Norton to Visit DC Men's Halfway Houses Today (1/7/2010)
Norton to Visit D.C. Men's Halfway Houses Today
January 7, 2010
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today will visit the two D.C. halfway houses housing returning males from U.S. Bureau of Prison (BOP) prisons at 2:00 p.m., beginning at Hope Village halfway house, located at 2840 Langston Place, SE, followed by a visit to the Efforts from Ex-Convicts (EFEC) halfway house, located at 1329 9th Street, NW. Norton's visits are in preparation for a hearing, expected in February, on halfway houses in the District run by the BOP. No hearings on BOP-run D.C. halfway houses have been held since 2001, which was the first hearing since the Revitalization Act transferred this responsibility from the District to the federal government. Uniquely, the BOP, a federal agency, is responsible for D.C. Code felons, including returning felons at halfway houses in the District. Norton said, "These halfway houses are an essential ingredient for successful law enforcement in the District of Columbia today, yet we know little about how returning residents are prepared or treated. We do not know whether the halfway houses are successfully providing the expected transition from often lengthy prison terms to help our residents become productive, law abiding citizens. The federal jurisdiction of these halfway houses must not stand in the way of their integration into the District's law enforcement strategies." Norton visited the only halfway house for women in the District in March of 2009.