LA nonprofit helps rebuild lives of those impacted by criminal justice system

Many people who are unhoused end up in an endless cycle of incarceration and living on the streets because their mental challenges aren’t adequately addressed.

In this SoCal Rising report, we’re taking a closer look at how a nonprofit is helping people rebuild their lives after being impacted by the justice system.

Jail isn’t a place where you treat people’s mental health symptoms.

Less than a year ago, 39-year-old Gabriel Miranda got into a heated confrontation with a bus driver.

“I hit the bus with a stop sign,” he recalled.

When police arrested him, Miranda had been dealing with manic highs and lows that were getting worse living on the streets.

“I think I waited like about a month and a half without going to court until they brought a psychologist to talk to me,” he said.

Rather than keeping him incarcerated, Los Angeles County’s Office of Diversion and Reentry allowed Miranda to receive community-based mental health services at a unique nonprofit called Victory Starts Now.

“Jail is not a mental institution,” said Viktoriya Stinson, the nonprofit’s CEO. “Jail is not a hospital. Jail isn’t a place where you treat people’s mental health symptoms.”

When she worked with public defenders, Stinson witnessed a revolving door of people with mental health challenges landing back in jail.

“What we started thinking at Victory Starts Now is, ‘What happens when people get out of jail?’ There are not enough people asking that question,” she said.

Stinson developed answers.

Her team built nurturing group homes staffed with mental health professionals. Volunteers also engage clients in healing therapies such as gardening, fitness and woodwork.

“We try to get them back into living life, figuring out what they like to do, figuring out what helps them be successful,” said Melissa Johnson, a mental health counselor with Victory Starts Now.

Once clients learn how to manage their conditions, the nonprofit then offers job training.

“There’s a lot of really big companies that hire our folks and it’s really, really nice to see them now contributing positively to the community,” said Stinson.

Victory Starts Now started in 2015 with one location and has since expanded to 22 locations and 500 beds.

For Miranda, it’s more than just a lifeline, it’s an opportunity to find work and his own place to live.

“They offer all their energy, they throw all their time to provide the members with an assurance that they can make it out of their situation,” he said.