Circles of Accountability and Support (COSA) working in Vermont.
This article talks about Circles of Accountability and Support (COSA). The program pioneered by Dr. Robin Wilson, that has seen the already low recidivism rate of sex offenders, further reduced by 70%.
Unlike most sex offender policies, which tend to isolate returning sex offenders through housing restrictions that force them to live on the outskirts of towns or online registries that require them to report virtually every movement, COSA, as the name suggests, provides a circle of community members to assist the offender in successful re-integration and help be accountable for their success through regular meetings and support.
As this report, prepared for the Vermont Department of Corrections, concludes; “identity shifts from criminal to non-criminal only occur through an integrative process with pro-social citizens, and important people who will validate the offenders’ efforts to change. CoSA is the ideal prototype for how to achieve this in partnership with Corrections and the community.”
Think about how that principle differs from the sex offender policies currently in place.
no chit, what your saying is if you treat rso’s like human beings instead of lepers they actually act like human beings, wow what a concept
I know right??!! If it wasn’t so freakin cold up there, I’d consider moving to Vermont!!
its only cold in the winter summers get up to 95 F
its finding a job that pays the bills in VT that’s hard especially being an rso
The one good thing about Vermont is that the majority of us would be done with the SOR at the ten year mark. Of course as long as Florida leaves everyone on the website, that will be a problem.
Come on now, Florida has to justify jobs by keeping the SOR as large as possible, up to and including dead people. I am convinced that Florida Department of Corrections does not even trust its own efforts at correction, therefore, keeping people on the registry ‘just in case’, so they cannot be blamed for failure to correct what some wayward registrant might do. If their corrective actions were effective in their own mind then names could be removed as corrective actions are completed. The SOR is a monument to a failed corrective system.
It doesn’t”t surprise me. Anyone who has ever visited Vermont will know right away that it is a different type of place. I sometimes think that the heat here in Florida is what makes some people stupid.
I hope they have similar programs in place for murderers, drug dealers, armed home invaders, bank robbers, armed car jackers, gang bangers, etc. After all, that’s where most of the violent actions take place and recidivism is such a problem.
They have this here, it’s the therapy you are Force to take if you have probation
I endured that so-called therapy for five years. Got to spend a lot of money and hear stories about other’s problems. By the time I got into therapy I had come to grips with myself through the KAIROS program. I have been on an up hill journey ever since. I do, however, get together with a group of men every week for breakfast and then a round table discussion on what is going on in our lives and the lives of our families…and of course, politics. It is a Via de Cristo reunion group. If you have a chance to experience a Via de Cristo weekend it is more than well worth the effort. For most it’s a life changing/enhancing time with caring Christian brothers.
Vermont is one of the few semi-reasonable states in the US when it comes to RSO’s. The problem is that the entire population of the state is about the same as Polk County so opportunities are somewhat limited. I have been off probation since 2006 and I was told ON THE PHONE by the one poor lady who handles all of the registrations that based on my offense and the fat that it had been 10 years since sanctions ended, I would not even have to contact them if I moved to Vermont. That is NO registration, not register and then petition for removal. Also, when using tools like the Static 99, they use them as the doctors who developed them intended. If you were caught with say 10 pictures at the same time, that is not ten separate offenses in Vermont even if you had 10 charges. It is one “cluster offense.” Also, they use your age at the time of “release”, which included release from probation or parole, not your age at conviction.
To Joe M,
Thank you for the information we all need to share any information that helps us out even if its in a different state. do you know if Vermont will hire an rso? i am not adverse to moving there
In Vermont, you have to be creative. Many people are farmers, which encompasses everything from growing vegetables in summer to raising alpacas and sheep for shearing in spring. The cold weather in winter doesn’t deter people from working in heated workshops, turning hobbies into money making ventures. Burlington is a small city but home to several environmentally friendly businesses. We have lost much of out entrepreneurial spirit in our society in recent years, but that too is a mindset that can change. Florida, having weather much the opposite of Vermont is still a place where we can use our minds in entrepreneurial ways. I am hoping that we can turn things around for ourselves even though the registry is so punitive. while we wait for that to change, look up Cottage food Laws in your state and see if anything there may be of benefit to you.
From what I saw, the Burlington metro area is pricey, but the rest of the state, not so much. The bad news is that half of the population and probably even more of the good jobs are in Burlington. I would move to the southern part of the state say near Bennington, Rutland or one of the ski towns like Ludlow or Killington if I could find a way to make a living.