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: Involvement in 12-Step groups and characteristics of the social network were strong predictors of outcome, reaffirming the importance of social and environmental factors in recovery.
Abstract: Lack of a stable, alcohol- and drug-free living environment can be a serious obstacle to sustained abstinence. Destructive living environments can derail recovery for even highly motivated individuals. Sober living houses (SLHs) are alcohol- and drug-free living environments for individuals attempting to abstain from alcohol and other drugs. They are not licensed or funded by state or local governments and the residents themselves pay for costs. The philosophy of recovery emphasizes 12-Step group attendance and peer support. We studied 300 individuals entering two different types of SLHs over an 18-month period. This article summarizes our published findings documenting resident improvement on measures of alcohol and drug use, employment, arrests, and psychiatric symptoms. Involvement in 12-Step groups and characteristics of the social network were strong predictors of outcome, reaffirming the importance of social and environmental factors in recovery. This article adds to our previous reports by providing a discussion of implications for treatment and criminal justice systems. We also describe the next steps in our research on SLHs, which will include: (1) an attempt to improve outcomes for residents referred from the criminal justice system and (2) a depiction of how attitudes of stakeholder groups create a community context that can facilitate and hinder the legitimacy of SLHs as a recovery modality.
42 citations
TL;DR: In the state of Florida, when someone is found guilty of a felony crime they forfeit the right to vote, serve on a jury, and run for elected office as mentioned in this paper, regardless of the crime.
Abstract: In the state of Florida, when someone is found guilty of a felony crime they forfeit the right to vote, serve on a jury, and run for elected office. These civil rights are lost regardless of whethe...
41 citations
Cites background from "When Prisoners Come Home: Parole an..."
...Put another way, over 1600 prisoners are released into the community each day (Petersilia, 2003)....
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...Current research indicates that about two-thirds of newly released prisoners will be arrested, and about half will be re-incarcerated, within three years of their release (Petersilia, 2003)....
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TL;DR: The authors found that high concentrations of returning prisoners are associated with a reduced capacity for collective efficacy; the fostering of social situations conducive to criminal behavior; and higher levels of violent crime, and they concluded that the impact of incarceration on these neighborhood processes appears to be largely indirect through the turmoil that concentrations of incarceration create in a neighborhood's labor and housing markets.
Abstract: Incarceration, whose putative goal is the reduction of crime, may at higher concentrations actually increase crime by overwhelming neighborhoods with limited resources. The present research poses and provides initial support for an explanation of this paradoxical consequence of a crime control strategy. Specifically, we draw on two different lines of theoretical work to suggest that large numbers of returning prisoners may negatively impact a community’s economic and residential stability, limiting a community’s capacity for informal social control and resulting in labor market conditions conducive to criminal behavior. This study combines data on local social organization processes from a large survey of Seattle residents with contextual, crime, and incarceration data from the US Census, Seattle Police Department, and Washington State Department of Corrections. The results suggest that high concentrations of returning prisoners are associated with a reduced capacity for collective efficacy; the fostering of social situations conducive to criminal behavior; and higher levels of violent crime. The impact of incarceration on these neighborhood processes, however, appears to be largely indirect through the turmoil that concentrations of incarceration create in a neighborhood’s labor and housing markets. We conclude with a call for greater scrutiny of the goals and actual outcomes of incarceration policy.
41 citations
TL;DR: A strengths-based prisoner reentry program that provided services to men both pre- and post-release from prison to the community in the United States is highlighted.
Abstract: Scholars have called for a strengths-based approach to prisoner reentry, yet there are few available program models that outline how to integrate this approach into the current reentry program landscape. The present article highlights a strengths-based prisoner reentry program that provided services to men both pre- and post-release from prison to the community in the United States. Qualitative findings from focus groups provide preliminary support for the strengths-based approach and highlight men's strengths and needs as well as challenges related to the program's implementation. The reentry program then drew from participants' reports to inform program development activities. Implications and recommendations for integrating strengths-based approaches into prisoner reentry interventions are discussed.
41 citations
Additional excerpts
...…substance abuse; physical and mental health concerns; family difficulties; and previous criminal history (Iwamoto et al., 2012; Maruna, 2001; Petersilia, 2001, 2003; Travis, 2005; Travis, Solomon, & Waul, 2001; van Olphen, Eliason, Freudenberg, & Barnes, 2009; van Olphen, Freudenberg,…...
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated how visitation affects inmates' social capital and whether it influences inmates' perceptions of costs incurred by their family members and friends as a result of inc...
Abstract: The current study investigates how visitation affects inmates’ social capital and whether it influences inmates’ perceptions of costs incurred by their family members and friends as a result of inc...
40 citations
Cites background from "When Prisoners Come Home: Parole an..."
...However, successful prisoner reentry involves concerns that are broader than recidivism, centering on successful social and economic reintegration that allows ex-prisoners to become productive members of the society (Petersilia, 2003; Travis, 2005)....
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...Email: sliu@njcu.edu Liu et al 767 This mass reintegration into society raises important concerns about offender reentry and community safety (Petersilia, 2003; Visher & Travis, 2011)....
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...This is important because social relationships, and in particular attachments to conventional others, constitute a key reserve of social and economic support during the reintegration process (Christian, 2005; Petersilia, 2003; Visher & Travis, 2011)....
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