Probation officers deem felons high-risk based on an interview that provides a detailed look at their criminal history, employment, education, family situation and so on. It's the kind of test where earning the most points is bad. The center will offer these high-risk felons opportunity and punishment. The opportunity provides a single location for many of the classes and tests the felons are required to take. That's better than having felons travel all over the city to make various appointments, Adams said.
Some felons never make it.
Adams said she also wants to eventually open a kind of thrift store in the center, where felons can get a coat, bus tokens or other basic things they need to restart their lives. It's not sympathy. It's crime prevention. Adams said she hopes to get charitable groups to operate out of the extra office space built into the center. It can take two or three months for a probation violator to get to court, Adams said.