Returning Citizens Support Group

Returning Citizens Support Group's mission is to reduce recidivism through healing, family reunification, and community building by providing comprehensive wraparound services to returning citizens and their families.

We envision a criminal legal system that fosters rehabilitation, redemption, and second chances. Our goal is not only to reduce recidivism but to ensure returning citizens and their families can thrive as business owners, college graduates, community leaders, and contributing members of society. RCSG enhances public safety, community wellness, and family reunification through holistic, trauma-informed services for formerly incarcerated individuals. We help people rebuild their lives with dignity, stability, and purpose.

Founded in 2017, the Returning Citizens Support Group (RCSG) provides critical reentry support services for systems-impacted communities of color. While serving lengthy prison sentences, Newark-raised co-founders Edwin and Carmelo Ortiz and Al-Tariq Witcher witnessed a recurring cycle of individuals returning to incarceration, often within six months of release. After coming home, they experienced the same obstacles of difficulty securing employment and housing due to lack of ID, transportation, and access to basic reentry services.

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Recognizing these systemic gaps, the Ortiz brothers and Witcher established RCSG to advocate for returning citizens with empathy, understanding, and lived experience. Since then, RCSG has developed a comprehensive, wraparound support model tailored to each returning citizen’s individual circumstances. Guided by the principles of “For Us, By Us” and “No Reject, No Eject”, RCSG is rooted in the belief that everyone deserves dignity, a second chance, and support from those who truly understand their journey.