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November 10, 2002
New hope

by Micki Berman
When Edward Myles got out of jail nearly a year ago, he found out how tough it was to adjust to life on the outside. Myles had no job and no friends. "I screwed up and went to prison, so everyone left me," said Myles, 28. "When I came out I had no foundation, and I was stressed and depressed. I didn't know what I wanted to do." Things began looking up for Myles after he met with Kevin Costin, director of ComAlert, a program created by Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes. The program works to ease the transition of ex-offenders into society by providing them with jobs and education. Costin referred Myles to Ready, Willing and Able, one of the Doe Fund Inc.'s employment programs. "I had to regain my family's trust and support when I came out, and the program has helped me do that," said Myles, who lives with his fiance? and two children. "I clean the streets for them 35 hours a week, and then I go to another job. They also sent me to life skills courses, where I learned how to interact with people." Last week, ComAlert marked its third annual anniversary yesterday at the Doe Fund's headquarters in Bedford-Stuyvesant with social services representatives, probation officers, ex-cons - who are referred to as clients - and New York City Human Rights Commissioner Patricia Gatling. Prison population swells "The prison population has been growing 6% to 7% since 1985," said Gatling, a former prosecutor and the first to implement the ComAlert program with Hynes. "Employment for probationaries is a human right protected by law, and that's why I'm still here." ComAlert helps ex-cons navigate a complex network of social programs and find the help they need. "If we can restore people to citizenship and help them stay stabilized, they will not commit crimes," said Hynes. According to Costin, 40% of the ex-offenders ComAlert sees are placed with transitional employment services, such as the Doe Fund Inc. Another 40% are directed to other agencies for permanent job placement. About 20% drop off ComAlert's radar screen. Two of every five Brooklyn offenders released from prison returned to jail during 1996-99, according to Costin. But the recidivist rate for ex-convicts who work with ComAlert is declining, he added. "I thought the DA was about locking people up," said Chris White, also a ComAlert client. "But since my release in April, I have a new concept of ... the justice system."

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