Build a continuity-of-release plan so disasters do not lengthen incarceration.

When the criminal legal system shuts down, scheduled releases should continue. Individuals who were eligible to come home during the early months of the pandemic remained in custody for months longer because home plans could not be approved and placements could not be confirmed. Agencies should develop a continuity-of-release plan that anticipates housing, transportation, and identification needs in advance of any expected disruption, and treats a delayed release as a failure of the plan rather than an unavoidable consequence of the disaster.