Department of Justice Plans Single-Faith Pre-Release Program For Prisoners

Yesterday's Washington Post reported on the Justice Department's plans to create a single-religion, faith-based pilot program to prepare federal prison inmates for release. On March 30, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) issued a formal Request for Proposals (RFP) from private contractors to run the program, called "Life Connections". The RFP says that the government "intends to make multiple awards for the provision of single-faith, residential reentry programs at one or more pilot site locations." The plan is to set aside cells at up to six federal prisons for the voluntary experiment that aims to "facilitate personal transformation for the participating inmates, and thereby reduce recidivism." $3 million has been appropriated for the program. A BOP spokesperson said it is possible that different prisons could host programs run by different faith groups. Some academics say that the program poses serious constitutional issues. The Department of Justice says the program is constitutional because it is voluntary and gives participating inmates no special advantages.