A strong reentry plan after time spent in jail can disintegrate over something as small as a phone, a bus ride or a $75 fee, writes Heather Rogers, Santa Cruz County’s public defender. She and her staff of 64 attorneys regularly solve complex problems, but public dollars often can’t cover these immediate, practical needs. That is why she has helped co-found the BRIDGE Foundation, a nonprofit designed to fill gaps in the system and help people overcome small barriers – like access to transportation or fees for an addiction program – that can keep them stuck in the criminal legal system. The BRIDGE Foundation is launching with a fundraiser Thursday in collaboration with the Homeless Garden Project.
Heather Rogers
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Happy Supreme Court anniversary, Mr. Gideon! Now let’s address the causes of mass incarceration
Do you know who Clarence Earl Gideon was? Heather Rogers, Santa Cruz County’s first public defender, reminds us why we should all celebrate an unhoused drifter who 60 years ago changed the American legal system by standing up for his right to a fair trial. She walks us through her first seven months on the job, supplies some statistics on our prison system and pushes us to take a hard look at mass incarceration: “I urge you to question whether prosecution and incarceration are the answer for conduct related to mental illness … where treatment is more likely to get better results,” she writes.
