“People who have served their time will be thrown out like dogs on the street.”
—Jim Cotterill, Co-founder 2nd Chance Indiana
The 2026 Indianapolis budget will end with more than $400 thousand unspent at the end of the fiscal year. Yet fines have been increased, and some important social programs have been cut or reduced in the 2027 budget. City County Council Chief of Staff Doran Moreland was quoted saying, “the budget had not changed since it was introduced.” And the Star and Mirror noted that “after weeks of committee hearings, the mayor's numbers came out the other end untouched.” No one said anything?
About the same time, Mayor Hogsett hired Margarette Webb to be a Chief Equity Officer for the city. She is entirely able: She grew up in Indianapolis and has an impressive educational and public service background with experience in public policy roles. I’m sure she’ll be great.
But it is more than incongruous that we now have a talented Equity Officer who is steeped in a social service background, but the budget cuts reflect a distain for social services that have become part of the fabric of our caring city. Some of them have a small price tag and yet have been stripped of their value to those in need, like the one that offends me greatly.
As most city jails do, the Marion County Adult Detention Center releases people at all hours of the day and night. In 2024, the night-time releases were beginning to upset the surrounding Twin Aire neighborhood. That year, a car jacking occurred in the area, and in another case, a man was killed when his car was stolen near the jail. It doesn't take a genius to figure out there was a transportation problem—especially at night. A Harvard study notes that some reentrants become frightened in the dark and feel lost, especially if they are dealing with substance use issues and even undiagnosed mental problems. Someone leaving incarceration is generally desperate to get home.
The remedy became obvious. Money was soon allocated to give reentrants a bus pass or a Lyft to a facility or home with family. No more would they be lost in the snow at night, walking the nearby Twin Aire neighborhood. Reentrant crimes were stilled.
But, history repeats itself. The surrounding community is densely populated, and once again, they face a population that is desperate to get home. With the stroke of an unchallenged pen, transportation has been removed from the social service of getting reentrants safely home or to a facility. The locals are understandably upset. Once again, men will be released in a dark place, often with no money, and again with no ride. They are not whisked off to a place of safety, but wander the streets, often without coats when it is freezing outside. How else can you put this? People who have served their time will be thrown out like dogs on the street—again, shivering and alone, with no idea how to get somewhere they can stay. Without a ride, this is cruelty.
Men and women will continue to be released, but no one will help them get home. The value in the “ride to somewhere" was the most important and relevant part of the program, and the cost is chicken feed in comparison to some other “give-away” programs that are now part of the 2027 budget. Although we may continue to have a “lobby,” there is no transportation support—even in the middle of the night.
