'Right back in the hole': Ontario jails release thousands into homelessness each year, report finds

When Dan was released from the Toronto South Detention Centre past December after serving astir 60 days, helium was fixed a TTC token and sent connected his way. He walked to a autobus stop, but helium had obscurity to go.

"There's nary plan," Dan said. "I'm a criminal, right? Nobody wants me."

Dan, who was convicted of theft and nonaccomplishment to comply, wandered each nighttime earlier going to an encampment. CBC Toronto isn't disclosing Dan's past sanction because he fears it could impact his chances of getting employment.

Since then, Dan has alternated betwixt staying with friends and surviving outside. That means it is difficult to get his beingness organized, be appointments and person a compartment telephone without it being stolen, helium says. If helium falls dormant portion it is charging successful a nationalist place, it's gone erstwhile helium wakes up.

"As soon arsenic I caught a complaint and was guilty, each benignant of bully happening going for maine dried up," helium said.

Dan, who was stateless earlier helium went into jail, said supports specified arsenic provincial transitional lodging akin to national halfway houses, mightiness person helped. He would person liked "just the stableness of having determination to go" — a harmless spot to permission his belongings.

Not having a program means "you are close backmost successful the spread you started in," helium said.

Dan is not alone. A caller study released Thursday by the John Howard Society of Ontario says, successful 1 year, thousands of radical became stateless instantly upon merchandise from Ontario jails. The nine is simply a foundation that works to physique a safer Ontario.

The report, entitled From Incarceration to Encampment, recovered that provincial jails had 7,455 releases successful 2023-2024 of radical with nary fixed address, meaning they had nary housing. The fig doesn't needfully correspond idiosyncratic radical due to the fact that immoderate radical are admitted and released respective times successful 1 year, the study says.

The study calls connected the Ontario authorities to acceptable up a provincial transitional lodging strategy for radical released from its correctional facilities.

'Housing is important to reintegration,' argumentation manager says

Safiyah Husein, the society's manager of policy, said the study reveals a "deep link" betwixt incarceration and homelessness successful Ontario. She said it shows that radical who walk clip successful jail need a "pathway" to assistance them reintegrate into society. And it puts a fig connected an urgent contented that requires a systemic authorities response, she said.

"A batch of radical are flagged arsenic having nary fixed code oregon lacking unchangeable lodging upon admissions to correctional institutions. And past astir of these radical volition beryllium released consecutive onto the streets the time that they get retired of jail. And with nary supports, they mightiness extremity up successful shelters oregon encampments, but that's nary spot to rebuild a life," she said.

The study says radical whitethorn beryllium stateless upon merchandise if they didn't person lodging erstwhile they were admitted to jails, if they mislaid their lodging portion incarcerated, oregon if they were incapable to instrumentality to their erstwhile housing, sometimes owed to merchandise conditions. 

"Housing is important to reintegration. And truthful with the deficiency of supports, a deficiency of housing, that increases the hazard of reoffending and winding up close backmost successful jail."

Husein said immoderate radical successful jailhouse mightiness suffer their employment, portion others mightiness person their income assistance chopped off. She added that it is important to retrieve that a ample percent of radical successful Ontario jails are awaiting proceedings and person not been convicted of a crime.

"There are semipermanent impacts to losing lodging erstwhile an idiosyncratic is jailed, adjacent for a abbreviated play of time," she said.

According to the report, the deficiency of lodging for those released from jail has an interaction connected the larger nine too.

"Thousands of radical are discharged into homelessness from provincial correctional institutions each year, returning to communities crossed Ontario. Without housing, individuals extremity up successful shelters, encampments oregon sleeping rough," the study says.

"Individuals released into homelessness are much apt to reoffend, compromising nationalist information and entrenching individuals successful a revolving doorway of jailhouse and the streets." 

Husein said the study urges the province to instrumentality action.

"This study truly highlights a beauteous troubling but hidden information astir our homelessness and lodging situation successful that our provincial transgression ineligible strategy is truly contributing to the crisis," she said.

Ontario government pledges to reappraisal report

The study recommends that the province:

• Create transitional lodging for radical released from Ontario jails, akin to national community-based residential facilities known arsenic halfway houses.
• Update its argumentation directives for Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program truthful that recipients successful jailhouse would not beryllium chopped disconnected but alternatively person benefits for up to 3 months. 
• Launch a run to promote landlords to halt discriminating against those who person been progressive successful the transgression justice system.

Ontario's Ministry of the Solicitor General said successful a connection Wednesday that it volition reappraisal the report.

It says the state is investing $75.5 cardinal to supply entree to safe, unafraid accommodations for people experiencing homeless, on with "wrap-around supports." That's connected apical of creating 1,239 much lodging units, 815 supportive lodging units and 971 further structure spaces, it said.

"This is successful summation to the $1.7 cardinal we are investing to amended entree to supportive housing, including done the Homelessness Prevention Program, which helps municipalities deliver programs tailored to section needs," the ministry said successful the statement.

"Our government's bold enactment to make 28 caller Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment Hubs is besides adding 560 highly supportive lodging units, successful summation to addiction betterment and attraction beds, helping thousands of radical each twelvemonth modulation to much unchangeable semipermanent housing."

Keith Hambly, CEO of Fred Victor, a multi-service bureau successful Toronto, said helium is not amazed by the deficiency of lodging for formerly incarcerated people.

"What is genuinely needed successful this case, and successful galore cases of homelessness, is simply a level of lodging and supportive lodging that works with radical wherever they're at, that works with their intelligence wellness issues that whitethorn beryllium presenting, oregon substance usage issues, oregon adjacent issues of agelong word trauma. Or other the communicative repeats itself," Hambly said.

Elizabeth McIsaac, president of Maytree, a foundation committed to uncovering solutions to poverty, said the fig of radical successful a fixed twelvemonth being released from jailhouse into homelessness is "terrible." Maytree sponsored the report.

"We request a strategy that helps radical get connected way due to the fact that it's what's close for the individual, it's what's fair, it's what's going to nutrient amended outcomes successful their lives. And by the way, it's going to outgo a batch little than continuing to nonstop radical backmost into prison, backmost into incarceration, and cycling done implicit and implicit again."