Here's a sneak peak of our May Graterfriends. We included an article about the issues discussed at our recent public panel about how public health issues relate to criminal justice issues -- two topics not thought to have a lot in common. In fact, one affects the other in many ways.

1. Graterfriends ― A Publication of The Pennsylvania Prison Society ― May 2012
From
the Editors News
While we at the Prison Society have been busy plan- PUBLIC HEALTH AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE
ning our 225th anniversary of advocating for social jus- ISSUES OFTEN INTERSECT
tice, we continue to offer help and programming to those
who need it — prisoners, former prisoners, and their by Mindy Bogue, Graterfriends Managing Editor
families and communities.
“If we don’t provide ex-offenders with the opportunity
We recently held an informative public forum about to have housing, how can we expect them to succeed?”
the intersection of public health issues and criminal jus- asked John Wetzel, Secretary of the Pennsylvania De-
tice issues. It’s not a subject that is often talked about, partment of Corrections at the recent public health pan-
but we found that without help from public health insti- el: The Nexus Between Public Health and Criminal Jus-
tutions, ex-prisoners can find reentry into society very tice. Along with Secretary Wetzel, the 200 attendees also
difficult. Some of the findings from that forum, where heard from Estelle Richman, Acting Deputy Director for
Secretary John Wetzel was a keynote speaker, may be the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Develop-
found in the article to the right. ment. A panel of five specialists on the subject of public
Dante Overby of SCI Rockview has written a very help- health also made remarks based on the keynote speeches
ful pamphlet for people who were sent to county jails and answered questions from the audience. The event
from state prisons. He is one of a few who was able to file was presented by the Public Health Initiative of the
the correct paperwork to allow for his return to a state Pennsylvania Prison Society.
institution. We have reprinted the information on pages Public health and criminal justice are rarely mentioned
10-11; perhaps it can also help some of you. in the same sentence. However, Amalia Isaa, Ph D, of the
The Pennsylvania General Assembly was in recess when University of the Sciences stated, “Criminal justice in
this newsletter was published, but recently a hearing took the manner it is currently carried out is a health issue in
place regarding Senator Greenleaf’s SB1153, tackling its own right.”
changes to the Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA). See Facts that were highlighted in the session include:
Legislative Highlights on page five for details.
 25 percent of former offenders are homeless upon
Don’t miss Executive Director William DiMascio’s col- their release Their death rate is highest in the first
umn on page 16. He writes about the evolution (or devo-
lution) of the commutation process in Pennsylvania. (See Public Health, continued on page 13)
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Graterfriends is a monthly publication from the Pennsylvania
Prison Society. The organization was founded in 1787 and
works toward enhancing public safety by providing initiatives
that promote a just and humane criminal justice system.
This issue is made possible through contributions from our
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2
The opinions expressed are of the authors and not necessarily those of Graterfriends or The Pennsylvania Prison Society.

2. Graterfriends ― A Publication of The Pennsylvania Prison Society ― May 2012
Public Health, continued from page 2
Literary two weeks after their release, often due to having no
home and no access to health care.
Corner  A large percentage of Pennsylvania’s current prison
population is nonviolent, behind bars for misde-
meanors.
 In Pennsylvania’s prisons, 17 percent of men and 48
BIGGER BROKEN HOME percent of women have diagnosed mental health
by Zechariah “True” Thompson, HV-3696, SCI Forest issues.
 A specialty court helps determine VA benefits avail-
In this cell I lay again to witness the time,
able for veterans so that they may better cope with
and time I have spent…in a cell and in my mind.
PTSD and other traumas suffered due to battle con-
My thoughts race at a pace I can’t maintain,
ditions.
my sanity in question, because I’m too numb to complain.
It becomes so loud here, so I drift into a zone,  Five years ago 60 percent of the prisoners in the
only to be disturbed by the man on the speakerphone. Philadelphia Prison System were tested for HIV;
today 80 percent are tested. Twice as many cases of
My pictures are bitter memories, of a once existed past, HIV are now being identified and treated in jail.
now nearly ten years later, those photos are only ash.
I’m so afraid to change, because mistakes happen fast,  Prisoners leave the Philadelphia Prison System with
so I try to fight the future, to rectify my path. at least five days of medication, plus a 15 day pre-
I’ve become obsessed with metaphors, to avoid talking long, scription – if they can pay for it. Out of 5200 pre-
addicted to relief, from a poem or from a song. scriptions last year, only 37 were filled.
 The incarceration rate for women has grown by 800
I’m so used to chaos, I sleep better in madness,
percent over the past twenty years. Most of these
I wake up in this tragedy and write this rhyme in sadness.
women are in their 30s and 40s and in prison for
I try to test God, to seek the proof of his wrath,
drug infractions and other nonviolent crimes.
so I can believe and say, “I’m sorry” to the people at once
I laughed.  Nearly 80 percent of the women entering SCI Muncy
Maybe this is it. This sentence could be his will. have suffered various forms of abuse. A high propor-
For a kid that killed a man, is given time to kill. tion of women enter prison suffering from PTSD and
various addictions.
But I’ve labored for them, and shown my growth, but
never is it noted, Ms. Richman, focusing on public housing, said, “If
just bias looks and unjust treatment, shows the system’s we’re going to make an impact on those coming out of
motive. prison, we have to offer safe and affordable housing…If
Easy to find what’s wrong, harder to find what’s right, we don’t spend now but spend three times as much in
that’s what we live in. the future, are we really saving taxpayers’ money?”
Motions denied, too empty to cry. Not hard to fail, not It was concluded that public health and criminal jus-
easy to win. tice professionals must use science – empirical data and
How long is long enough, for a man or woman who wants theory – to determine who goes to prison and who may
a chance? qualify for alternatives to prison; the issue must be
to prove they’ve changed, to show their love, and teach looked at in a holistic manner.
their children how to dance?
In addition to the Prison Society, the University of the
This is how it feels, when you’re sentenced to be alone, Sciences in Philadelphia and LaSalle University’s Mas-
far away from family, in an even bigger broken home. ter of Public Health Program sponsored the event.
13
The opinions expressed are of the authors and not necessarily those of Graterfriends or The Pennsylvania Prison Society.