Overview
Supervised Misdemeanor Release Program (SMRP)
Intensive Supervised Probation Program (ISP)
The SMRP Model, a Detailed Look
The History of Jail Services
Jail Services Program Staff
Contact Information

Overview
Over the past 20 years, the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice (CJCJ) has partnered with the San Francisco Sheriff's Department (SFSD) to alleviate chronic overcrowding in the San Francisco County Jails.  Several of the resulting programs have made significant impacts on the detained populations, and have thus been held up as models for other counties around the country.

Of the numerous programs CJCJ’s Jail Services has offered over the years, in collaboration with the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department, the two Jail Service Programs currently operating SFSD funding are the Supervised Misdemeanor Release Program (SMRP) and the Intensive Supervised Probation Program (ISP).

Supervised Misdemeanor Release Program (SMRP)
The Supervised Misdemeanor Release Program (SMRP) was initiated in 1987 with the San Francisco Sheriff's Department to address chronic overcrowding in the county’s jails.  CJCJ originally received a grant from the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation to create and implement SMRP with the SFSD.  SMRP demonstrates to the court that many individuals who are considered unlikely to appear for future court dates will return as ordered, when provided with a degree of guidance and supervision, when released in the community.  This population, previously considered unlikely to return to court, has proven that they indeed can be released pretrial on a promise to appear and successfully return to court.  SMRP focuses on people held in custody on misdemeanor bench warrants.  These are people who at one time were originally arrested for a misdemeanor offense, not involved with weapons or violence.  They were released with a citation, or written promise to appear in court.  After a failure to appear, a bench warrant was issued and court approval must be sought for non-financial releases.  Program staff identify all such eligible misdemeanants.  Staff screen, interview, and check references for these potential clients.  Based on the derived information, recommendations for release are then submitted to the court.  If the court accepts the release recommendation, SMRP staff monitor the offender's court compliance until the case is disposed.

Intensive Supervised Probation Program (ISP)
In May 2003, CJCJ established the Intensive Supervised Probation Program (ISP) to promote alternatives to jail confinement for probation violators.  The program demonstrates that a certain percentage of probationers can be entrusted with the opportunity to make productive use of a non-institutional community-based setting during their pre-trial detention period.  Under the supervision of program staff, ISP clients are linked with various case management services such as educational, vocational, and medical services.  When appropriate, clients are also enrolled in substance abuse treatment programs.

The SMRP Model, a Detailed Look
The client assessment process includes eligibility screening, an inmate interview, and reference verification.  Program staff review the booking cards of all recently arrested inmates.  These cards are monitored seven days a week.  Certain individuals that fit particular legal criteria are automatically excluded from consideration, per the SFSD regulations.

If clients pass eligibility screening, program staff interview the defendants.  Staff try to assess the probability the client will show up for court, if released.  Staff focus their conversations with the defendants on devising a plan for how they will make all of their court dates.  This plan can be as detailed as including whom will wake the client up and drive them to court on the specified dates.

The last step in the client assessment process is reference verification.  When staff contact client references, it is to verify the information provided by the defendant and to enlist the referenced individual’s assistance in assuring the defendant’s court appearances.

Eligible individuals with a verified address and references are presented to the court for possible release.  If the court accepts the release recommendation, program staff supervise clients telephonically using telephone reminder calls.  Clients are required to call in regularly, anywhere from daily to weekly, depending on the length of time until their next court date.  The average length of time until the initial court date is approximately three days, but it is not uncommon to have clients with court return dates several weeks away.  Supervision continues after the initial court date, and appearances are monitored using a Court Management System.  If a client fails to appear, staff make numerous phone calls to the client and all of his/her references, explaining that it is imperative the client files a motion to recall the bench warrant so s/he won’t get rearrested.

The History of Jail Services
Over the past 20 years, CJCJ’s Jail Services has dramatically alleviated the chronic problem of jail overcrowding in San Francisco’s County Jails.  Studies conducted in 2001 and 2004 showed an 84% success rate, wherein 84% of SMRP clients kept their promise to appear and returned to court.

Additionally, CJCJ has a long history of alleviating the impacts of homelessness on San Francisco's County Jail populations, as is evident by the various services CJCJ has offered throughout the years.

The "No Local" Project
In the early stages of the SMRP, staff recognized a growing number of homeless defendants who were not eligible for citation release simply because they lacked a physical address.  In response, CJCJ worked with the Sheriff's Department to establish the "No Local" Citation Project in 1991.  This project targeted homeless offenders charged with misdemeanor offenses or infraction warrants.  Between 1991 and 1997, the "No Local" Project facilitated the release of more than 1,700 people on their "promise to appear" in court with a compliance/success rate of 76%.  Due to the project's extraordinary success, the SFSD changed their citation policies in 1997 to no longer exclude homeless individuals.

The Homeless Release Project
Homeless offenders present a number of unique challenges that go beyond the lack of a stable address.  In 1996, the Homeless Release Project (HRP) was created using a community-based treatment model to provide supervision and individualized case management services to homeless people with pending criminal charges.  HRP staff members identified homeless offenders arrested on misdemeanors in the jail.  They conducted preliminary needs assessments and identified existing relationships with community providers.  This preliminary data was then submitted to the court for a recommendation for release from jail along with HRP participation.

Once released by the court, HRP Case Managers and Peer Advocates (who are former offenders in recovery) worked aggressively with clients, accompanying them to all court dates and helping them to develop a care plan incorporating long and short-term goals.  Care plans typically involved obtaining temporary or permanent housing, entering a substance abuse program, or accessing mental health or medical treatment.  This type of rigorous, highly individualized model was critical, because in addition to facing homelessness and pending criminal charges, 85% of HRP clients dealt with substance abuse and 50% had been diagnosed with a co-occurring mental illness.  HRP networked itself with other community-based organizations that worked flexibly and effectively with this hard-to serve population.  In 2007, CJCJ’s HRP was successfully transitioned over to a different agency, and the program still serves those in need.  To learn more, read the full report on the impact of the Homeless Release Project.

Connections
In 2001, the city of San Francisco initiated the Connections program with funding from the Mentally Ill Offender Crime Reduction Grant (MIOCRG), a joint project of the California State Sheriffs' Association and the Mental Health Association.  This grant was intended to address gaps in services for mentally ill offenders while reducing crime, jail time, and criminal justice costs.

San Francisco determined that many low level, mentally ill offenders were being denied pretrial release because their high needs made them too difficult to supervise in the community.  The Connections program was a collaboration between CJCJ and other public and private agencies.  Staff managed clients through court dates, provided psychiatric case management, arranged for temporary housing, assisted with benefits and money management, and connected clients with treatment and vocational training.  This program eventually became a part of CJCJ’s Homeless Release Project.

Jail Services Program Staff

Gerald Miller, Program Director
Stephanie Carnes
Stacy Stewart
Shannon Watson

Contact Information
To learn more about CJCJ’s Jail Services, please contact:

Gerald Miller, Program Director
Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice
440 9th Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
Tel: (415) 621-5661 ext. 306
Fax: (415 ) 621-5466