Recent Victim Street Ministry Services

Detention Ministry

Thank you for your interest in Detention Ministry. This ministry needs dedicated Christians who want to serve the men and women that are incarcerated here in the Diocese of Santa Clara or Santa Clara County. The steps necessary to become a minister in jail are listed.

1. 1. Discernment.You must make sure that you are ready for this ministry. Through prayer and dialogue with a priest, deacon or lay person it will become clear if you are ready to move forward.
   2. Letter of recommendation.You must talk with your pastor and tell him what your plans are. If he agrees that you are ready you can request that he writes you a letter of recommendation.
   3. Verification.I will review the letter and contact your pastor to verify its contents.
   4. Notification.Once verified I will make an appointment so we can meet.
   5. Training.I will arrange a date and time that we can meet either on Zoom or in person to go over the manual. It gives us a chance to get to know one another.
   6. Clearance forms.There are four parts to this process. Clearance forms, Fingerprinting, PREA, Proof of vaccination.
   7. Submission.Once the clearance forms have been completed send them to me.
   8. Patience.Once clearances have been turned in it will take 2 months for clearances to be approved.
   9. Once approved.You will be assigned a mentor. You will attend services with them until you feel comfortable to be on your own.

Restorative Justice

• Detention Ministry: Serving the 5 Santa Clara County Jails.
• Victim Services:  Victim Street Ministry & Talking Circles for those who have lost loved ones to murder.
• Re-entry Services: Journaling for the incarcerated, those who have been released from custody, and their families.

If these ministries interest you contact:
Michael Shirley
408-983-0131
michael.shirley@dsj.org

“I was in prison and you visited me…I tell you whenever you did this for one of the least important of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it for me!”— Matthew 25:36, 40

The mission of Restorative Justice Ministry is to provide a Catholic pastoral presence to the over 4,500 men, women and children incarcerated in the Diocese of San Jose in our county jails, juvenile facilities and prisons that reflects a sensitivity to the ethnic and cultural differences and needs of this special population.

Restorative Justice seeks also to provide a healing service to victims, families of victims, offenders, families of offenders and to all who are affected by the criminal justice system.

The primary focus of Restorative Justice is to communicate the GOOD NEWS of God’s unconditional love for all.

Restorative Justice is an approach that addresses the various needs of people impacted by crime and conflict that are created when a person has been harmed or treated unfairly.  Restorative Justice processes, in response to crime and conflict, are highly adaptable to different people, environments and systems as the identified needs of the people involved help formulate the unique response that can contribute to a person’s sense of safety, justice and well-being.