Work Release: “Not in my Backyard” by Sara Cosgrove

 “Not in my backyard”, That is the common comment when a work-release program is suggested to enter a new environment. And honestly who does want freshly released criminals in their neighborhood? That answer is simple, no one. But if no one wants these individuals in their backyard then as a society we need to decide what to do with these people who are trying to start over.

           
          There is currently a work release program MINSEC operating in downtown Hazelton, PA and so far it has not received any positive feedback. From local community members reporting how unsupervised residents do not report home. Or the residents engaging in fight over a rule and storming out of the building. This is a major issue. If the city is willing enough to welcome such an operation into the city you would think the residents would have the decency to respect the rules, and report home when they should or not leave the premises whenever they wish. This is also the responsibility of the owner and managers MINSEC. They should enforce the rules and regulations and make the current residents return home at the designated time. After hearing that criminals are basically allowed to roam the streets freely throws up a red flag. There should be no leeway, they go to work and come back, no questions asked. But that clearly is not happening at MINSEC.

          
          Another important fact to mention is that property values tend to decrease when there is an operation like a work release functioning in an area. From residential to business properties, work release programs bring negative attention that no one wants to be a part of or buy into.

           
          So the question still remains where to place these people? The best place would possibly be in more rural area, but there are still going to be people living in there and what makes anyone think that they would be okay with a work release program in their backyard? The best option is to make these work release programs safer and better integrated into whatever environment they are placed. These individuals need to respect the boundaries they are given and if they cannot do that then back to jail with them. It is society’s responsibility to protect the law abiding public first, not the criminal. If they blow their chance to get back into the real world, well, that is their fault. By making these work release programs strict and forcing the criminals to abide by the rules maybe then communities will be more willing to accept such a facility into their backyard. Until then everyone is going to protect their backyards from these criminals to keep themselves out of harm’s way. And who can blame them?