Bill Text: OH SCR8 | 2013-2014 | 130th General Assembly | Enrolled
Bill Title: To designate the month of April as Forgotten Victims
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 54-32)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2013-12-04 - Concurrence [SCR8 Detail]
Download: Ohio-2013-SCR8-Enrolled.html
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Senator Hite
Cosponsors:
Senators Balderson, Beagle, Jones, Lehner, Seitz, Smith, Schaffer, LaRose, Bacon, Brown, Burke, Cafaro, Coley, Eklund, Faber, Gardner, Gentile, Jordan, Kearney, Manning, Obhof, Oelslager, Patton, Peterson, Sawyer, Schiavoni, Skindell, Tavares, Turner, Uecker, Widener
Representatives Butler, Stinziano, Celebrezze, Pillich, Winburn, Adams, R., Anielski, Antonio, Barborak, Barnes, Beck, Blair, Blessing, Boyce, Brown, Buchy, Budish, Burkley, Damschroder, Derickson, Driehaus, Fedor, Gerberry, Green, Grossman, Hackett, Hagan, C., Hagan, R., Hall, Hayes, Henne, Hill, Huffman, Landis, Letson, Lundy, McClain, Milkovich, O'Brien, Ramos, Retherford, Rogers, Romanchuk, Rosenberger, Ruhl, Schuring, Sears, Smith, Sprague, Stebelton, Strahorn, Williams, Young Speaker Batchelder
To designate the month of April as Forgotten Victims | 1 |
of Crime recognition month in Ohio. | 2 |
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF OHIO
(THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING):
WHEREAS, Ohio has the seventh largest prison population in | 3 |
the United States, with more than 48,800 men and women | 4 |
incarcerated in Ohio's prison system; and | 5 |
WHEREAS, Between 1991 and 2007, the number of children who | 6 |
had an incarcerated parent increased by 80%. One out of every 28 | 7 |
children has a parent who is incarcerated. Approximately seven in | 8 |
ten women under correctional sanctions have minor children under | 9 |
the age of 18 and approximately five in ten men under correctional | 10 |
sanctions have minor children. On average, for every female | 11 |
prisoner, 2.4 children become invisible, forgotten victims. For | 12 |
every male prisoner, an average of 2.0 children become forgotten | 13 |
victims. Since incarceration rates are higher for males than for | 14 |
females, up to 90% of the children who have an incarcerated parent | 15 |
are socially fatherless; and | 16 |
WHEREAS, Imprisonment disrupts positive, nurturing | 17 |
relationships, particularly between mothers and their children; | 18 |
and | 19 |
WHEREAS, Parental incarceration is associated with greater | 20 |
risk that a child will experience material hardship and family | 21 |
instability; and | 22 |
WHEREAS, Children of incarcerated parents face many problems | 23 |
typical to at-risk youth (lack of positive role models, unstable | 24 |
home life, poverty, poor school performance), including being five | 25 |
to six times more likely than peers to be incarcerated themselves, | 26 |
more likely to abuse substances and engage in antisocial behavior, | 27 |
more likely to drop out of school, run away, and become homeless, | 28 |
more likely to suffer from a negative self image, fear, anxiety, | 29 |
anger, resentment, and sadness, more likely to have high levels of | 30 |
truancy, physical aggression and disruptive behavior, and more | 31 |
likely to be traumatized by separation, stigmatized by shame of | 32 |
having a parent in prison; and | 33 |
WHEREAS, Intervening in the lives of incarcerated parents and | 34 |
their children to preserve and strengthen positive family | 35 |
connections can yield positive societal benefits in the form of | 36 |
reduced recidivism, reduced crime through less intergenerational | 37 |
criminal justice system involvement and promotion of healthy child | 38 |
development; and | 39 |
WHEREAS, Several studies have found that maintenance of | 40 |
family ties during incarceration is linked to post-release | 41 |
success, defined as lower rates of recidivism and fewer parole | 42 |
violations; and | 43 |
WHEREAS, It is in the best interest of the citizens of Ohio | 44 |
to encourage strong families, especially among Ohio's incarcerated | 45 |
population whenever possible; now therefore be it | 46 |
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 130th General Assembly, | 47 |
recognizing the adverse impacts upon children of incarcerated | 48 |
parents, designate the month of April as Forgotten Victims of | 49 |
Crime Recognition Month and encourage all citizens of the state of | 50 |
Ohio, along with all state and local agencies that interact with | 51 |
the families of incarcerated Ohioans, to join with the General | 52 |
Assembly in acknowledgement and support of the families and | 53 |
children of incarcerated Ohioans; and be it further | 54 |
RESOLVED, That the Clerk of the Senate transmit duly | 55 |
authenticated copies of this resolution to the news media of Ohio. | 56 |