"All I got was a letter saying that I was on probation; I didn't report to anyone and I didn't get counseling. It's really the reason I didn't take my first conviction very seriously," said Alcatentii, who now works at West Bay Retail in Oakland repairing computerized cash registers and accounting systems.

"It's insane. Probation has banked people, but nobody's monitoring them. All it does is give us a hook, so if they commit another crime we can whack them," said Alameda County Sentencing for Revocation of Probation Assistant D.A. Eileen McAndrew.

The Railroad's low recidivism record may also be attributable to the fact that if participants become involved in crime again, they will get "whacked" with a sentence of two to four years in state prison, a horror some have already experienced. As a result, they are more motivated to succeed. "This is their last big shot at the apple; they know if they screw up here, they're going back to jail," said Goodman.

Participants in the program echo this belief. Michael Sanders, a 23 year-old from Oakland, who spent a short time in Santa Rita county jail on a drug offense and was the first graduate of the program this spring said, "I didn't want any part of jail; you see guys when they go in and when they come out the only thing they learned is to be a better criminal. After being there, I truly appreciate my freedom."

Jill Hyatt, an assistant district attorney in charge of sentencing in the Alameda County Superior Court said she has had great hopes for the program because, "...these young men need a chance. When we see them [in court] they have a felony, which is a slippery slope to hell and sometimes they're only weeks past 18. You don't need to save very many to be successful."

"I don't like sending young men to prison. Many have dropped out of school and have never had any meaningful employment; some are very salvageable, some need a kick in the butt and some just need to be shown how to do it [working or school]," said McAndrew.

Still, many in law enforcement in Alameda County are not totally comfortable with an ex-con running what is essentially a probation program. In order for Collins to get permission to start the program, the judge and D.A.s carefully reviewed his record of transgressions and accomplishments. "We're not blind; we ran through his old files before this thing got started. He's no saint, and sometimes I don't want to know what he's doing, but like I said, I've never seen a program succeed like this," said Goodman.

In fact, heavy screening is a fundamental component of the program. In order to ensure the public safety and hopefully the success of the participants, the judge, D.A. and Collins have a very strict criteria for admission to the program. According to Goodman and Collins, candidates have to meet the following basic requirements: They can not be violent offenders or have used a gun in any crime; they must have some support system - room and board while they look for a job or are in school; and a commitment to not going back to prison.

"This is not a tightly structured program. There is a certain risk involved, so we need to screen people very carefully, said Goodman.

Additionally, Goodman meets with participants and Collins or another staff person in court as frequently as every 30 days to monitor their progress. "We get a feeling for what they are doing; If it seems like they are just going through the motions, I see them more often," said Goodman.

Even though screening is rigorous, success can not be guaranteed. A small number of people have not made it through the program and have gone back to prison. Goodman described one such incident that happened recently. "A clerk had lined him [the program participant] up with a job at a grocery store and everything. Then we find out this guy had been out there selling dope again - it broke our hearts," said Goodman

Once a participant has found a job, or is in school, he has limited contact with the program. This allows program staff to put efforts into helping other participants find work or get into school. The probation department, on the other hand, spends its time meeting with so many people that it can not really provide tangible assistance.

According to young men currently in the program, they needed both tangible and moral support to succeed. "It's hard to find a job when you get stereotyped from the beginning. I looked from October until January, but the program kept me motivated, " said Henderson, who now is a part-time student at Merritt Community College studying for his A.A. degree and starts work as a youth/ job counselor this summer.

"They need to see the options available to them. The only thing they think they are good at is hanging out. We show them that they are capable of so much more and if they are limiting themselves, they can be so easily manipulated," said Larese Dykes, a counselor and mentor for the program.

"Lack of information hurts people a lot. They don't understand the consequences of what they are doing. The program helps them to see things they wouldn't see otherwise," said Alcatentii. For 80 percent of the people in the Underground Railroad, a little information may have changed their lives and saved tax-payers a considerable amount of money.

Michael Sanders














"I didn't want any part of jail; you see guys when they go in and when they come out the only thing they learned is to be a better criminal"

Michael Sanders
Out of jail and on the job

Alcatentii: "They don't understand the consequences of what they're doing"








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