About Us

Papefam.org is a non-profit organization dedicated to tackling, or at least marginally improve the situation of some of mankind's greatest challenges in his entire residence on this planet.

 

Pape Family Enterprises will be a non profit umbrella company that houses a number of other non profits each dedicated to making a real difference, if not solving, the very biggest challenges we face as a nation, as a society, as a race. 

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Before diving into these issues I feel it important to outline to you a little bit about me, why I am the way I am, and my philosophy on life. 

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If I was to define myself as the member of a group, class, or tribe would be that of a man who lost a parent at a young age.  My mother passed away by either car accident or suicide it was never truly decided. 

My mother, Elaine Caroline Pape, was an amazing mother.  She was a stay at home mom with me and my two brothers, Chris and Nick.  I was the oldest, Chris was in the middle, and Nick the baby.  My mother was a drinker.  She was addicted to a drug called Fiorinal.  Fiorinal is a combination of a barbiturate, aspirin, and caffeine used to treat migraine headaches.  This is not a medication you want to mix with alcohol, but she did.  She was depressed, and this was her medicine. 

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One day she took quite a bit of Fiorinal and drank, got in her car and headed out on North Ave in Chicago, West Bound towards 1st Avenue.  Her car veered off the road onto the grass shoulder by Thatcher Woods Preserve.  Her cigarette fell to her side and caught the vehicle on fire.

Now this is North Ave in Chicago.  A car begins to smoke, and soon is ablaze in flames.  You would think someone would stop or call the police.  But nothing happened.  No one stopped, no one helped.  Eventually the fire subsided and the fire department came to find a woman sitting in the front seat.  She was still alive, barely.  My mom lived for 2 more days before succumbing to her injuries. 

To this day if I see a vehicle pulled off on the road I stop to check on the occupants.  Usually it’s nothing.  But sometimes I’ve been able to really help people in very tough situations.  People I still keep in touch with to this day. 

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The reason I start with this is that it really is the defining event of my life.  I was 12 years old.  When a child is hit with a tremendous trauma like the death of a parent, they become emotionally stunted.  Damaged.  It’s been called broken child syndrome.  And you never truly recover from it.

I believe you can divide the American population in many ways.  One way is by how their childhood shaped them.  There is one group that had a really tough childhood.  And when they get older they say to themselves I would never bring a child into this cold cruel world.  No way.   These folks are usually successful in this goal.

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Then there is the other group.  They too had a really tough childhood but they say to themselves, I want to have kids.  I want to have kids because I’m going to “Fix It.”  I’m going to break the cycle for the family and my kids are going to have a wonderful life.  This is the group I belong to.  And we are wildly unsuccessful in our goal.  Not so much the having kids part, but rather the wonderful childhood, free from all the terrible suffering that will become well known soon enough.  I myself, nearly did fix it.  I blew it in the end and am no longer a part of my children’s life. 

This was my life’s greatest failure.  Something I did not think I was going to make it out of alive.  I found myself acting out.  And then eventually, I found myself in jail.

 

 

 

 

 

Our Broken Criminal Justice System

 

          While in jail I came to the startling realization that the criminal justice system is so much more badly smashed than you think.  The police are the ones in the news.  We see their body cam footage.  We see them shooting young black men during traffic stops, we see them doing their job all wrong.  Could they be better?  Of course.  But they are the part of the iceberg that sits above the water.  80% of the problem you have never seen or probably even heard of.  The problem exists in the very private jail system.  The corrections officers make the most negligent police look like highly skilled artisans. 

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What I have to say will shock you.  But it is the absolute truth.  And when you hear it you will start to see things for how they actually are.  The people incarcerated by and large are the good guys.  The corrections officers are the bad guys.  But bad guy does them no justice.  They are cruel, unusual, vindictive, and evil.  They torture the inmates.  It does not matter if you are nice, rich, poor, black, white, religious, in for a serious crime, or trespassing, you are all equally abused. 

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What are some examples of the torture they apply.  The first is the absolute filth of the fail itself.  Covered in dirt, human hair, dead skin cells, insects, you must try and clear a space to sit and lie down.  You must use the bathroom in front of about 10 to 20 people and you may or may not be given toilet paper. 

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You are given no toothbrush, toothpaste, no ability to shower or maintain any kind of hygiene. 

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The silent treatment may be their best torture.  You are take to a cell with a button to ring a guard and ask a question which they almost never answer.  Your mind begins to cave in on itself and you are convinced they have forgotten about you.  You will spend the rest of your life right there in that cell.

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Panic sets in, and you may start acting out.  I know I did.  The more you act out the more they punish you but it’s worth it just to get the human interaction.  I had to rip my shirt into strips to use as toilet paper.  This brought me a beating and trip to the 4th floor where I was place in a cold cell, about 65 degrees, with no shirt, shoes, or sox.  My blanket, shirt, and supplies were placed just outside my door. 

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On this “Infirmary” floor it was so cold I had to jog in place, do push ups, sit ups, keep moving for 48 hours.  For the first 24 hours, I was nice.  A guard walks by the cell every hour.  So 24 times I asked nicely for my shirt and blanket.  But I was completely ignored like I was not there.  For the second 24 hours I took a different tact and was rude, insulting, yelling any racial slur I could think of.  Still no reaction.  Keep in mind I’m on the suicide watch floor.  A nurse finally comes to talk to me.  She cant give me a shirt or blanket but does explain why I’m in isolation on the 4th floor.  It’s because they wish to detox me off of Clonazepam.  I ask why would you want to detox me from my prescription medication.  The answer: “We don’t do benzodiazepines.”  I explained the severe side effects of stopping a benzodiazepine cold turkey which include: tremors, anxiety, hallucinations, and even death.  It is one of only 2 drugs that can kill you when stopping cold turkey, the other being alcohol. 

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Finally to give you one more dig, not is the food barely edible, they spit on it before giving it to you.  I didn’t eat one bite of food for my entire 72 hours stay.  I lost 22 pounds.

 

And that is when it hit me.  The officers are the bad guys, the criminals were the good guys. 

 

No one was there because of any serious offense I can think of.  The corrections officers are so incompetent at their job that they took a guy that was charitable to the police and made an enemy out of him.  They are quite simply the most dangerous people I have ever met.  And I’m including the nursing staff and their entire approach to the field of “medicine.” They have so much power, and so little “know how,” they are  deadly. 

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There is absolutely no rehabilitation in jail.  In fact they make it worse.  They are largely the cause of much of the repeat crime in this great country.  They are the ones causing so many men to lose their way and wind up stuck on a never ending merry-go-round of the legal system.  A system seemingly designed to keep you in once you are introduced to it.

 

But how can this be.  Let’s look at the why we have a criminal justice system from a very basic elementary perspective.  As human beings began to form societies, people got together and decided it would be a good idea to have rules or laws.  Mostly “Golden Rule” type laws. Common Sense stuff.  Things you wouldn’t want down to you by someone else, so the majority of people agreed to pass a “law” stating that no one can do whatever this “thing” or “act” to anyone.  That act is against the law. In other words if you do this thing, you will be held responsible for the damage or problem that your actions cause.  The way you may be held responsible is if you harmed the other person financially, you may have to make them whole financially.  If you do physical harm to someone it first depends on the intent and then the severity.  In these cases you may be held responsible by being taken out of the society.  What do I mean by taken out of the society?  I mean placed into a cage for humans.  A jail or prison.  Or worse.  The act may be so egregious that the perpetrator is put to death and removed permanently from society.  When these early societies got together the role of holding someone responsible has increasingly gotten more humane.  It has increasingly focused more on rehabilitation vs. punishment. 

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I cannot imagine that these early societies got together and said hey: Let’s make it so if one of us, including me, make a mistake we try to absolutely destroy your life.  Forget rehabilitation let’s try and make it a business that we can use the funds to pay for other things the society needs.  I mean if one of us makes a mistake then their life is forfeit. 

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I’m coming at this a tad aggressively, but from as they say: a first principles thinking standpoint: voom out, what do you see?

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You see a lot of men, a lot of men and women locked up in cages.  Some have it tougher than others, but all have it tough – don’t shit yourself.

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Yet although I’m not convinced everyone has this goal in the criminal justice system, nearly all of them sure make you feel that it was designed to do exactly that. 

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My experience in jail, the not knowing, the kidney transplant surgery no show, the fact that my dogs have never been home alone ever and now are stuck in an apartment with no food or water and not knowing if they will ever be saved.  Not to mention the correctional facility deciding let’s detox this person from his prescription drug of Clonazepam is what let me to attempt to smash out of my cell and for the guards to finally release me with no bail, no charges, no bill for cell damage, because I believe they knew they really treated me wrong.  One also told me I’m more trouble than I’m worth.  I think they would be too if put in the same situation.  No one knows how they would react until in it.

 

So how can the system be better? How can the system be moved back to a genuine system of rehabilitation so that the person is far less likely to repeat offend.  To such a degree nearly all of them will describe their run in with the criminal justice system as a positive one.  Firm but fair.  Something that they are better off from having gone through it.

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And why am I qualified to run a business designed to turn the criminal justice system nearly 180 degrees?  Why me? 

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I can think of no better explanation than from turning to the philosophy and teachings of Alan Watts and Joseph Campbell.  Without regarding this as the final word on the subject, one can never the less let it serve as and approach. 

 

Quoting almost verbatim:

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The curious case of the most exceptional among us.  The so called “Chosen Ones”.  Finding themselves walking all alone. 

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By chosen ones, I do not mean elected by divine bureaucracy, or some celestial committee.  No the chosen ones are not marked by robes and rituals.  Nor are they followed by trumpets and angels.  The chosen ones are simply those individuals, that awaken to something that most people never dare to see.  They are not chosen by anyone in particular.  Rather they chose themselves.  By daring to ask the questions society prays they never do.  Who am I really?  What is this life? Why am I here?

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And when they begin to ask, when they begin to peel back the layers of illusion, of identity, conformity, expectation, they find themselves no longer part of the dream. 

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They begin to see the world for what it is.  Not a place of linear order and rational justice.  But a divine dance of chaos, illusion, and profound beauty.

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And in that exact moment. . . they step apart. 

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The solitude of awakening is a feature not a bug.  It cannot be a group activity.  It’s not something that can be done is a weekend seminar, with snacks.  Awakening happens, usually, in a moment of silence.  It happens when you’ve been battered by life long and hard enough to stop pretending.  When you are no longer able to carry on with the performance of who you are “supposed” to be. 

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You begin to feel that life is not a mystery to be solved, or a problem to be fixed, but rather a song to be danced to, a game to be played and enjoyed.

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And most people, although they may sense it. . . are terrified of it.  Because to live that way means to drop the charade.  In other words drop the world that you have built for yourself and the values you hold dear.  Who wouldn’t be frightened to suddenly have to challenge everything they thought they knew. 

There is a quote by Mark Twain that I’ve always liked.  I think I like it so much be because the corporate talking heads at my old job would say such obvious and dumb statements to try to sound smart that they ended up just looking even dumber.  So a favorite around the Cox Automotive workplace was: “You don’t know what you don’t know.”  Well no crap.  How could you. The better, more apropos quote is: “It’s not what you don’t know that can hurt you, it’s what you know 100% for sure to be the truth, when it just isn’t so.”-Mark Twain.  Now that can get you in trouble!

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So the chosen ones so often find themselves walking and pursuing their plans alone, not out of choice.  We do not choose to be alone.  We like people, we like company, but the issue is that most people are not ready to be with them.  Not really.  Not Yet.

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We live in a culture addicted to belonging.  Belong to a group, a country, a state, a team, a tribe, a trade.  We believe that to be alone is to somehow be deficient or failing. But the irony is that most people are not truly connected, they are merely bound by shared delusions.  True belonging arises when you no longer need to belong.  The chosen ones see this, they recognize that most social interactions are fake, masks worn to hide the terror of authenticity.  In seeing through this they no longer wish to participate.  They walk away, not out of arrogance or contempt, but out of reverence for what is real.  To walk alone then is not a punishment, it is an honor.

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Have you ever tried to explain a dream to someone else.  No matter how vivid it was to you the story never quite lands does it.  The colors fade, the meaning is harder to see.  This is how the chosen ones feel when trying to explain their vision.  Not because they are better than the next person.  Not a bit.  It’s is only because they are ready.

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This is an important distinction.  Not because they are better it's only because they are ready.  Do you understand?  It's that they are at different stages in their life.  For example try speaking of this topic to the man worried about this quarterly report or them mom rusing to make the afternoon lunch run.  You'll sound irrelevant, or worse yet like a mad man.   

 

 

THE BUSINESS, ITS ROLE IN THE COMMUNITY, AND OUR COMPETITIVE EDGE

 

The Continental Hotel:

 

In a nod to Elon Musk and some of the fun he has had with the movie “Space Balls” and his company Tesla, we believe what’s worth doing is worth doing in a fun way.  Otherwise, what’s the point?

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In the movie “John Wick” which is an over the top fantasy film about an essentially invincible assassin named John Wick, and gives viewers an eye into the criminal underworld of assassins.  In the movie any assassin may stay at no charge at an assassin’s only hotel called “The Continental.”

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Now unlike the movie Continental, our Continental will NOT be a hotel that helps facilitate the crime of murder, all the while displaying an odd set of rules and morality.  Our Continental will be purely based on rehabilitation. 

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Rehabilitation is not something one get’s in jail.  In fact it is so rough in that place in court today I heard a first, and so did Judge Vasquez and everyone else in Court Room number one that day.  A man in shackles had spent 3 months in the lake county jail.  He had 6 more months on his sentence.  And he brought up a request no one had ever dealt with before.  He asked if the judge would increase his time to one year.  Why on Earth make this request?  He did it provided he be transferred out of Lake County Jail where you are subject to torture and the torture of your own mind as you sit in solitary staring at the wall, counting the seconds.  Wondering if maybe everyone has just forgotten about you.  No he wanted out of there and to a place where he could get into a job program, a drug program, read in the library, and overall try to rehabilitate himself.  Absolutely flabbergasted and not knowing what to do the judge put on his technicality hat which they all seem to do and explained to the man he would have to increase the sentence to 18 months.  So triple the time he has to serve.  The judge told the man that he should think about it over the weekend and set a new trial for the following Monday. 

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This is just a taste of the total lack of caring, compassion, competence, and structure in the Lake County Jail System.

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Now Indiana has recently undergone significant criminal justice reform.

Key Reforms and Timeline

• 2010: Indiana adopted the Indiana Risk Assessment System (IRAS), a tool designed to evaluate a defendant's risk of reoffending or failing to appear in court. This system aimed to inform pretrial release decisions beyond just the ability to pay bail.Policy Institute

• 2017: The Indiana Supreme Court implemented Criminal Rule 26 statewide. This rule encourages judges to release low-risk defendants without requiring monetary bail, based on assessments from IRAS. The goal was to ensure that pretrial detention decisions are based on risk rather than financial means.Policy Institute+1Indiana Capital Chronicle+1Boston College Law Review

• 2022: House Enrolled Act 1300 was enacted, limiting the ability of charitable bail organizations to post bail for individuals with a history of violent offenses, regardless of when those offenses occurred. This legislation aimed to address concerns about public safety but also raised questions about access to pretrial release for certain defendants. Boston College Law Review+2Policy Institute+2Jacobin+2

10% Cash Deposit System

In Indiana, defendants often have the option to post a 10% cash deposit directly with the court, known as a "10% cash bond." This system allows individuals to pay 10% of the total bail amount to secure their release, with the possibility of a refund if they comply with all court appearances and conditions. This approach reduces the need for commercial bail bondsmen, who typically charge a nonrefundable fee of about 10% of the bail amount. R Street Institute+1Policy Institute+1Policy Institute+1Boston College Law Review+1

Reasons for Reform

The primary motivations behind Indiana's bail reforms include:

• Reducing Pretrial Detention: Recognizing that holding low-risk individuals in jail due to inability to pay bail can lead to negative social and economic consequences.

• Promoting Fairness: Ensuring that pretrial release decisions are based on risk assessments rather than financial capacity, aiming to create a more equitable justice system.Boston College Law Review

• Addressing Racial Disparities: Studies have shown that bail amounts are often higher for Black and Latino defendants compared to their white counterparts. Reforms aim to mitigate these disparities.

 

But let’s talk about crime rates and recidivism.  How does that compare over the years and what has Indiana done if anything to address rehabilitation?

Rehabilitation Initiatives in Indiana

1. Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC) Programs
Upon intake, incarcerated individuals collaborate with case managers to develop personalized Case Plans based on the Indiana Risk Assessment System (IRAS). These plans address key areas such as criminal history, education, employment, family and social support, substance abuse, and mental health. The goal is to identify and mitigate factors contributing to criminal behavior, thereby facilitating successful reentry into the community. Indiana Government+1Indiana Government+1

2. Re-Entry Services
IDOC's Re-Entry Services focus on preparing individuals for life after incarceration. This includes evidence-based programming that combines assessments with a multidisciplinary approach to reduce criminal thinking and behaviors. The process aims to equip individuals with the skills and support necessary for a productive life post-release. Wikipedia+7Indiana Government+7Indiana Government+7

3. Integrated Reentry and Correctional Support (IRACS)
Launched as a pilot program in select Indiana county jails, IRACS provides peer support teams that work daily with incarcerated individuals. The program offers recovery resources, individual and group peer support, and access to treatment during reentry, aiming to reduce recidivism by addressing mental health and substance use disorders. Mental Health America of Indiana+1Indiana Capital Chronicle+1

4. Community Transition Program (CTP)
CTP assists eligible offenders—those sentenced to two years or fewer—in transitioning back into their communities. The program focuses on integrating offenders after they have served their time, providing support to reduce the likelihood of reoffending. CrimeSolutions+6conservativejusticereform.org+6VOA Ohin+6

5. The Last Mile (TLM)
TLM is a nonprofit organization offering in-prison education, transitional support, and workforce reentry programs. In Indiana, TLM operates in several facilities, providing training in web development and audio/video production. Graduates have an 85% employment rate within six months of release, demonstrating the program's effectiveness in reducing recidivism. Wikipedia+1PMC+1

Crime Statistics and Recidivism in Lake County, Indiana

Crime Rates: 1990 vs. 2018
Specific crime statistics for Lake County, Indiana, in 1990 and 2018 are not readily available in the provided sources. However, statewide data indicates that in 2020, the rate of prison incarceration for violent offenses in Indiana saw a 52% increase compared to 1990, while the rate for drug offenses experienced a significant rise as well. Grove Treatment

Recidivism Rates: Then vs. Now
The Indiana Department of Correction defines recidivism as a return to incarceration within three years of release. Recent reports indicate that recidivism rates for all offense levels decreased from the previous year, with the average rate decreasing by 1.7% from State Fiscal Year 2022 to 2023. Indiana GovernmentIndiana Government

For juvenile offenders, the three-year recidivism rate in Indiana is reported at 29%, suggesting that nearly one-third of youth offenders reoffend within three years of release. savi.org+1Indiana Government+1

Incarceration Rates:

• Indiana’s incarceration rate for violent crimes is up 52% since 1990.

• Drug-related incarceration also surged in the 2000s.

Conclusion: If rehabilitation were really working system-wide, incarceration and reoffending would both fall. Instead, incarceration rose while recidivism barely budged.

Over a 15-year span, Indiana's recidivism rates have remained relatively stable, indicating persistent challenges in reducing reoffending.

Indiana Recidivism Rates: 2005 vs. 2020

• 2005 Releases: Of individuals released from the Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC) in 2005, 37.4% were reincarcerated within three years. Regulations.gov

• 2017 Releases (Reported in 2020): For those released in 2017, the three-year recidivism rate was 38.2%, as reported in the 2020 IDOC Recidivism Report. Regulations.gov

This marginal increase of 0.8 percentage points over 15 years suggests that, despite various reform efforts, the overall rate of individuals returning to incarceration has not significantly declined.

Factors Influencing Recidivism

Several factors contribute to the persistently high recidivism rates in Indiana:

• Employment Challenges: A study highlighted that recidivism rates were 42.4% among unemployed offenders, compared to 26.2% among those who secured employment post-release. Prison Policy Initiative

• Education and Post-Release Support: Lack of access to education and support services upon reentry into society can hinder successful reintegration, increasing the likelihood of reoffending.

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health: Insufficient treatment for substance abuse and mental health issues among formerly incarcerated individuals can lead to higher recidivism.

Conclusion

The data indicates that Indiana's recidivism rates have remained relatively unchanged over a 15-year period, underscoring the need for more effective rehabilitation and reentry programs. Addressing employment barriers, enhancing educational opportunities, and providing comprehensive support services are critical steps toward reducing recidivism and promoting successful reintegration into society.

Over the past 15 years, the United States has seen a notable decline in recidivism rates, contrasting with Indiana's relatively stable figures.

U.S. Recidivism Trends (2005–2020)

• 2005 Cohort: Approximately 50% of individuals released from state prisons were reincarcerated within three years.

• 2012 Cohort: The three-year reincarceration rate decreased to 39%, marking an 11 percentage point reduction. This decline persisted through a five-year follow-up period. My WordPress+1CSG Justice Center+1

• 2019 Cohort: Further improvements were observed, with a three-year reincarceration rate of 27%, down from 35% for the 2008 cohort—a 23% decrease over 11 years. CSG Justice Center

Indiana Recidivism Rates

• 2005 Releases: Indiana reported a three-year recidivism rate of 37.4%.

• 2017 Releases: The rate slightly increased to 38.2%, indicating minimal change over the 12-year span.

Comparative Analysis

While the national average saw a significant decline of 23 percentage points in three-year recidivism rates between 2005 and 2019, Indiana's rates remained relatively flat, with a slight increase of 0.8 percentage points from 2005 to 2017.

Implications

The national downward trend in recidivism suggests that broader criminal justice reforms and reentry programs may be effectively reducing reoffending rates. Indiana's stagnant recidivism rates highlight the need for the state to evaluate and potentially enhance its rehabilitation and reintegration strategies to align with successful national practices.

 

And it is based on these statistics, the systemic opportunities for improvement in the system by working with individuals which, per Indiana’s own reforms, it wants out of the jails, and rehabilitated.

We can have the biggest impact by bypassing the legislature and using a 501(c)(3) Non Profit to begin to correct the program.

 

Specifics of the Rehabilitation Program and Hotel Self Sustainability

Rehabilitation:

The program will work as follows: I and my hand selected staff will obtain and maintain an up to the day, date list of everyone currently incarcerated in the Lake County Jail.  Indiana Access to Public Records Act (APRA), codified at Indiana Code § 5-14-3, you have the right to access public records maintained by government agencies, including information about individuals currently incarcerated.

Your Rights Under APRA

APRA establishes that any person may inspect and copy public records of any public agency during regular business hours, unless the records are specifically exempted from disclosure. This includes records such as:

• The name and age of each person arrested.

• The charge or charges on which the arrest is based.

• The circumstances surrounding the arrest.

• Information concerning jail bookings.

 

We will reach out to individuals with Bonds of $1,000 or less who have been there for at least 2 weeks and that are incarcerated for non violent crimes.  By non violent I mean no murder, no attempted murder, no rape, no attempted rape, no offenses against minor children.  We will consider assault, battery, and domestic disturbances on a case by case bases.  Some of the charges may be pretty scary sounding.  In preparing for this business I have bailed 5 people out of jail.  Two were there for armed robbery.  This seems pretty intense.  Yet one was a 26 year old kid who had too much to drink and stole nachos from a gas station and lifted his shirt to reveal a bee bee gun.  First time offender.  Many of the people in this place in my experience are charged and treated much more severely than I a 49 year old well dressed white man would be charged if even arrested at all.  It’s not a racial thing it is an income and education thing.  The very first thing we will be teaching is how to obey every command a police officer gives you.  This is where much of the problem lies.  If they say get out of the car, get out of the car, DO NOT ask for a supervisor.  DO NOT educate the officer on how smart you are.  But I digress. 

We will interview the subjects in person during visiting hours that we feel would be good candidates to work at the Continental and be bailed out by the Continental.  The bail money will come from charitable contributions.  This is a non profit and we will be funded by charitable contributions for the most part. As the hotel grows and we can start other projects to sell products and services the funding will be charity.

So we will have an intake team to select, vet, and then interview the chosen candidates.  We will need to work on our relationship with the Sheriff most likely being charitable to their causes to gain favor and cooperation.

The “Ideal Candidate”:

1. Someone with a non violent charge

2. Someone with a bail of $1,000 or less confirming the courts assessment of their propensity for recidivism and danger to the community

3. Someone that has been there for 1 month or more.  This person has been abandoned by friends, family, and society.  They are at a real low in their life.  They have been thoroughly beaten down.  They need our help the most, and will appreciate the help the most, and be the most loyal and respectful.

4. Someone that has no job, prospects, or place to stay

5. Someone not suffering from drug addiction (at first for liability reasons).

Once chosen and ageed upon, the program will be explained to the candidate.

1. The Continental will bail them out of jail today. 

2. Although they are free to do as they please and we cannot force their hand to stay at the Hotel, we would like them to stay at the Hotel and they can have family and pets live with them too.

3. They will work at the hotel to work off the bail we have posted and future court costs.  The details of this work will they will be allowed to choose from different jobs.  I will get into these later.   These jobs will provide on the job training.  They are not a jobs program they are a job in which the candidate will be paid a very competitive wage of $25 per hour. 

4. They will be requited to work 8 paid hours per day with a 1 hour paid lunch (taken within their 8 hour shift)

5. Their pay will be broken out as follows: $200 for 1 days pay.  $150 will go to room, meals, and $50 will go to the candidate for savings, rehab programs within the Hotel such as college, trade training, sports, additional food, toiletries, staples, etc. 

6. Each room will be a true one bedroom condo apartment with Kitchen and Living/Dining Room. These rooms will be nice and any resident would be proud to have friends and family over which they have the right to.

Initial Jobs to Choose From:

1. Receptionist

2. Uber/Lyft/Door Dash Driver

3. Landscaping of the Hotel Grounds and other contracts obtained

4. Dog Trainer / Breeder

5. Car Wash Attendant

6. Restaurant / Bar worker

7. Farmer in our Vertical Farm adjacent to Hotel

8. Retail worker in the Vertical Farm Retail Grocery Store.

Activities and ways to better yourself in personal time

1. Gym access

2. Basketball Teams

3. Baseball Teams (fast pitch)

4. Online Highschool, College, and Graduate School offered

5. Onsite Trade training in Construction/Carpentry

 

          When our new enlisted candidate has repaid their bail and resolved their case so the bail is also returned to the hotel, the candidate is free to go or apply for a permanent position. 

A possible but unlikely relative of mine, Frank Pape, captain of Chicago PD and on the force from 1933 to 1965 has been quoted as saying: “THE POLICE (and in my opinion criminal justice system), IS ONLY AS EFFECTIVE AS THE CITIZENS ENVOLVEMENT AND SUPPORT OF THE MEN AND WOMEN HIRED TO CARRY OUT THE TASK OF KEEPING THE PEACE.”

The Citizens of Lake County are currently getting exactly what they asked for.  This Hotel is about change what they are asking for and the results.

 

Alignment with State and Federal Policy

 

Indiana reforms (IRAS, Rule 26, HEA 1300) encourage pretrial release for low-risk individuals. Our program complies with these reforms while addressing their shortcomings.

Model is consistent with DOJ and philanthropic goals focused on ending mass incarceration and investing in reentry services.

Funding Request and Use of Funds

 

We are seeking an initial funding round of $11.8 million from a combination of:

• Government justice reinvestment grants

• Charitable foundations (criminal justice, housing, mental health)

• Individual donors and philanthropists

 

Breakdown of Use:

• Property lease or purchase and renovation: $750,000

• Staff salaries (1 year): $600,000

• Initial bail fund: $200,000

• Marketing/PR/Legal: $50,000

 

• Vehicles and operational setup: $100,000

• Reserve/contingency: $100,000

• Construction of Hotel: $10,000,000 ($100,000 per room x 100 rooms)

 

Evaluation & Success Metrics

 

• 100 participants served in Year 1

• 80% complete the program and avoid re-arrest

• 70% gain employment within 3 months of graduation

• 60% retain housing for 12+ months post-program

• 95% bail recovery rate

 

 

Financials Attached in Excel Doc

 

 

Anthony Pape

Papefam.org

tony@papefam.org

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