The Anti-Recidivism Coalition (ARC) is a left-leaning advocacy group and charity based in Los Angeles, California, that supports programs to aid former and current inmates in California state prisons and juvenile detention centers. The organization sponsors several programs and projects centered on providing outreach and education to inmates and reentry programs to ex-convicts. ¹

The organization solely focuses on California and lobbies the California legislature on many criminal justice bills to expand funding for inmate services and to make it easier for inmates to be released on parole. ² The organization was founded by Scott Budnick, a Hollywood producer most notable for The Hangover, and has several other Hollywood actors and producers on its advisory board. ³

Background

The Anti-Recidivism Coalition was founded in 2013 by film producer Scott Budnick, who at the time was the executive vice president of Green Hat Films and had produced several comedy films including The Hangover series. Budnick decided to start the organization after a friend had invited him to attend a writing workshop for juvenile detainees conducted by the InsideOUT Writers program. Budnick began teaching writing classes at the detention center regularly and noticed that many returned to incarceration after not long on the outside. He began ARC as an annual camping trip to mentor former juvenile detainees and young adult inmates, and since its initial founding in 2013, the organization has expanded with several programs that also lobby to change criminal justice laws in California to benefit current and former juvenile detainees and inmates. ⁴

The Anti-Recidivism Coalition currently claims 6,000 members in its peer support network, most of whom reside in Los Angeles County with other members in San Diego, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties, as well as the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2016, ARC opened an additional office in Sacramento to influence state policy and to serve 200 members there. ⁵

Activity

In the years since its founding, the Anti-Recidivism Coalition has launched a large public policy advocacy effort to lobby for left-leaning criminal justice policy. Recent changes to California’s criminal laws that were supported by the organization include allowing juveniles sentenced to life without parole the ability to obtain parole, prohibiting 14- and 15-year-olds from being tried as adults or being placed in adult prisons, and granting voting rights to nearly 50,000 ex-convicts who are out on parole. ⁶

In addition to lobbying on public policy, ARC still provides counseling and assistance services to inmates and ex-convicts. The organization boasts an 11% recidivism rate among its members, although the California Association of Deputy District Attorneys points out that the organization’s participants are part of a self-selective group of motivated inmates. The organization begins its programming with peer counseling services while inmates are still in prison and provides a variety of services such as housing, counseling, and career development with an emphasis on job placement in the film and construction industries. Government partners of the organization include the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire), California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the California Conservation Corps. ⁷

Check the Sheriff Coalition

Check the Sheriff Coalition is a coalition in Los Angeles, California formed to oppose the policies and actions of Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva. The Coalition has demanded that Sherriff Villanueva resign, and that the California Attorney General investigate the Los Angeles Sherriff’s Department (LASD). ⁸ The Anti-Recidivism Coalition is a member of the coalition. ⁹

People

In addition to Anti-Recidivism Coalition founder Scott Budnick, a Hollywood producer, several actors and celebrities serve on the organization’s advisory board including Zach Galifianakis, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Jonah Hill. The organization’s advisory board also includes U.S. Representatives Raul Ruiz (D-CA) and Tony Cardenas (D-CA). ¹⁰

Additionally, the organization’s advisory board includes Eric Kessler;¹¹ the founder of the left-leaning funding collective Arabella Advisors, a philanthropic consulting company that guides the strategy, advocacy, impact investing, and management for high-dollar left-leaning nonprofits and has incubated dozens of left-leaning organizations. ¹²

Funding

According to Foundation Search, the Anti-Recidivism Coalition has received funding from the following organizations since 2016: ¹³

1. “InReach.” Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Accessed April 18, 2021. https://antirecidivism.org/our-programs/inreach/
2. “InReach.” Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Accessed April 18, 2021. https://antirecidivism.org/our-programs/inreach/
3. “Meet the ARC Team.” Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Accessed April 18, 2021. https://antirecidivism.org/meet-the-arc-team/
4. “About Us.” Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Accessed April 18, 2021.  https://antirecidivism.org/about-us/
5. https://antirecidivism.org/about-us/
6. “Timeline.” Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Accessed April 18, 2021. https://antirecidivism.org/timeline/
7. Hanisee, Michelle. “Anti-Recidivism Coalition Provides Transformational Criminal Justice Reform.” Califoria Association of Deputy District Attorneys. Accessed April 18, 2021. https://www.laadda.com/anti-recidivism-coalition-provides-transformational-criminal-justice-reform/
8. “About.” Check the Sheriff Coalition. Accessed July 21, 2021. https://www.checkthesheriff.com/about.
9. “About.” Check the Sheriff Coalition. Accessed July 22, 2021. https://www.checkthesheriff.com/about.
10. “Meet the ARC Team.” Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Accessed April 18, 2021. https://antirecidivism.org/meet-the-arc-team/
11. “Meet the ARC Team.” Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Accessed April 18, 2021. https://antirecidivism.org/meet-the-arc-team/
12. “Arabella Advisors.” Devex. Accessed April 14, 2021. https://www.devex.com/organizations/arabella-advisors-62136
13. Information provided by FoundationSearch. Anti-Recidivism Coalition. 2016-2021. https://www.foundationsearch.org/