Michigan has one of the strongest prison reentry programs in the country. The Michigan Prisoner Re-Entry Initiative (MPRI) has been cited for helping to lower the state’s recidivism rate by 18 percent. Now, Michigan Radio (MR) reports that the police chief of Wyoming City, a suburb of Grand Rapids, is proposing a zoning change that would limit where those on parole can live, and might have a negative impact on keeping recidivism rates low.
Wyoming City has a population of just over 72,000 residents. Of that number, 200 are parolees, according to Police Chief James Carmody.
Many of them, Carmody told MR, come from other areas and live in the city’s motels, although a Michigan DOC spokesman claims that most of parolees return to the county in which they were sentenced. There exact numbers of parolees housed in the city is debated, but one thing is for certain -- Carmody would like to see returning citizens housed in industrial areas, and has proposed a change in Wyoming City’s zoning law make it happen.
Under the proposed zoning regulation, only two parolees could live in the same motel, or house. Those with a family that includes more than two individuals on parole would be exempt. The proposed regulation would also allow future parolees to live only in an area that has been classified as industrial, according to MR. Provisions for two inns that currently house parolees would allow these residences to “grandfathered” in.
While dumping parolees in one area is seen by some to be counter-productive to successful reentry, relegating them to an area that is more suitable for factories and industries only serves to marginalize formerly incarcerated persons seeking to start a new life.
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