The release of any particular individual will likely have an immediate and direct impact on many people in the community, including victims, neighbors, friends and family members. Information collected during intake to the facility about prisoner's personal relationships and responsibilities, and the risks that they may present to victims and others, can inform individual programming plans for the period of incarceration. (See Policy Statement 9, Development of Programming Plan.) Such information and planning serve as the foundation for engaging the individual and his or her family members in programming and supports that make best use of the period of incarceration and prepare them for the individual's release. (See Policy Statement 13, Children and Families, and Policy Statement 14, Behaviors and Attitudes.) This policy statement describes activities that should be initiated as the expected release date of an individual approaches. In some cases, key stakeholders will have been involved in the release process (see Chapter C, Making the Release Decision); in other cases, they will need to be engaged once the release decision has been made. The recommendations in this policy statement emphasize the importance of preparing victims, families, and community members for an individual's release from prison or jail. As these recommendations explain, these stakeholders need services, supports, and information that can be provided only through a coordinated effort among criminal justice, human services, and community-based agencies.

The recommendations are divided into three sections that address separately the needs and concerns of victims, families, and communities. At times, these may be very similar. Indeed, in many instances, such as in cases of domestic violence, these populations actually overlap. For this reason, this policy statement addresses notification and support for all three groups. Yet it is important to consider areas where their needs diverge. Policymakers should seek to understand potential conflicts of interest and to create policy solutions that address them. For example, community members may have a keen interest in providing wrap-around services for a victim who, given a voice, would say that he or she wished to simply remain anonymous. It is only by considering the range of needs and interests of victims, families, and communities that the proper groundwork for a successful return for the individual, which ensures the safety of the community and satisfactory outcomes for key stakeholders, can be laid.