by The Register-Guard Staff
A state panel would be created to recommend to the 2003 Legislature ways to help children bond with incarcerated parents under a bill unanimously approved by a House Judiciary subcommittee.
The bill sent to the full committee on Thursday, House Bill 3037, involves the estimated 13,500 Oregon children who have a parent in jail or prison.
Backers of the proposal say that without help, many of those children are destined to follow in their parents’ footsteps.
About two-thirds of children in the care of the Oregon Youth Authority have at least one parent with a criminal record, director Karen Brazeau said.
In Oregon, 67 percent of female inmates and 59 percent of male inmates are parents, said Charles Martinez, a psychologist at the Oregon Social Learning Center in Eugene. He said most of those parents haven’t seen their children for at least three months.
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2001, The Register-Guard, www.registerguard.com.