When the Bough Breaks: Frequently Asked Questions

WHY DOES THE FILM FOCUS ON THE MOTHERS AND NOT THE FATHERS?
WHAT ALTERNATIVES TO PRISON ARE AVAILABLE FOR OFFICIAL CONSIDERATION?
HOW WILL TODAY'S INCARCERATED MOTHERS BE PREPARED TO CARE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF CHILDREN?
HOW SUCCESSFUL CAN DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAMS REALLY BE FOR HABITUAL FELONS?
HOW CAN I LEARN MORE AND BECOME MORE INVOLVED IN HELPING CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS?

Q: WHY DOES THE FILM FOCUS ON THE MOTHERS AND NOT THE FATHERS?: The impact of a mother's arrest and imprisonment on a family is often more disruptive than that of a father's arrest and incarceration.
: Nearly two-thirds of incarcerated mothers were the primary caregivers to her children, while, by contrast, only half of incarcerated fathers were living with their youngest child before their arrests; and most of their children (nearly 90%) continued to live with their mothers after his incarceration. Therefore, while children usually remain with their mother during the incarceration of their father, children of incarcerated mothers are much more likely to experience a change in their primary caregiver.
: In addition, only 17% of children reside with their fathers.
: Many children, following their mother's arrest, end up living informally in legally ambiguous circumstances with friends, neighbors, or relatives who lack any legal authority for their medical care or school enrollments.

Q. WHAT ALTERNATIVES TO PRISON ARE AVAILABLE FOR OFFICIAL CONSIDERATION?: There are several specific recommendations which can be accomplished with a minimum of expense, and can often save the state money. A process can be established between local communities, child welfare agencies, police, and correctional personnel to provide for early intervention in the lives of children whose moms have been arrested.
: An imprisoned mother can be placed at the institution closest to her children, and visitation and on-going contact with her children can be a priority in the correctional facility and with social workers involved with the child's extended family.
: Eighty percent of female felons are non-violent offenders. Alternative sentences such a medical rehabilitation, work-release programs, and establishment of drug courts are cost-effective ways of holding a non-violent female felon responsible for her crime, yet keeping her more available for her children.
Q. HOW WILL TODAY'S INCARCERATED MOTHERS BE PREPARED TO CARE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF CHILDREN?: Routinely, these children fall through the cracks, so the prognosis is not good. Research findings about the children of incarcerated mothers are based primarily on small-scale studies or on surveys of prisoners who tend to want to protect their children from being reported in beauracratic or legalistic terms they do not trust.
: The lack of research and official information means that government programs do not target these children and their caregivers in order to design and deliver needed services. These children are at high risk for a number of negative behaviours that can lead to school failure, drug abuse, and intergenerational incarcerations.
: Over 60% of mothers in prsion are incarcerated more than 100 miles from their children, making visitation difficult, finanacially prohibitive, and often impossible. Police do not regularly ask mothers, at the time of arrest, whether they have dependent children, nor do sentencing judges or correctional agencies raise this question. Since no agency gathers data about the inmates' children, "...it is unclear how many are affected, who they are, or where they live." 50% of children with inmate mothers never visit their mothers behind bars. The single biggest reason for this lack of contact is the children's distance from their mothers' prions, located far from urban centers where most of the children reside. Without proper community support, children of prisoners suffer multiple behavioral problems which lead to truancy, early pregnancy, drug abuse, and juvenile delinquency. The Child Welfare League of America concludes that "the true scope of the problem is uncertain because few reliable statistics exist."

Q. HOW SUCCESSFUL CAN DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAMS REALLY BE FOR HABITUAL FELONS?: The new conventional wisdom says non-violent, drug–addicted felons should be going through treatment and probation rather than jail (or in exchange for a lighter sentence) with the promise of a better outcome. It's the latest salvo in America's other war -- the one on drugs -- which many would acknowledge we've been losing for years.
: Consider: The federal government spends about two-thirds of its $19.2 billion drug budget on law enforcement and interdiction. A result has been a skyrocketing prison population -- it has tripled in the last two decades -- with at least 60 percent of inmates reporting a history of substance abuse.
: The cost of warehousing nonviolent drug offenders is more than twice as great as treating them.
: For every dollar spent on treatment, taxpayers save more than seven in other services, largely through reduced crime and medical fees and increased productivity. A visit to the emergency room, for instance, costs as much as a month in rehab, and more than 70,000 heroin addicts are admitted to E.R.'s annually.
: As the call to treat drug offenders grows -- an ABC News poll showed that more than two-thirds of Americans favor treatment over jail for first- and second-time offenses -- one of the thorniest questions will be how to define success.
: Drug use, of course, is not the same as addiction. The former is clearly a choice. But over the last decade, scientists have begun to see the latter as something else: a chronic, relapsing brain disease. At some point (when, precisely, is unclear) the neurochemistry and receptor sites of a user's brain change radically, causing drug-seeking to become as biologically driven as hunger, sex or breathing. Long after the addict quits, some of those brain changes remain, creating a vulnerability to relapse. The implications for the criminal-justice system are profound, reinforcing the need for treatment: it would be ineffective, not to mention inhumane, simply to punish someone for an illness without helping to heal him.
: According to a study of more than 10,000 addicts in 96 programs, the single most important factor (assuming a program is well run) is the length of time an addict stays in it. And 90 days -- not the managed-care-driven 28 or the brief 3-to-5-day detox that is the most common ''treatment'' in many cities -- was the minimum for enduring benefits to manifest.
: If treatment is conceived of as an ongoing process rather than as a cure, a different, more optimistic notion of success emerges. Although addicts may relapse, a year after treatment their drug use decreases by 50 percent, according to the National Treatment Improvement Evaluation Study, and their illegal activity drops as much as 80 percent. They are also less likely than before to engage in high-risk sexual behavior or to require emergency room care. Other studies have shown that they are less likely to be on welfare, and that their mental health improves.
: ''You don't let a schizophrenic out of case management,'' argues the University of Pennsylvania's Thomas McLellan. ''Your expectation is that there will be a relapse if they leave. Good practice would be to continue to monitor and support that person to see early signs of intensification. At that point you intensify treatment not to 'cure' but allow them to remain in a state that maintains them and doesn't have an impact on society.''
Q: HOW CAN I LEARN MORE AND BECOME MORE INVOLVED IN HELPING CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS?: To learn more about service providers and advocates assisting children with inmate parents, visit the Resource Center's website and to become involved in collaborative community planning efforts across the country, contact www.childrenofprisoners.org.
: To get more involved at an individual level with local programs assisting the children of incarcerated parents, contact the following organizations and they will help you to network in your region. Childwelfare League of America; National Institute of Corrections; American Correctional Association; and the National Council on Crime and Delinquency.





When the Bough Breaks: Frequently Asked Questions
	WHY DOES THE FILM FOCUS ON THE MOTHERS AND NOT THE FATHERS? WHAT ALTERNATIVES TO PRISON ARE AVAILABLE FOR OFFICIAL CONSIDERATION? HOW WILL TODAY'S INCARCERATED MOTHERS BE PREPARED TO CARE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF CHILDREN? HOW SUCCESSFUL CAN DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAMS REALLY BE FOR HABITUAL FELONS? HOW CAN I LEARN MORE AND BECOME MORE INVOLVED IN HELPING CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS? Q: WHY DOES THE FILM FOCUS ON THE MOTHERS AND NOT THE FATHERS? The impact of a mother's arrest and imprisonment on a family is often more disruptive than that of a father's arrest and incarceration. Nearly two-thirds of incarcerated mothers were the primary caregivers to her children, while, by contrast, only half of incarcerated fathers were living with their youngest child before their arrests; and most of their children (nearly 90%) continued to live with their mothers after his incarceration. Therefore, while children usually remain with their mother during the incarceration of their father, children of incarcerated mothers are much more likely to experience a change in their primary caregiver. In addition, only 17% of children reside with their fathers. Many children, following their mother's arrest, end up living informally in legally ambiguous circumstances with friends, neighbors, or relatives who lack any legal authority for their medical care or school enrollments. Q. WHAT ALTERNATIVES TO PRISON ARE AVAILABLE FOR OFFICIAL CONSIDERATION? There are several specific recommendations which can be accomplished with a minimum of expense, and can often save the state money. A process can be established between local communities, child welfare agencies, police, and correctional personnel to provide for early intervention in the lives of children whose moms have been arrested. An imprisoned mother can be placed at the institution closest to her children, and visitation and on-going contact with her children can be a priority in the correctional facility and with social workers involved with the child's extended family. Eighty percent of female felons are non-violent offenders. Alternative sentences such a medical rehabilitation, work-release programs, and establishment of drug courts are cost-effective ways of holding a non-violent female felon responsible for her crime, yet keeping her more available for her children. Q. HOW WILL TODAY'S INCARCERATED MOTHERS BE PREPARED TO CARE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF CHILDREN? Routinely, these children fall through the cracks, so the prognosis is not good. Research findings about the children of incarcerated mothers are based primarily on small-scale studies or on surveys of prisoners who tend to want to protect their children from being reported in beauracratic or legalistic terms they do not trust. The lack of research and official information means that government programs do not target these children and their caregivers in order to design and deliver needed services. These children are at high risk for a number of negative behaviours that can lead to school failure, drug abuse, and intergenerational incarcerations. Over 60% of mothers in prsion are incarcerated more than 100 miles from their children, making visitation difficult, finanacially prohibitive, and often impossible. Police do not regularly ask mothers, at the time of arrest, whether they have dependent children, nor do sentencing judges or correctional agencies raise this question. Since no agency gathers data about the inmates' children, "...it is unclear how many are affected, who they are, or where they live." 50% of children with inmate mothers never visit their mothers behind bars. The single biggest reason for this lack of contact is the children's distance from their mothers' prions, located far from urban centers where most of the children reside. Without proper community support, children of prisoners suffer multiple behavioral problems which lead to truancy, early pregnancy, drug abuse, and juvenile delinquency. The Child Welfare League of America concludes that "the true scope of the problem is uncertain because few reliable statistics exist." Q. HOW SUCCESSFUL CAN DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAMS REALLY BE FOR HABITUAL FELONS? The new conventional wisdom says non-violent, drug–addicted felons should be going through treatment and probation rather than jail (or in exchange for a lighter sentence) with the promise of a better outcome. It's the latest salvo in America's other war -- the one on drugs -- which many would acknowledge we've been losing for years. Consider: The federal government spends about two-thirds of its $19.2 billion drug budget on law enforcement and interdiction. A result has been a skyrocketing prison population -- it has tripled in the last two decades -- with at least 60 percent of inmates reporting a history of substance abuse. The cost of warehousing nonviolent drug offenders is more than twice as great as treating them. For every dollar spent on treatment, taxpayers save more than seven in other services, largely through reduced crime and medical fees and increased productivity. A visit to the emergency room, for instance, costs as much as a month in rehab, and more than 70,000 heroin addicts are admitted to E.R.'s annually. As the call to treat drug offenders grows -- an ABC News poll showed that more than two-thirds of Americans favor treatment over jail for first- and second-time offenses -- one of the thorniest questions will be how to define success. Drug use, of course, is not the same as addiction. The former is clearly a choice. But over the last decade, scientists have begun to see the latter as something else: a chronic, relapsing brain disease. At some point (when, precisely, is unclear) the neurochemistry and receptor sites of a user's brain change radically, causing drug-seeking to become as biologically driven as hunger, sex or breathing. Long after the addict quits, some of those brain changes remain, creating a vulnerability to relapse. The implications for the criminal-justice system are profound, reinforcing the need for treatment: it would be ineffective, not to mention inhumane, simply to punish someone for an illness without helping to heal him. According to a study of more than 10,000 addicts in 96 programs, the single most important factor (assuming a program is well run) is the length of time an addict stays in it. And 90 days -- not the managed-care-driven 28 or the brief 3-to-5-day detox that is the most common ''treatment'' in many cities -- was the minimum for enduring benefits to manifest. If treatment is conceived of as an ongoing process rather than as a cure, a different, more optimistic notion of success emerges. Although addicts may relapse, a year after treatment their drug use decreases by 50 percent, according to the National Treatment Improvement Evaluation Study, and their illegal activity drops as much as 80 percent. They are also less likely than before to engage in high-risk sexual behavior or to require emergency room care. Other studies have shown that they are less likely to be on welfare, and that their mental health improves. ''You don't let a schizophrenic out of case management,'' argues the University of Pennsylvania's Thomas McLellan. ''Your expectation is that there will be a relapse if they leave. Good practice would be to continue to monitor and support that person to see early signs of intensification. At that point you intensify treatment not to 'cure' but allow them to remain in a state that maintains them and doesn't have an impact on society.'' Q: HOW CAN I LEARN MORE AND BECOME MORE INVOLVED IN HELPING CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED PARENTS? To learn more about service providers and advocates assisting children with inmate parents, visit the Resource Center's website and to become involved in collaborative community planning efforts across the country, contact www.childrenofprisoners.org. To get more involved at an individual level with local programs assisting the children of incarcerated parents, contact the following organizations and they will help you to network in your region. Childwelfare League of America; National Institute of Corrections; American Correctional Association; and the National Council on Crime and Delinquency.