Free Hearts opened a reentry home in Antioch on Oct. 9, creating a place where women returning from incarceration can find housing and practical support as they rebuild their lives. The home can accommodate up to seven residents and is the first in Tennessee based on a model developed by the SAFE Housing Network, according to the organization. The Nashville advocacy group, led by formerly incarcerated women, says residents can get help securing identification and housing, reconnecting with family and developing workforce skills. For some women, the home may also be an alternative to jail or prison. Executive Director Dawn Harrington, who has experienced incarceration, said release does not remove the obstacles people face: finding somewhere to sleep, getting food and transportation, securing work and locating people who understand their experience. The project follows a 2019 Tennessee law, supported in large part by Free Hearts, that allows certain nonviolent offenders who are primary caregivers in their households to pursue community-based alternatives to incarceration. Harrington said the opening brings that policy into practice by providing a supportive place to live. She said the organization aims to make the home feel dignified and welcoming, rather than resembling a prison, and hopes to establish more homes across Nashville and Tennessee. Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Dawn Deaner, a former public defender, said she had represented hundreds of women who needed services but did not need to be jailed or imprisoned. When she worked in the court system, she said, options and resources for them were often unavailable. The Antioch home is one effort to address that gap. Tennessee incarcerates women at a rate of 194 per 100,000 residents, according to the Prison Policy Initiative. Harrington said women’s roles as primary caregivers can make the consequences of incarceration especially far-reaching for families.