Clarke County Jail Program Gives Inmates A Second Chance

ATHENS, GA — A new program at the Clarke County Jail is giving inmates a chance to write a different chapter in their lives.

The Principles Over Passions educational program affords residents jailed in Clarke County the opportunity to renew their self-confidence and self-worth by teaching them new skills, according to the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office.

Principles Over Passions is an eight-week peer recovery support program that is faith and character based, facilitator Shane Sims told Patch.

It helps inmates self-identify four main negative character traits that have affected either their lives, their family members or their communities. The group has three group sessions weekly and concludes with a graduation.

“POP is designed to positively influence the thought process, core values and behavior of individuals with criminal justice involvement, with a focus on addiction and resultant criminal addictive thinking,” Sims said.

Eleven inmates graduated from the program in early February in the Clarke County Jail’s inaugural class. The class size was initially 18 but some inmates were either released or transferred before graduation.

Ebenezer Baptist Church West donates items to the jail’s clothing closet regularly and recently donated dress shirts and suits for the Principles Over Passions graduation, according to the sheriff’s office. The graduation ended with a photoshoot in the new clothes, which can be worn to interviews post-release or to court.

“It’s been said that clothes make the man, but in this case, it’s the classes, determination to change and the commitment to their group and themselves that do that for these (11) men,” the sheriff’s office wrote in a Feb. 9 Facebook post.

Beyond Their Circumstances

Sims, who was serving a life sentence in the Georgia Department of Corrections, said he created the program while incarcerated and served as its instructor.

After 20 years in prison, Sims said he was released after a third prison warden petitioned the Georgia Parole Board on his behalf in 2016.

“Since my release, I have become a certified addiction recovery specialist, a certified peer specialist in addictive diseases and a forensic peer mentor, which are all evidence-based professional certifications in the peer recovery field,” he said.

Sims is also a chaplain with the Clarke County Jail and the Athens-Clarke County Police Department.

Having worked with Sims in the past, Clarke County Sheriff John Q. Williams said he jumped at the chance to establish Principles Over Passions at the jail. He said the inmates are excited and proud to participate in the program.

“The Clarke County Sheriff’s Office strives to be a partner focus on community growth and improvement,” Williams said. “Programs like these are essential to making a difference in the community we serve.”

In a Facebook post, the sheriff’s office expressed how inmates were ecstatic to try on their suits for graduation as they could not wait to enter into the world anew.

Authorities said one inmate said, “I will look sharp when I go for an interview. I should really get hired.”

Another inmate was happy to wear a suit for the first time, according to the sheriff’s office.

“Principles Over Passions program is beneficial for inmates because majority of the residents we serve have lived experience with substance abuse,” Donikia Gray told Patch, “and the criminal justice system and the connectedness and empathetic support that is offered and created amongst their peers are essential to the process of change, growth and recovery. While restoring the resident’s dignity and self-worth, Principles Over Passions became the ground breaker for our therapeutic community.”

Williams said the most significant benefit of Principles Over Passions is the concept of having a limitless future and offering options to the inmates. In the words of Williams, “one of the most powerful things in the world is hope.”

Finding Purpose in Principles Over Passions

Sims said the program was not designed to shame or belittle a person but rather teach them that passions, or negative characteristics, can trigger internal responses to early traumatic experiences that were never properly processed. As a result, the inmates can heal and begin to develop principles that can become their core values.

Gray said the program speaks to the Clarke County Jail’s care for its residents. It provides clarity for emotions the inmates feel, as well as the consequences of impulse behaviors.

Through Principles Over Passions, organizers are able to teach inmates that healthy relationships, self-control, communication and coping skills are essential, Gray said.

“The jail is seen in a positive light because the resident’s conversations, energy and mindset have changed when they talk with their family and attend court,” she said. “When the programs are present on social media, it allows the community to see the residents that were once a ‘menace to society’ as a blossoming product of the community.”

Williams said the idea for Principles Over Passions is for the inmates to not return to jail.

Sims said the program lends itself to help reduce recidivism by focusing on the main cause of antisocial behaviors and unresolved early traumas that he said could form substance use disorder and addictive criminal thinking.

Once an inmate faces the causes of their antisocial behaviors, he or she can have positive feelings and perspectives, which aids the person in not having the desire to commit criminal behavior, Sims said.

Gray said it’s her love for people that guides her to do the work she does at the jail.

“Jail or prison is not a death sentence. It is a time to restore, heal and build yourself up to be the person you know you are capable of being. I simply desire to be the person to others that I needed,” she said.

“I spend a lot of time with the residents because they are my therapy, my peace, my laughs and a constant reminder we all matter. Life has been my greatest teacher. I know how it feels to be counted out, however, I had a strong support system that motivated me and gave me hope and I desire to always do the same. I always remind the residents, ‘We all have a purpose driven life. It just take some of us longer than others to find our purpose.'”