From Inquest:
It’s 2 a.m. when the dorm sergeant kicks my bed. “Get dressed, inmate, and report to medical.”
As a volunteer enrolled in the Florida Department of Corrections’ “substance abuse treatment” program provided by GEO Group, I am subject to monitoring by urinalysis screening for opiates, cannabis, methamphetamine, and alcohol. Testing is random and I can be called to produce a sample at any time of day or night.
My treatment plan is marked as “prevention” because I am currently clean and sober. Three days a week, I attend motivational and behavior modification classes. Drug education, sober living skills, integrity training, parenting, anger management, financial planning, and employment skills are among the choices.
Today’s session is called “Thinking for a Change.” Twelve women take turns drawing slips of paper from a box. Each slip contains a question. My slip asks: “What resources can you use to support your recovery upon your release from prison?” For fifteen minutes I write a plan for finding a twelve-step meeting in my neighborhood and finding a sponsor. Many prisons allow community volunteers to offer twelve-step programs, which don’t require monitoring for substance use. Florida does not permit this. Continue reading >>>
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