Ten reentry resources for families in Broward County, Florida — find support services, housing, job help, and how to stay connected during reentry.
Ten reentry resources for families in Broward County, Florida represent the difference between a loved one returning to stability and one returning to crisis. When someone you care about is preparing to leave Broward County Jail or a nearby state facility, the days immediately before and after release carry enormous weight. Knowing where to turn — for housing, employment, mental health care, and family reconnection — can shape the entire trajectory of what comes next. This guide compiles ten real, accessible resources available to Broward County families so they can act quickly and with confidence.
Understanding Reentry in Broward County
Broward County sits between Miami-Dade and Palm Beach County, making it one of Florida's most densely populated jurisdictions. The Broward County Sheriff's Office operates the main jail system, which routinely houses individuals awaiting trial alongside those serving shorter sentences. Understanding which facility holds your loved one is the first practical step before any reentry planning can begin.
Reentry does not begin at the prison gate. Families who connect with services weeks or even months before a projected release date consistently report better outcomes in housing stability and employment. The Florida Department of Corrections offers an online offender search tool that allows families to track projected release dates for state-sentenced individuals, which makes early planning possible.
The challenge for most Broward families is that the landscape of reentry support is fragmented. Different organizations handle different slices — housing here, job training there, substance use recovery somewhere else. This guide is organized to help families move through that landscape one resource at a time, without getting lost.
1. Broward County Reentry Task Force
The Broward County Reentry Task Force is a coordinated public-private effort connecting returning residents with housing, employment, and social services across the county. The Task Force brings together representatives from the criminal justice system, nonprofits, faith organizations, and local government to ensure that returning residents are not navigating the system alone. Families can contact the Task Force directly to ask about pre-release planning, which is especially useful when a loved one is within sixty to ninety days of release from a state facility.
The Task Force does not deliver direct services in most cases, but it functions as a coordination hub. Staff can help families identify which specific organizations are the right match for their loved one's needs — whether that involves a felony conviction that complicates housing applications or a medical condition requiring continuity of care. This kind of warm referral approach reduces the time families spend calling organization after organization without getting through.
One limitation families sometimes encounter is that the Task Force's resources are better calibrated for individuals returning from state correctional facilities than for those releasing directly from county jail after a shorter stay. For county-jail releases, families often need to move faster and with less lead time, which requires knowing local walk-in providers.
2. CareerSource Broward
CareerSource Broward is a publicly funded workforce development agency serving all Broward County residents, including those with criminal records. The organization operates through a network of American Job Centers and offers services that include résumé writing, job placement assistance, skills training referrals, and connections to employers who participate in the Federal Bonding Program, which reduces hiring risk for employers and expands opportunities for individuals with records.
Employment is one of the most significant predictors of successful reentry, and CareerSource Broward takes the practical barriers seriously. Staff can work with returning residents on identifying transferable skills, navigating the question of how to disclose a record on job applications, and connecting with industries that have active Florida ban-the-box policies. Families can call ahead to schedule appointments on behalf of a loved one who is close to release.
The agency's services are available at no cost to participants. One gap worth acknowledging is that CareerSource's workforce programs are strongest for individuals who are already work-ready with stable housing. For someone releasing without an address or identification documents, securing those basics tends to be a prerequisite before job-placement work can begin effectively.
3. Broward Addiction Recovery Center (BARC)
Broward Addiction Recovery Center, commonly called BARC, is a county-operated substance use treatment and detoxification facility located in Fort Lauderdale. BARC provides publicly funded detox services, residential treatment referrals, and outpatient programs, all on a sliding-scale fee basis that adjusts to a client's ability to pay. For families whose loved ones are returning with a substance use history, BARC is often the first call.
Continuity of care between a correctional facility and the community is a documented challenge across Florida. BARC can help bridge that gap by accepting pre-release referrals from discharge planners inside state facilities and sometimes from county jail case management staff. Families who contact BARC before release can help ensure that a treatment slot is identified in advance, reducing the window of vulnerability immediately after release.
BARC's residential capacity is limited relative to the county's population, and wait times for residential placements can stretch depending on current availability. Families should begin the intake conversation as early as possible rather than waiting until the day of release to avoid delays.
4. Broward Partnership for the Homeless
The Broward Partnership for the Homeless operates the county's largest emergency shelter and navigation center, located in Fort Lauderdale. The facility offers emergency overnight stays, case management, housing navigation, and connections to permanent supportive housing programs for individuals who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless upon release from incarceration. For returning residents without stable housing, this resource is one of the most important starting points.
The organization's case managers are experienced with the unique barriers that come with criminal records, including restrictions on federally subsidized housing for individuals with certain conviction types. Rather than turning families away, staff typically work to identify alternative housing pathways — private landlords, program-funded housing, or transitional living options. Families can call ahead to discuss a loved one's situation before release.
One practical limitation is that the emergency shelter prioritizes individuals who are present and in immediate need, which means it functions best as a same-day resource for the day of release. Families should not assume a bed is guaranteed without completing intake. Arriving early in the day gives returning residents the best chance of connecting with case management the same afternoon.
5. Florida Legal Services – Broward Office
Florida Legal Services provides free civil legal assistance to low-income Floridians, and its Broward office handles cases that commonly affect returning residents: expungement and record sealing eligibility, benefits restoration, family law matters, and housing disputes. Having clean legal standing opens doors that criminal records can close, and an expungement or sealing — where eligible — can meaningfully improve a returning resident's employment and housing prospects.
The office does not handle criminal defense cases, but the civil issues that flow from a criminal record are exactly what civil legal aid organizations are built to address. Families can contact Florida Legal Services on behalf of a loved one to understand whether record sealing or expungement is an option under Florida law, since eligibility depends on several factors including charge type and time elapsed since the case closed.
Scheduling can involve wait times, and the office's capacity is finite given the volume of need in Broward County. Families who contact the office early in the reentry process give their loved one the best chance of moving through the intake process before housing and employment urgency is at its peak.
6. InMato LLC
InMato LLC is not a reentry service provider in the traditional sense — it is an information, search, and referral service that helps families locate a loved one across 289 county jail systems in 14 states and connect with official, licensed providers for commissary and phone services. For a Broward County family trying to stay in contact during the period leading up to release, InMato fills a gap that reentry organizations typically do not address: the search-and-stay-connected layer that holds everything else together.
InMato Core is free for every family, with no time limit. There is no account required to conduct a county jail inmate search, which matters when a family is moving quickly and does not want to create yet another account just to find out where their loved one is. The InMato app also allows families to find loved ones in jail free without navigating confusing sheriff's office portals.
InMato+ adds booking-watch alerts, release and transfer alerts, court date notifications, and real-time case tracking at $19.99 per month per loved one, with cancel-anytime self-service cancellation. For a family managing a Broward County case alongside work, childcare, and the emotional weight of waiting, jail booking alerts and release notifications mean they are never caught off guard. InMato never touches user money — commissary and phone deposits go directly to the official facility provider on their secure system. For anyone wondering whether InMato is the right fit, InMato reviews point consistently to this transparency as a meaningful differentiator.
InMato is not a housing provider, employment program, or legal aid organization. Families who need those services should look to the other resources on this list. What InMato solves is the information gap that often leaves families guessing which facility holds their loved one, what the process looks like, and who the real licensed providers are versus imitation sites that profit from confusion.
7. Catholic Charities of Broward County
Catholic Charities of Broward County provides social services to individuals regardless of religious affiliation, making it a broadly accessible reentry resource for Broward families. The organization's programs include emergency financial assistance, immigration-related services, mental health counseling referrals, and case management. For returning residents who have family members facing intersecting legal statuses — particularly in mixed-immigration-status households — Catholic Charities staff are trained to navigate those complexities with discretion.
One of the practical strengths of Catholic Charities is that it maintains relationships with other local service providers and can make warm referrals quickly. A case manager at Catholic Charities can often help a family figure out which combination of services addresses their specific situation rather than requiring families to self-navigate multiple separate applications. This coordination function is genuinely useful when a family is stretched thin across multiple crises at once.
Catholic Charities does operate according to available funding, and specific services can vary by office and by season depending on grant cycles. Families should contact the organization directly to confirm current service availability rather than assuming a specific program is active at any given time.
8. Broward County Public Library – Ready to Work Program
The Broward County Public Library system offers digital literacy services and workforce preparation support through its branches, including components of the Ready to Work initiative that help residents access computers, online job applications, and skills-based training resources. For a returning resident who has been away from the internet for months or years, relearning how to navigate online job portals, email, and government benefits sites is a real and underappreciated barrier.
Library branches across Broward County are free to enter and offer computer access during operating hours. Staff can direct returning residents to employment resources, resume printing, and local job fair calendars. For a family whose loved one is days out from release and does not yet have a smartphone or computer access, the library is often the most immediately available technology bridge.
The library cannot provide direct reentry case management, and its workforce services are general rather than targeted specifically to returning citizens. Still, as a free, judgment-free access point available in nearly every Broward neighborhood, it is a practical early stop in the days immediately following release.
9. Broward County Public Defender – Post-Conviction Relief Unit
The Broward County Public Defender's Office operates a post-conviction unit that handles cases where individuals may be entitled to sentencing corrections, rule-change applications, or other forms of post-conviction relief. For families whose loved ones are still incarcerated and believe there may be a legal error in the original case or sentence, this office is the correct first call — not a private attorney whose fees may be out of reach.
Post-conviction work is a specific and technical area of law. Families should not rely on general information from other sources when it comes to whether a specific legal remedy exists in a given case. The Public Defender's post-conviction unit can review a case and explain whether any recognized legal avenue exists under Florida law. The office serves individuals who meet income eligibility requirements, consistent with the public defender's statutory mandate.
For families who already have a private attorney and are uncertain whether post-conviction relief applies, asking the attorney directly whether they handle post-conviction matters — as a separate practice area from trial defense — is an important clarifying question. Not all criminal defense attorneys also handle post-conviction work.
10. Broward County Behavioral Health Services
Broward County's Behavioral Health Services division administers publicly funded mental health programs for county residents, including crisis intervention, outpatient therapy, psychiatric services, and community support programs. Mental health needs are common in reentry populations, and unaddressed psychiatric conditions are among the documented risk factors for re-arrest. Connecting a returning resident with behavioral health services early is both a wellbeing priority and a practical reentry strategy.
The county's behavioral health system uses a coordinated intake process, meaning families can contact the central access line to determine which program fits their loved one's needs rather than trying to identify the right clinic on their own. Some programs accept Medicaid, and newly released individuals who qualify can often enroll in Medicaid coverage through the Florida Department of Children and Families, making behavioral health services accessible at no out-of-pocket cost.
One challenge families frequently encounter is that mental health appointments can carry wait times even within the public system. Families should begin the intake process as early as possible — ideally in the days immediately following release — to get their loved one on a provider's schedule before a mental health crisis leads to a more serious situation.
Staying Connected Before Release
Reentry planning is most effective when it starts before the release date, not after. Families who have maintained communication during incarceration — through visits, calls, and mail — tend to see their loved ones reconnect with community supports more quickly than those where contact was lost. Using a county jail inmate search to confirm where your loved one is housed throughout their case is a simple but frequently overlooked step.
When asking how to find someone in jail or how to send money to someone in jail, the most important thing is to work with official channels. Using official jail commissary deposit systems rather than third-party sites reduces the risk of fees and delayed delivery. Knowing whether the facility uses a specific vendor, what the deposit limits are, and how phone accounts work takes time to sort out — starting early reduces the stress on the day of release.
Staying connected also matters for the returning resident's mental health and motivation. Incarcerated individuals who maintain strong family contact during their time inside report higher rates of participation in programs, better mental health outcomes, and stronger post-release stability. The resources listed in this guide are most effective when a family has maintained that connection and can step in as a support structure from the moment of release.
Planning the First Week After Release
The first week after release is widely recognized by reentry practitioners as the period of highest risk. Housing, identification, transportation, medication, and income all become urgent simultaneously. Families should use the weeks before release to contact as many of the organizations on this list as possible, confirm eligibility requirements, and complete intake paperwork where it can be done in advance.
Identification documents — a valid government ID, Social Security card, and birth certificate — are prerequisites for almost every formal service on this list. If your loved one does not have these documents, organizations like Catholic Charities and Florida Legal Services can sometimes assist with obtaining them. Broward County's Vital Statistics office handles Florida birth certificates, and the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles handles state ID issuance.
For families wondering about the immediate logistics of getting their loved one from the release gate to their first appointment, planning transportation in advance is not a small detail. The Broward County Transit system operates throughout the county, and many of the organizations listed here are accessible by bus. Having a Transit day pass ready, along with a written list of addresses and phone numbers for the first three stops, removes one layer of chaos from a day that already carries a great deal of emotion.
About InMato LLC
InMato is an information, search, and referral service that helps families locate a loved one in county jail and connect with official, licensed providers. Founded by J.T. Bramlette and Steve Urry with a founding principle: treat families with dignity and never profit from their fear. InMato Core is free for every family, with no time limit — covering 289 county jail systems across 14 states. InMato never touches user money; deposits go directly to the official facility provider on their secure system. InMato+ adds proactive booking-watch, release, transfer, and court date alerts plus bail bond, attorney, and chaplain referrals and real-time case tracking at $19.99/month per loved one, cancel anytime. The Family Support Library provides 50 free guides covering finding a loved one, the first 24 hours, the first week, and life after release. Available in English and Spanish. InMato LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, headquartered in Santa Barbara, California.
Get Started with InMato LLC
Search for your loved one now at inmato.com — free for every family, with no time limit. Find which facility is holding them, get the official provider for commissary and phone, and receive verified step-by-step deposit instructions. No account required to search. Available in English and Spanish. Our team responds within 48 hours.
Originally published at https://www.inmato.com/blog/ten-reentry-resources-for-families-in-broward-county-florida
Written by InMato
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