or official positions of the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council.
Posted on: October 26th, 2012 by Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council
How to understand the complex nature and impact of psychological trauma in our community? Important steps are being taken in this direction by KidsLink, a Waterloo Region based organization supporting the emotional and mental health of children and youth in our community.
We recently hosted Laurie Robinson in a webinar to explore the prevalence and science of trauma and how our community can move toward a trauma-informed system of care. Participants in the webinar came from many different sectors representing children & youth mental health, addictions, health care and more.
But why would the Crime Prevention Council be interested in issues of trauma? Trauma (adverse childhood experiences, or adult in some cases) is often the root of many psychological, physical, behavioural and health conditions – and WRCPC is all about getting to the root causes or conditions. For example, did you know….
75% – 93% of youth entering the criminal justice system have experienced some form of trauma
Among boys who experienced a traumatic incident under the age of 12, 50% – 79% became involved in serious juvenile delinquency
Incarcerated women are more likely to report a history of childhood physical or sexual abuse (Justice Policy Institute, 2010).
Prevention tell us: “it’s easier to build strong children than to mend broken adults.”
I share Laurie Robinson’s presentation here to give you a starting point for finding out what trauma is and the impact it has on our community.
How do you see trauma affecting people you work with, serve, represent? What do you see as the impact within our community? How might a trauma informed system of care improve the lives of the people that you works with. How might it improve the health of us all? How could this approach have an effect on prevention, early intervention, effective treatment and intervention, the corrections & court system, rehabilitation…..? Let you mind consider the possibilities!
Post your questions or comments here and Laurie will do her best to answer them all.
Posted on: October 22nd, 2012 by Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council
When the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council talks about everyone having a role to place in crime prevention, we really do mean EVERYONE, including doctors and all health care providers! Drawing on the recommendations from The Missing Pieces report, an assessment of services and gaps for victims and offenders of interpersonal violence (2010, WRCPC), many sectors in our community have been taking action on the 44 recommendations that were developed. Several of the recommendations addressed the need for screening for abuse in health care settings:
Begin screening for domestic violence at the triage stage at Grand River Hospital
Encourage physicians region wide to screen for domestic violence, elder abuse and child abuse and neglect
Offer more training for teachers about how to recognize and respond to abuse and neglect
Screen for elder abuse at hospital admission or emergency department visits
To help educate primary care professionals in health care settings about their role in preventing violence, several community partners collaborated to present this webinar on “Screening for Intimate Partner Violence in Health Care Settings”.
This training was led by Dr. Robin Mason, a scientist and academic research expert at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto and Dr. Patricia Mousmanis a community based clinician and trainer with the Ontario College of Family Physicians. In just one hour, they covered:
the prevalence of abuse and the potential health effects on the victim and children exposed to violence
a discussion on the prenatal period when women may be more vulnerable to abuse and the potential for serious harm to the mother and her developing fetus are very great.
the role of health care providers in screening for abuse
ALPHA Forms for health care professionals providing primary care
the importance of being aware of and facilitating good relationships with community organizations providing support to people experiencing intimate partner violence
availability of online education for health care providers on domestic violence. This interactive, case-based education may be accessed free of charge and completed at your pace. CME credits are available. For more information go to www.DVeducation.ca.
Health care providers are key partners in the community in assisting people experiencing domestic violence and their children. Together we can make a difference.
What do you want to know about the role of health care providers in screening for personal violence and abuse? Our presenters are happy to answer some more of your questions.
Our By the Numbers feature is back with a series of video blogs by Anthony Piscitelli, our very own Supervisor, Planning and Research with the Waterloo Region Crime Prevention Council. In his first video post, Anthony takes a closer look at the numbers from a recent WRCPC publication about crossover children; “From One System to Another: Crossover Children in Waterloo Region.”
If you have more questions, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of this blog post. Or, you are welcome to give Anthony a call directly. We can be reached at 519.883.2304.
