Morris County partners with McGreevey group to help former inmates: 'A win for everybody'

MORRIS TOWNSHIP — Morris County officials announced a partnership Monday with an organization led by former New Jersey Gov. Jim McGreevey that provides resources for local residents recently released from jail.

The county sheriff's office and representatives from the New Jersey Reentry Corporation met at the Morris County Correctional Facility Monday afternoon to detail their collaboration. The partnership includes a variety of support services for former inmates − including obtaining housing and new identification, receiving health care and legal services, and undergoing job training − all at no cost to the county.

The NJRC model was developed in a 2014 Jersey City pilot program through partnerships with Hudson County agencies. Officials hope the success of Hope One and other existing Morris County programs will be a springboard for their agency.

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"We don't believe in doing anything new. We build around the strengths that the sheriff and his team and the warden have already established in this facility," said McGreevey, the NJRC chairman and executive director. "Things happen quickly in the Morris County Correctional Facility because not only is there a great team, bluntly, but also because they've made such headway in so many of these issues."

Every person in the NJRC program meets individually with a social worker to determine their individual needs. About 78% of patients in the agency battle addiction, McGreevey said, and 42% experience mental health issues.

Former inmates are typically involved in the NJRC for six to nine months, and the agency tracks their progress for approximately three years afterward, McGreevey said. The group can connect people with trade companies like construction or forklift operation to provide them with steady work following their time in jail.

The NJRC boasts a 19.7% recidivism rate among those who complete the program, McGreevey said, far below the rate of 47% in Morris County cited by Sheriff Jim Gannon.

The program has already generated considerable interest among Morris County inmates. Joseph Fucci, the facility's commander of support services, explained the partnership to each housing unit in July and encouraged each of the roughly 220 people incarcerated to fill out referrals for the program.

Eighty current and former inmates have applied as of Monday, Fucci said, and 25 have already begun the process with the NJRC. The interest far exceeded his expectations and makes him confident that the program will work in Morris County.

"I'm here to make sure that people get what they need to make their lives easier," Fucci said. "If I saved one (person), it was going to be important to me and was worth taking on the job. Never did I ever expect to see 80 people."

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Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll was equally impressed with the early feedback − a sign, he said, of the compassion of local law enforcement officers and a shared desire to improve the community.

"I was blown away with the interest level that you had ...," Carroll told Fucci. "That tells me that these people have understood that we're here to help them and will take advantage of that, and now we regenerate them back into the communities in a positive way. It's a win for everybody."

This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: Morris County partners with group to help inmates reenter society