Book•
When Prisoners Come Home: Parole and Prisoner Reentry
01 Jan 2003-
TL;DR: In this paper, a profile of returning prisoners is presented, along with a discussion of the changing nature of Parole Supervision and Services, and the role of the victim's role in prisoner reentry.
Abstract: Preface 1. Introduction and Overview 2. Who's Coming Home? A Profile of Returning Prisoners 3. The Origins and Evolution of Modern Parole 4. The Changing Nature of Parole Supervision and Services 5. How We Help: Preparing Inmates for Release 6. How We Hinder: Legal and Practical Barriers to Reintegration 7. Revolving Door Justice: Inmate Release and Recidivism 8. The Victim's Role in Prisoner Reentry 9. What to Do? Reforming Parole and Reentry Practices 10. Conclusions: When Punitive Policies Backfire Afterword
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors show that strong family support can play an important role in helping men and women transition from prison to home and can actually reduce the likelihood of recidivism.
Abstract: Prior research indicates that strong family support can play an important role in helping men and women transition from prison to home and can actually reduce the likelihood of recidivism. Assuming...
96 citations
Cites background from "When Prisoners Come Home: Parole an..."
...Corrections experts contend that released prisoners are less prepared to face the challenges of reentry than ever before (Lynch & Sabol, 2001; Petersilia, 2003; Travis, 2005)....
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...The cost of visiting prisons places an additional strain on family budgets (Braman, 2002), and the cost of receiving phone calls from someone in prison can be prohibitive (Hairston, 1998; Petersilia, 2003)....
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TL;DR: The authors examine the role that changes to legal policies and practice have played in the rise of mass incarceration and argue that the law and legal change in these varied forms is the engine that has driven prison growth and therefore must be addressed in explanations of this phenomenon.
Abstract: Research Summary
In this article, I have three major aims. First, I examine in detail the role that changes to legal policies and practice have played in the rise of mass incarceration. I look at four distinct aspects of legal change and argue that the law (and legal change) in these varied forms is the engine that has driven prison growth and, therefore, must be addressed in explanations of this phenomenon. This discussion leads to my second major goal, which is to move beyond national-level explanations of American mass incarceration and call for a more unified empirically based understanding that highlights the localized social, cultural, and political factors that have contributed to the imprisonment explosion. I conclude by exploring how this kind of theorization provides a road map to a more localized policy reform strategy that aims to reduce our reliance on incarceration.
95 citations
TL;DR: The author empirically characterizes the increases in incarceration occurring since 1970 and assesses the degree to which these changes result from changes in policy as opposed to changes in criminal behavior.
Abstract: This article addresses the reentry challenges faced by low-skilled men released from U.S. prisons. The author empirically characterizes the increases in incarceration occurring since 1970 and assesses the degree to which these changes result from changes in policy as opposed to changes in criminal behavior. The author discusses what is known about the children of inmates and the likelihood that a child in the United States has an incarcerated parent. The article then addresses the employment barriers that former prison inmates face, with a particular emphasis on how employers view criminal records in screening job applicants. Finally, the author discusses a number of alternative models for aiding the reentry of former inmates. Transitional cash assistance, the use of reentry plans, traditional workforce development efforts, and transitional jobs for former inmates all are among the tools used across the United States. The author reviews the existing evaluation literature on the effectiveness of these prog...
94 citations
Cites background from "When Prisoners Come Home: Parole an..."
...A large body of criminological research consistently finds that nearly two-thirds of ex-inmates are rearrested within a few years of release from prison (Petersilia 2003)....
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TL;DR: This paper used Cox proportional hazard models to estimate change in the likelihood of parole over time, and the focal concerns theory provided the theoretical framework for the analyses, which suggests a complex interplay of legal and extralegal factors in understanding parole release decisions.
Abstract: We use data from pre-sentence investigations and official parole board records to study the correlates of parole release among a sample of men incarcerated for sexual offenses. Cox proportional hazard models are used to estimate change in the likelihood of parole over time, and the focal concerns theory provides the theoretical framework for the analyses. The findings suggest a complex interplay of legal and extralegal factors in understanding parole release decisions. Parole officials weigh heavily offense seriousness, institutional misconduct, and parole readiness scores in making release decisions. In addition, study results reveal that victim and offender age is a salient factor in determining parole judgments. Overall, the current analysis provides a baseline for future research on parole decision making in general, and sexual offenders, in particular.
94 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that parental incarceration may adversely affect multiple life outcomes for children as they progress from adolescence into adulthood and that such effects may persist from early young adulthood into late young adulthood.
Abstract: Objectives:The transition to adulthood can be challenging, especially for children of incarcerated parents. Drawing on reentry and life-course scholarship, we argue that parental incarceration may adversely affect multiple life outcomes for children as they progress from adolescence into adulthood and that such effects may persist from early young adulthood into late young adulthood.Methods:The study uses propensity score matching analyses of National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health data (N = 12,844).Results:Analyses identified harmful effects of parental incarceration on many life domains, including criminal behavior, mental health, illegal drug use, education, earnings, and intimate relationships. These effects typically surfaced by early young adulthood and continued into late young adulthood.Conclusions:The results suggest that parental incarceration constitutes a significant turning point in the lives of young people and underscore the importance of life-course perspectives for understanding ...
93 citations