Aged 25, with long dark hair and pearly-white teeth, Lisa Kevitt should have the world at her feet.
Instead, she is struggling to rebuild her life after a teenage introduction to heroin turned her into an addict with 25 criminal convictions.
“My life used to be all about what I’d do to get gear,” says Lisa, who is from Drogheda. “I was a robot, not living, just existing. But now I know in my heart I’ll never go to prison again.”
Lisa’s life was changed by Tús Nua, a programme run by the Depaul Trust in partnership with Dóchas Prison (the women’s section of Mountjoy) and the Probation Service. Since 2003 it has helped women leaving prison reintegrate into society.
Women make up 3.5% of the prison population. Many commit non-violent offences and most serve short sentences.
“These sentences can destroy lives,” says Kerry Anthony, CEO of Depaul Ireland. “They lose their homes and jobs. Their children go into care. We’d like an alternative to custodial sentences, a more supportive system that has a beneficial impact on these women and their families.”
A system like Tús Nua. In 2003, Depaul refurbished a house in Dublin into bedsits where six women can be housed and helped for up to a maximum of 12 (but usually six) months. Since then, they have helped 188, including Lisa. She has been at Tús Nua since being released in December. “I could have been released earlier but there wasn’t space at Tús Nua so I stayed in prison,” she says. “I’d been told to get in here if I wanted to change my life.”
Source: Sharon Ní Chonchúir, Irish Examiner, 22/04/13
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