For thousands of families across Colorado, maintaining a connection with loved ones in prison is a struggle. The ability to see, hear and speak to someone behind prison walls is often treated as a privilege, something that can be taken away or restricted at will.
House Bill 1013, known as the Department of Corrections Visitation Rights bill, aims to change that by enshrining the right to in-person visits, video visits and phone calls for people incarcerated in Colorado prisons.
The research is clear: Maintaining family and community ties during incarceration has overwhelmingly positive effects. Studies show that people in prison who receive visits have lower rates of recidivism, better mental health and a stronger sense of purpose.
A 2022 study found that experiencing prison visitation correlated with a 25% reduction in the likelihood of being rearrested within two years after release. Keeping people connected to their support systems helps them reintegrate successfully upon release, which makes communities safer for everyone. And support for visitation is widespread — a poll from Aspect Strategic found that 69% of voters in Colorado supported protecting family visitation rights, and that support jumped to 77% when they learned about the rehabilitative benefits.
Yet, in Colorado, access to visitation is not guaranteed. Policies vary by facility, and for many families, barriers such as distance, transportation costs and scheduling restrictions make in-person visits nearly impossible.
Evonne Carrol, a Nevada resident, knows this struggle firsthand. Her husband has been incarcerated for two years in Colorado, and maintaining their connection has come at a steep cost of timing and financial resources so that their 2-year-old daughter can spend important family time with her father.
Flights, car rentals, hotel accommodations and other necessities add up to nearly $1,700 per visit. Despite all this effort, Evonne’s visit was canceled with less than 24 hours notice due to a facility lockdown. She was told to call the next morning to check if visits had resumed.
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3:05 AM MDT on Apr 6, 20255:22 PM MDT on Apr 4, 2025When she did, she was given a different excuse. No compensation, no rescheduled visit, no accountability. Just lost time, lost money and a father who lost precious moments with his wife and child.
“They didn’t care,” Evonne shared during her testimony at the bill’s committee hearing. “This experience has left me feeling not so welcome though I haven’t done anything wrong. They didn’t care and even expressed to my husband they don’t care and also to me that visits can be canceled for any reason at any time at their discretion, which left me not only scared, discouraged and nervous to apply for another out-of-state visit but lost out on $1,700 in expenses.”
Evonne’s story is not an anomaly, it is part of a larger pattern of systemic family separation, one that disproportionately impacts Black families in Colorado and across the country.
Black Coloradans are incarcerated at a rate 7.3 times higher than their white counterparts. This disparity leads to the fragmentation of Black families and communities, perpetuating cycles of disadvantage.
Soul 2 Soul Sisters, a racial justice organization supporting Black communities through a reproductive justice framework, recognizes the profound impact of family separation. Historically, such separation has been used as a tool of control and dehumanization, a legacy that continues today through systemic over-policing and mass incarceration.
Opponents of House Bill 1013 argue that prison is meant to be punitive and that visitation should be a privilege earned through good behavior. But we must ask ourselves: Do we want a justice system that prioritizes punishment over rehabilitation?
If our goal is to reduce crime and build safer communities, then we must invest in policies that support reintegration and rehabilitation. Denying human connection doesn’t make people better, it does the exact opposite. An outcome that helps no one. Not the Department of Corrections and certainly not society.
House Bill 1013 recognizes what should already be a fundamental truth: Visitation is not a privilege; it is a right. People in prison are still human beings, and their families should not be punished alongside them.
If we believe in rehabilitation, if we believe in safer communities, and if we believe in the basic dignity of every person, then we must pass this bill.
Colorado has an opportunity to lead by example. Let’s choose a system that values connection over isolation, rehabilitation over recidivism, and humanity over punishment. House Bill 1013 is a necessary step in that direction, and it’s time we make visitation a guaranteed right for all.
Niyankor Ajuaj of Denver is the communications manager for the nonprofit Soul 2 Soul Sisters.
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