FROM PRISON TO HOME
The Dimensions and
Consequences of
Prisoner Reentry

Jeremy Travis
Amy L. Solomon
Michelle Waul

research for safer communities

URBAN INSTITUTE

Justice Policy Center

Dear Colleague:
We are pleased to present this monograph on prisoner reentry. We hope it
can inform a broad set of discussions
about one of the most pressing issues
of our time—the challenge of reintegrating record numbers of individuals
who leave prison and return home.
This challenge is felt differently by
different sectors of our society. Most
fundamentally, it is experienced by
nearly 1,600 men and women who
leave prison each day. In a monograph
such as this one, we cannot capture
their stories, yet their experiences give
meaning and richness to the data we
present in the pages that follow.
The challenge of reentry is also
felt acutely by the families, friends,
and communities of the returning
prisoners. For some, the return of
one who has been in prison is a
moment eagerly anticipated. For
others, it is feared. In all instances,
coming home triggers a complex and
mixed set of emotions and realities
for those in closest relation to the
former prisoner. The moment of
reentry can raise new fears for the
victims of the original offense, or it
can be a time for reconciliation. And
then there are the stubborn facts of
daily living—the search for housing,
employment, treatment, health care,
and something as simple as a driver’s
license. These challenges, large and
small, are now experienced in much
larger numbers than ever before.
The increasing volume of returning prisoners, the multiple challenges
they face, and their high recidivism
rates have serious consequences for
public safety, as well as state budgets. These impacts expose the high

stakes of reentry, and the opportunities to improve both safety and
reintegration outcomes over the
coming years.
Our ultimate hope is that this
report will inform the new policy
discussions that we sense are underway. From the U.S. Congress, which
has allocated nearly $100 million this
year to reentry strategies and is
considering bipartisan legislation to
address prisoner reintegration, to the
community groups that are building
networks of support and supervision
for those coming out, the interest in
“reentry” is simply stunning. As we
were putting this report together,
governors’ staff, sentencing commissions, health care providers, corrections agencies, kinship care networks,
research institutions, treatment
advocates, law enforcement organizations, victims’ rights groups, child
development specialists, prisoners’
rights associations, and educators all
found their way to our doorstep. The
common introduction was, “We hear
you might know something about
reentry.” We learned that they, too,
were interested in reentry because
they were exploring ways to conduct
their core business differently. And
they thought understanding the
reentry perspective could help improve outcomes for their communities
or constituencies. We would be
pleased beyond measure if this
report could help them, and others,
succeed.
Jeremy Travis
Amy L. Solomon
Michelle Waul

FROM PRISON TO HOME:
The Dimensions and
Consequences of
Prisoner Reentry

Jeremy Travis
Amy L. Solomon
Michelle Waul

June 2001

copyright © 2001
The Urban Institute
2100 M Street, NW
Washington, DC 20037
www.urban.org
(202) 833-7200

The views expressed are
those of the authors and
should not be attributed to the
Urban Institute, its trustees,
or its funders.
Designed by David Williams

About the Authors
Jeremy Travis is a senior fellow at the Urban
Institute, developing research and policy
agendas on crime in the community context,
new concepts of the agencies of justice,
sentencing and prisoner reentry, and international crime. Mr. Travis is co-chair of the
Reentry Roundtable, a group of prominent
academics, practitioners, service providers,
and community leaders working to advance
policies and innovations on prisoner reentry
that reflect solid research. Before he joined
the Urban Institute, Mr. Travis was the director of the National Institute of Justice, the
research arm of the U.S. Department of
Justice. Mr. Travis has been an active figure
in the development of a policy and research
agenda on the issue of prisoner reentry. He
is the author of the article “But They All
Come Back: Rethinking Prisoner Reentry,”
and shaped the federal initiative on reentry
courts and reentry partnerships. Mr. Travis
earned his JD, cum laude, from the New
York University School of Law; an MPA from
the New York University Wagner Graduate
School of Public Service; and a BA in American Studies, cum laude, with honors from
Yale College.
Amy L. Solomon is a policy associate at the
Urban Institute, where she works to link the
research activities of the Justice Policy Center to policy and practice arenas in the field.
Her primary areas of concentration are prisoner reentry and problem-solving approaches to public safety. She currently
serves as project manager for the Reentry
Roundtable and co-manages a project for the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that focuses on the impact of incarceration and reentry on children, families,
and low-income communities. Before she
joined the Urban Institute, Ms. Solomon
served as policy analyst and acting director
of strategic planning at the National Institute
of Justice, the research arm of the U.S.
Department of Justice. There, she developed
and managed prisoner reentry and community crime reduction initiatives; prepared
background papers for senior department
officials; and provided a research basis for
emerging crime policy initiatives. Prior to her
work at the Justice Department, Ms.
Solomon managed a community service

program for offenders; developed strategies
for prisoners transitioning to the community;
worked with juveniles in detention, probation,
and school settings; and participated in various criminal justice working groups, boards,
and committees. Ms. Solomon has an MPP
degree with a concentration in criminal justice policy and management from Harvard
University’s Kennedy School of Government.
Michelle Waul is a research associate with
the Justice Policy Center. She focuses on
initiatives to help inform the work of policymakers and practitioners by facilitating links
to the research activities of the Center. Her
primary areas of concentration are violent
crime victimization and offending, prisoner
reentry, transnational crime, and understanding crime in the community context. She comanages a reentry project, funded by the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, assessing the impact of incarceration
and return of ex-prisoners on children, families, and low-income communities. Her other
Urban Institute projects have included drafting data collection instruments and a literature review for a national evaluation of the
Victims of Crime Act program. Before she
joined the Urban Institute, Ms. Waul served
as the project manager for the Victims of
Crime Act program for the state of Illinois.
Ms. Waul has an MPP degree from Georgetown University’s Public Policy Institute and a
BA in sociology and criminal justice from the
University of Wisconsin at Madison.

FROM PRISON TO HOME:

Contents

The Dimensions and
Consequences of
Prisoner Reentry

Chapter 1. Prisoner Reentry: An Overview......................................................... 1
Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 1
Sentencing and Supervision Context ..................................................................................... 4
Reentry and Public Safety ..................................................................................................... 6

Chapter 2. The Reentry Process.......................................................................... 9
Who’s Coming Home? .......................................................................................................... 9
How Are Release Decisions Made? .................................................................................... 14
How Are Prisoners Prepared for Release and Reintegration? ............................................ 16
The Moment of Release ....................................................................................................... 18
Post-Release Supervision ................................................................................................... 20
Parole Violations .................................................................................................................. 22

Chapter 3. Challenges for Prisoner Reentry ..................................................... 25
Substance Abuse ................................................................................................................. 25
Physical and Mental Health ................................................................................................. 27
Employability and Workforce Participation .......................................................................... 31
Reentry and Housing ........................................................................................................... 35

Chapter 4. Implications of Prisoner Reentry for Families and
Communities ................................................................................... 37
The Impact of Reentry on Families and Children of Former Prisoners ............................... 37
The Impact of Reentry on Communities .............................................................................. 40

Chapter 5. Conclusion ....................................................................................... 45
References .......................................................................................................... 49

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the many
individuals who made valuable contributions
to this monograph. We thank Joan Petersilia,
Bill Sabol, Todd Clear, Ed Rhine, and Mike
Thompson for reviewing and commenting on
an early draft. Their insightful feedback and
varied perspectives on prisoner reentry helped
make this a more comprehensive document.
Several colleagues here at the Urban Institute
made important contributions as well: Alexa
Hirst, Jake Rosenfeld, and Sarah Lawrence
provided data, text, sources, and valuable
edits, big and small. Adele Harrell, director of
the Justice Policy Center, was a critical reader
and provided staff resources that made this
monograph possible. Christy Visher, Peter
Reuter, Laura Winterfield, and Shelli Rossman
read versions of the report and provided constructive guidance along the way. David Williams, our graphics guru, transformed the
document from words on a page into a professional and accessible document that others
might just want to read. Finally, we would like
to thank the Open Society Institute’s Center
on Crime, Communities, and Culture, and
Susan Tucker in particular, for supporting the
first meeting of the Reentry Roundtable in
October 2000 and the production of this report. The Roundtable discussions, its members, and the commissioned papers provided
the foundation and the impetus for the development of this monograph. In the spirit of the
Reentry Roundtable, we encourage the readers of this report to contact us with new research findings or promising policy innovations so that the national discussion of
prisoner reentry is further enriched.

CHAPTER

1

Prisoner Reentry: An Overview

INTRODUCTION
About 600,000 individuals—roughly1,600 a day—will be released from state
and federal prisons this year to return to their communities.1 On one level, this
transition from prison to community might be viewed as unremarkable. Ever
since prisons were built, individuals have faced the challenges of moving from
confinement in correctional institutions to liberty on the street.
Yet, from a number of policy perspectives, the age-old issue of prisoner
reintegration is taking on new importance. More prisoners are returning home,
having spent longer terms behind bars, less prepared for life on the outside,
with less assistance in their reintegration. Often they will have difficulties reconnecting with jobs, housing, and perhaps their families when they return,
and will remain beset by substance abuse and health problems. Most will be
rearrested, and many will be returned to prison for new crimes or parole violations. And this cycle of removal and return of large numbers of individuals,
mostly men, is increasingly concentrated in a relatively small number of communities that already encounter enormous social and economic disadvantages.
The costs of this cycle of incarceration and reentry are high from several
perspectives. First and foremost is the public safety dimension. Nearly twothirds of released prisoners are expected to be rearrested for a felony or serious
misdemeanor within three years of their release. Such high recidivism rates
translate into thousands of new victimizations each year. Second, there are fiscal implications. Significant portions of state budgets are now invested in the
criminal justice system. Expenditures on corrections alone increased from $9
billion in 1982 to $44 billion in 1997.2 These figures do not include the cost of
arrest and sentencing processes, nor do they take into account the cost to victims. Third, there are far-reaching social costs. Prisoner reentry carries the potential for profound collateral consequences, including public health risks, disenfranchisement, homelessness, and weakened ties among families and communities.
But just as the costs are great, so too are the opportunities. Managing
reentry so that fewer crimes are committed would enhance public safety. ManChapter 1. Prisoner Reentry: An Overivew

Reentry Defined
We define “reentry” as the process of leaving
prison and returning to society. All prisoners experience reentry irrespective of their method of
release or form of supervision, if any. So both
prisoners who are released on parole and those
who are released when their prison term expires
experience reentry.
If the reentry process is successful, there are
benefits in terms of both public safety and the
long-term reintegration of the ex-prisoner. Public
safety gains are typically measured in terms of
reduced recidivism. Reintegration outcomes
would include increased participation in social
institutions such as the labor force, families, communities, schools, and religious institutions.
There are financial and social benefits associated with both kinds of improvements.
Throughout this monograph, we principally
address reentry as it relates to adult state
prisons. While the concept of reentry is applicable in various contexts involving a transition
from any type of incarceration to freedom—from
jails, federal prisons, juvenile facilities, or even
pretrial detention—we focus here on the reentry
of state prisoners back to the community. We
have limited our scope to state prisons in order to
focus on individuals who have been convicted of
the most serious offenses, who have been removed from communities for longer periods of
time, and who are managed by state correctional
and parole systems.

1

aging reentry so that there are fewer returns to prison would translate into significant cost savings. Managing reentry to achieve long-term reintegration would
have far-reaching benefits for the families and communities most affected by
reentry, as well as for former prisoners. These interrelated opportunities bring
the stakes of reentry into view. There is much to be gained.
The costs and opportunities also raise important questions about what we
can do to prepare both ex-prisoners and their communities for their inevitable
return home. How can public resources best be allocated to improve public
safety and prevent reoffending? How can we craft strategies that increase the
odds of successful prisoner reintegration? What types of policies can realistically be implemented to make a difference in the short term?
In an effort to seek answers to these important questions, the Urban Institute
hosted the first “Reentry Roundtable” meeting in October 2000. With funding
support from the Open Society Institute, we brought together a diverse group of
academics and practitioners to assess the state of knowledge about these issues.
The Urban Institute commissioned research papers on various dimensions of reentry—from substance abuse, health, and labor market issues to the impact of
reentry on families, children, and communities. And we engaged in a two-day
discussion about the research and policy opportunities before us. (See sidebar on
the Reentry Roundtable for a list of participants and discussion papers.)
Based on that meeting, the discussion papers commissioned for the meeting, and additional literature from the field, we have created this report. We aim
to highlight relevant research and identify key issues that most warrant policy
attention. In this report, we describe the reentry process, the challenges for
reentry, and the consequences of reentry along several key dimensions. Throughout, we convey research findings and identify strategic policy and research opportunities. We hope that the information presented here will help lay the groundwork for further research and, most important, for future policy innovation.

2

From Prison to Home

Reentry Roundtable
October 2000 meeting participants:

Jeremy Travis (Co-chair), Urban Institute

James Lynch, American University

Joan Petersilia (Co-chair), University of California
at Irvine

Larry Meachum, Department of Justice Corrections
Program Office

James Austin, George Washington University

Sam Myers, University of Minnesota

Todd Clear, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

Paul Offner, Georgetown University

Tony Fabelo, Texas Criminal Justice Policy Council

Fred Osher, University of Maryland

Joe Frye, Safer Foundation
Gerald Gaes, Federal Bureau of Prisons

Ed Rhine, Ohio Department of Rehabilitation
and Correction

John Hagan, Northwestern University

Beth Richie, University of Illinois at Chicago

Theodore Hammett, Abt Associates

William Sabol, Case Western Reserve University

Adele Harrell, Urban Institute

Michael Sarbanes, Office of the Lieutenant
Governor, State of Maryland

Lana Harrison, University of Delaware
Sally Hillsman, National Institute of Justice
Martin Horn, Pennsylvania Department of
Corrections
Sharon Jackson, California Department of
Corrections

Rick Seiter, St. Louis University
Carol Shapiro, Family Justice
Susan Tucker, Open Society Institute
Bruce Western, Princeton University

Jeffrey Kling, Princeton University

Reginald Wilkinson, Ohio Department of
Rehabilitation and Correction

John Laub, University of Maryland

Diane Williams, Safer Foundation

Joseph Lehman, Washington Department of
Corrections
Discussion papers commissioned for the Reentry Roundtable:

! “Prisoner Reentry: Current Trends, Practices, and Issues,” by James Austin, George Washington University
! “Returning Captives of the American War on Drugs: Issues of Community and Family Reentry,” by John
Hagan, Northwestern University, and Juleigh Petty, American Bar Foundation
! “Coercive Mobility and the Community: The Impact of Removing and Returning Offenders,” by Todd Clear,
Dina Rose, and Judith A. Ryder, John Jay College of Criminal Justice
! “The Challenge of Reintegrating Drug Offenders in the Community,” by Lana Harrison, University of
Delaware
! “Health-Related Issues in Prisoner Reentry to the Community,” by Theodore Hammett, Abt Associates
! “Issues Incarcerated Women Face When They Return to Their Communities,” by Beth Ritchie, University of
Illinois at Chicago
! “The Labor Market Consequences of ‘Mass’ Incarceration,” by Jeffrey Kling and Bruce Western, Princeton
University, and David Weiman, Russell Sage Foundation
Extant papers used for the Reentry Roundtable and circulated with the commissioned papers:

! “Prisoners Returning to Communities: Political, Economic, and Social Consequences,” by Joan Petersilia,
University of California-Irvine
! “But They All Come Back: Rethinking Prisoner Reentry,” by Jeremy Travis, Urban Institute
! “State and Federal Prisoners Returning to the Community: Findings from the Bureau of Justice Statistics,” by
Allen Beck, U.S. Department of Justice
These discussion papers will be published, in expanded versions, in a special edition of Crime and Delinquency.
The volume will also include a new paper on the role of victims in prisoner reentry, by Susan Herman and
Cressida Wasserman of the National Center for Victims of Crime; a paper on the mental health consequences of
incarceration and reentry, by Arthur Lurigio of Loyola University; and an introductory essay on the policy implications of the reentry perspective, by Jeremy Travis and Joan Petersilia. The special issue is scheduled for publication in July 2001. To order a copy, go to http://www.sagepub.com/shopping/journal.asp?id=4704.

Chapter 1. Prisoner Reentry: An Overview

3

SENTENCING AND SUPERVISION CONTEXT
Over the past generation, sentencing policy in the United States has
been characterized by three major developments. The first is a
remarkable increase in U.S. imprisonment rates. There are now more
than a million people in state and federal prisons—a fourfold increase since 1973.3 The second is a shift in sentencing and supervision policy away from indeterminate sentencing and earned release
to greater (but not universal) reliance on determinate sentencing and
mandatory release. Third, the system of parole supervision has
undergone significant changes, with increasing caseloads, new
monitoring capacities, and an increased focus on surveillance over
rehabilitation. Taken together, these trends place an increased
burden on the formal and informal processes that should work
together to support successful reintegration.

The per capita rate of imprisonment in America hovered at about 110 per
100,000 from 1925 to 1973, with little variation.4 Starting in 1973, however,
the rate of imprisonment has grown steadily, so that in 1999 there were 476
incarcerated individuals for every 100,000 residents—more than four times the
1973 level.5 As a result, state prisons now house 1,200,000 individuals and
federal prisons house 135,000. Another 605,000 persons are held in local jails.6
The impact of this growth in incarceration rates on prisoner reentry is
clear—the more people we put in prison, the more will eventually come out.7
Over the past two decades, the number of prisoners released each year has
grown nearly fourfold, from 147,895 in 1977 to an estimated 585,000 in 2000.8

In 1999, 476 persons per 100,000 residents were sentenced to at least a year’s
confinement—equivalent to 1 in every 110 men
and 1 in every 1,695 women. These rates vary
dramatically by race. In 1999, 1 in every 29 African-American males was sentenced to at least a
year’s confinement, compared with 1 in every 75
Hispanic males, and 1 in every 240 white males.
One in every 472 African-American females was
sentenced to at least a year’s confinement, compared with 1 in every 1,149 Hispanic females,
and 1 in every 3,704 white females. 9

Figure 1. Sentenced Prisoners Admitted and Released from State and Federal Prisons,
1977–98
700,000

600,000

500,000

400,000
Prison Admissions
300,000
Prison Releases
200,000

100,000

0
1977

1979

1981

1983

1985

1987

1989

1991

1993

Source: The Urban Institute, 2001. Based on Bureau of Justice Statistics National Prisoner Statistics.

4

From Prison to Home

1995

1997

Over the same period, the overarching jurisprudential and penal philosophy that once guided the reentry process, namely the philosophy of rehabilitation and earned reintegration within a framework of indeterminate sentencing,
lost its intellectual and policy dominance.10 Under the indeterminate approach,
state statutes provided broad ranges of possible sentences, authorized the release of prisoners by parole boards, and explicitly embraced rehabilitation of
prisoners as the goal of corrections. Starting in the mid-1970s, critics from
different ideological and intellectual perspectives began arguing for changes in
this approach, for different reasons. For instance, civil rights activists and defense lawyers, citing evidence of widespread racial and class disparities in sentencing and correctional administration, called for limiting the discretion of
judges and other correctional authorities in sentencing matters. On the other
hand, political conservatives pointed to rising crime rates and research findings that questioned the effectiveness of rehabilitation and advocated sentencing reforms as a means to enforce tougher standards and crack down on criminals.11 This ideological and political shift away from the framework of indeterminate sentencing has had significant effects on federal and state sentencing
policy. The unifying sentencing approach of the past has been replaced with a
variety of state-level experiments in mandatory minimums, abolition of discretionary parole release, three-strikes laws, sex offender registration, sharply reduced judicial discretion, and truth-in-sentencing policies, among others.12
Such staples of correctional management as good-time credits earned
through compliance with requirements and successful completion of in-prison
programming and discretionary release through review by a parole board have
been abolished or curtailed in many states. Further, intensive case planning and
management, both pre- and post-release, and the availability of community
support services have not been viewed as priorities. For example, recent surveys of parole officers show that more of them give high priority to the law
enforcement function of parole, rather than its service or rehabilitation function.13 At the same time, the level of per capita spending for parole supervision
has been reduced14 and parole caseloads per officer have risen.15 New surveillance capabilities—including electronic monitoring and drug testing—have been
introduced, providing enhanced capacity to detect parole violations and to increase the rate of revocations.16
For these and other reasons, the rate of parole violations has increased
significantly over recent years. In 1985, 70 percent of parolees successfully
completed their parole term; by 1998, the number had dropped to 45 percent.
As a result, parole revocations now account for more than a third of prison
admissions, up from 18 percent in 1980.17 Indeed, parole violators are the fastest growing category of prison admissions.18
In summary, the burden on the systems that manage reentry has increased
substantially and the operational capacity to manage these increases has not
kept pace. Furthermore, as discussed later in this report, the increase in the
number of prison releases has placed significantly greater strains on the same
communities where prisoner removal and return are most concentrated.

Chapter 1. Prisoner Reentry: An Overview

5

Figure 2. Number of Releases from Prison, by State, 1998

State Variation
Most of the figures reported throughout the
monograph are national totals or averages, and
therefore they mask the varying trends that exist
at the state level. For example, 531,312 persons
were released from state prisons in the United
States in 1998. Not surprisingly, these releases
were not distributed evenly across states.
California alone accounted for some 130,000
state prison releases, or 24 percent of all
releases nationally, while Montana accounted
for 1,100 releases, just one-fifth of 1 percent.
Figure 2 illustrates the variation in the number of
prisoners released per state. Throughout the
report, we will provide examples and maps that
illustrate this variation.

600 – 6,000
6,001 – 14,000
14,001 – 28,000
28,001 – 55,200
55,201+

Source: The Urban Institute, 2001. Based on Bureau of Justice Statistics National Prisoner Statistics.

REENTRY AND PUBLIC SAFETY
Individual rates of reoffending after incarceration are high.
Based on available research, nearly two-thirds of all released prisoners are expected to be rearrested within three years. The impact of
recidivism by returning prisoners is disproportionately felt among a
relatively small number of disadvantaged communities. Some might
suggest that an appropriate response would be to impose longer
prison terms to keep offenders out of the community for longer
periods. While there are crime control effects from incarceration,
recent research shows that more prison expansion would produce
only minimal gains in public safety. Viewed from a different perspective, one study found that beyond a certain “tipping point” in some
communities, increasing levels of incarceration may actually lead to
increases in crime through a weakening of informal, social controls.
The challenge is to understand how to effectively manage the
inevitable returns from prison so that communities will be safer. This
may require a careful look at differential risks posed by former
prisoners, new strategies for parole, and crime control tactics that
reduce reliance on incarceration.

The release of prisoners back into their communities poses two fundamentally interrelated challenges: First, how to protect the safety of the public,
and second, how to foster an individual’s transition from life in prison to life as
a productive citizen. Even though these dimensions of reentry are related, it is
useful to differentiate the potential benefits to public safety from the broader
6

From Prison to Home

Research on Recidivism
Among Released Offenders

benefits to communities and former prisoners that successful reintegration promises. In this section, we focus on the former—the contribution of released prisoners to crime. As discussed above, some 600,000 prisoners are released from
prison each year and the majority who are under supervision fail while on parole. But to what extent is this population actually committing new crimes and
endangering the community? Relatedly, how much additional safety can be
produced by more effective reentry strategies?
Given the centrality of this question to the development of policies to
guide prisoner reentry, it is remarkable how little research has been conducted
on the topic. In 1989, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) published the largest study on recidivism of released prisoners.19 The researchers tracked a large
sample of prisoners released from 11 states in 1983 and measured their recidivism rates over the following three-year period. The 11 states accounted for
more than half of all state prison releases (57 percent) in the United States that
year. During those three years, 63 percent of the 1983 release cohort were rearrested at least once for a felony or serious misdemeanor; 47 percent were reconvicted; and 41 percent of the release cohort were reincarcerated. Individuals were most likely to reoffend during their first year out of prison—40 percent were rearrested within that first year.
According to the study, an estimated 68,000 of the released prisoners were
arrested and charged with some 327,000 felonies and serious misdemeanors,
including 50,000 violent offenses; 141,000 property offenses; 46,000 drug offenses; and 80,000 public order offenses over the ensuing three years.20 More
than 93,000 of these arrests are classified as Uniform Crime Reports Index
crimes (i.e., murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, aggravated
assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft). The group of prisoners released in 1983 accounted for 3.9 percent of all arrests for Index crimes in the 11
states over the first six months, and 2.8 percent of all arrests for Index crimes
over that three-year time period.21 It is important to note that this 2.8 percent
contribution accounts only for the arrests of prisoners released in 1983. For
example, it does not factor in the extent to which prisoners released in 1981 or
1982 contributed to arrests in 1983. In addition, these recidivism rates capture
only those offenses that were reported to the police (typically just over onethird of victimizations are reported to the police22 ) and resulted in an arrest.
Therefore, reoffending rates among ex-inmates are higher than those reported
in this study; additionally, the contribution of their rates to the overall crime
rate are more substantial and their impacts on certain communities are even
more pronounced. Finally, it is not known whether the increase in the country’s
annual releases since 1983 has resulted in proportional increases in crimes that
are attributable to this group.
The public safety risks posed by the returning population can also be viewed
through a community lens. As discussed in Chapter 4 of this report, individuals
leaving prison return to a relatively small number of neighborhoods concentrated within the nation’s large cities. This concentration of individuals at a
high risk of reoffending may present opportunities, as well as the obvious risks.
For example, the development of “place-based” crime reduction strategies, now
Chapter 1. Prisoner Reentry: An Overview

While more research is needed to estimate the
contributions of recently released prisoners to the
crime rates in different communities, two studies
by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) shed
light on the issue.
The first study tracks samples of felony
arrestees in the 75 largest counties. The most
recently published data are for 1996 felony
arrestees.23 BJS found that 6 percent of felony
arrestees were on parole at the time of arrest.
The second study is the Survey of State and
Federal Inmates, conducted every few years by
BJS, which indicates that 24 percent of the
prison population in 1997 were on parole at
the time they committed the offense that led
to incarceration.
The first survey reflects only arrests, so it does
not account for crime rates generally. The second
sample reflects the prison population,
not a representative sample of offenders.
BJS is currently conducting a new recidivism
study that tracks prisoners released in 1994
in 15 states. Analysis from this study will
be published in 2001 and will help shape our
understanding about individual recidivism
and contributions to crime.

A review of the research literature
reveals how little is known about the ways
certain behaviors among certain individuals
respond to certain interventions under certain
conditions. Acknowledging and addressing
individual risk factors are important components
in any effective reentry strategy. There may also
be situational factors that have an equally important role in predicting successful post-prison adjustment—community factors, state policies,
supervision strategies, family structures, availability of jobs, housing, treatment, and the like.
To understand the impact of each of these domains on recidivism and reintegration, the Urban
Institute is developing a major research project
entitled “Returning Home: Understanding the
Challenges of Prisoner Reentry.” This study will
be carried out in up to 11 identified states from
2002 to 2005.

7

more common among police departments and community crime prevention
coalitions, would benefit from a geographic analysis of the safety risks posed
and barriers faced by returning prisoners. Even marginal gains in individual
recidivism could translate into noticeable safety gains in the communities experiencing high rates of prisoner reentry. In Boston, for example, the crime
reduction strategies known as “Operation Ceasefire” focused attention on the
behaviors of individuals under criminal justice supervision in a small number
of neighborhoods and resulted in substantial improvements.24 Boston is currently adapting the Ceasefire model to address the issue of prisoner reentry.
The reentry phenomenon and the attendant safety risks should also be
viewed through the lens of the prisoner’s family. Arguably, as the number of
prison releases increases, the impact of recidivism may be disproportionately
felt by families with histories of violence within the home. Some former prisoners, whether convicted of domestic violence or other crimes, may pose a risk
to the families to which they return. Yet remarkably little is known about the
effects returning prisoners have on incidences of domestic violence and child
abuse, so these issues clearly warrant further attention.
How should society respond to the high rates of reoffending among released prisoners? One response could be to continue expanding the use of incarceration. Those favoring this view would cite studies that conclude national
prison growth did play a role in recent crime declines. Using different approaches, two researchers estimated that prison expansion may account for
approximately 25 percent of the decline, and that up to 75 percent of the crime
drop may be attributed to factors other than prison expansion.25 One of those
researchers also suggests that further prison expansion—following the buildup
over the last 20 years—would produce only minimal gains in public safety.26
Of course, any public safety gains would have to be weighed against fiscal and
social costs, as well as alternate crime control strategies that could produce the
same results.
One provocative new study suggests that more incarceration is counterproductive—that at some point in some neighborhoods, more imprisonment
may actually increase crime rates. Ironically, these community-level effects
are crime-producing, because massive incarceration practices weaken the informal social structures long associated with crime prevention (i.e., strong families, individual and social capital, workforce participation of men in the community) and a tipping point is reached where crime is less inhibited.27
Of course, there are ways to manage the public safety risks of returning
prisoners other than expanding the prison population. The research literature
has identified a number of interventions, such as drug treatment, job training,
and educational programs, that have been shown to reduce reoffending rates.
Greater investment in these and other proven interventions is needed. In addition, more innovation in the field and evaluation research would help develop
strategies that fit the new reality of the large number of prison releases.

Within state budgets, there is a tension
between different spending priorities, such as
higher education and corrections. Nationally,
state spending on corrections increased
1,200 percent between 1973 and 1993 to build
prisons and house new prisoners, while spending on higher education increased only 419 percent despite a similar boom in university
enrollments.28

8

From Prison to Home

CHAPTER

2

The Reentry Process

More than 95 percent of the nation’s state prisoners will eventually return to the
community. In fact, some 40 percent of those currently in state prisons will be
released within the next 12 months.29 What do we know about the processes and
circumstances under which inmates are being released? This section describes
the characteristics of returning prisoners, how release decisions are made, how
prisoners are prepared for release and reintegration, the “moment of release,”
post-prison supervision, and the growing frequency of parole revocation.

WHO’S COMING HOME?30
The population of returning prisoners is generally at high risk along
several critical dimensions. Of the nearly 600,000 inmates returning
to communities across the country each year, most have not
completed high school, have limited employment skills, and have
histories of substance abuse and health problems. Today, there are

Table 1. A Profile of Parolees

substantially more individuals released from prison having served a

Gender

term for a drug-related or violent offense.31 About one-third of all

Male
Female

prisoners are released following a conviction for a drug offense
(up from 11 percent in 1985). One-fourth are released following a

Race

conviction for a violent offense (down from 32 percent in 1985).
past, meaning they may be less attached to jobs, their families, and

White
Black/African American
Other

the communities to which they return.

Hispanic origin

Returning prisoners have served longer prison sentences than in the

The large majority of returning prisoners are male (88 percent), although
the percentage of women in the parole population has risen from 8 to 12 percent over the past decade.32 The median age is 34 and the median education
level is 11th grade.33 In 1998, more than half of returning prisoners were white
(55 percent) and 44 percent were African American. Twenty-one percent of
parolees were Hispanic (and may be of any race).34
One characteristic of released prisoners that has changed in recent years is
the crime for which they were convicted. Looking at all releases from state and
Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

88%
12%
55%
44%
1%

Hispanic
Non-Hispanic

21%
79%

Age (median)

34 years

Education level
(median)

11th grade

Sources: T.P. Bonczar and L.E. Glaze, “Probation and
Parole in the United States, 1998.” Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 160092, August 1999.
J. Petersilia, “Parole and Prisoner Reentry in the United
States.” In M. Tonry and J. Petersilia (Eds.), Prisons.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999.

9

federal prisons, one can see that the number of released prisoners convicted of
violent crimes has nearly doubled from 1985 to 1998—from about 75,000 in
1985 to more than 140,000 in 1998—and presumably will continue to increase.35
However, given the significant increases in the number of prison releases over
that same time period, the share of individuals released from prison who have
been convicted of violent offenses has declined—from approximately 32 percent in 1985 to 25 percent in 1998.
Over the same period, both the number of released prisoners who had
been convicted of drug offenses (sales and possession) and their share of the
returning population increased significantly. The number of released drug offenders rose from about 25,000 in 1985 to 182,000 in 1998.36 The proportion
of released prisoners who were drug offenders rose from 11 percent in 1985 to
26 percent in 1990 and to 32 percent in 1998.

Most prisoners have a criminal
history; nearly half have been convicted

of a violent offense at some point in the
past. Three-fourths of state prisoners have
been sentenced to probation or incarcerated at least once; 43 percent have been
sentenced to probation or incarcerated
at least three times.37

Figure 3. Violent Offenders and Drug Offenders Released from
State and Federal Prisons: Estimated Number, 1984–98
200,000
180,000
160,000

Drug

140,000
120,000

Violent

100,000
80,000
60,000
40,000
20,000
0
1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Source: The Urban Institute, 2001. Based on J.P. Lynch and W.J. Sabol, "Prisoner Reentry in Perspective." Urban Institute Crime Policy
Report, forthcoming; and BJS National Prisoner Statistics.

Figure 4. Violent Offenders and Drug Offenders Released from
State and Federal Prisons: Percentage of All Releases, 1984–98
35%
Drug
30%
25%
Violent
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
1984

1986

1988

1990

1992

1994

1996

1998

Source: The Urban Institute, 2001. Based on J.P. Lynch and W.J. Sabol, "Prisoner Reentry in Perspective." Urban Institute Crime Policy
Report, forthcoming; and BJS National Prisoner Statistics.

10

From Prison to Home

As a result of sentencing reforms of the past two decades, including mandatory minimums and truth-in-sentencing laws, individuals who are now released from prison have, on average, served longer sentences than prisoners in
the past. The amount of time prisoners serve prior to release has increased 27
percent since 1990, from an average of 22 months spent in prison for those
released in 1990 to 28 months for those released in 1998.38
As figure 5 illustrates, the proportion of soon-to-be-released prisoners who
reported they had served five years or more almost doubled between 1991 and
1997—rising from 12 percent to 21 percent over six years. These longer terms
translate into further detachment from the communities to which they will return. The share of exiting prisoners who had served between one and five years
increased as well, and the percentage of prisoners who served one year or less
decreased—from 33 percent in 1991 to 16 percent in 1997.39

Figure 5. Prisoners to be Released in the Next 12 Months: Estimated Distribution
of Time Served Until Release, 1991 and 1997
Percentage of "soon-to-be-released" cohort

70%

1991 cohort
1997 cohort

60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
One year or less

1 to 5 years
Years served

5 or more years

Source: J.P. Lynch and W.J. Sabol, “Prisoner Reentry in Perspective.” Urban Institute Crime Policy Report, forthcoming.

Returning prisoners are released with a host of health problems. Substance
abuse and mental illness are common among soon-to-be-released state prisoners (i.e., those who are expected to be released within 12 months). About threequarters of this population have a history of substance abuse, and an estimated
16 percent suffer from mental illness. However, fewer than one-third of exiting
prisoners receive substance abuse or mental health treatment while in prison.40
A disproportionate share of the prison population also live with chronic
health problems or infectious diseases. In 1997, about one-quarter of the individuals living with HIV or AIDS in the United States had been released from a
correctional facility (prison or jail) that year. Approximately one-third of those
infected with hepatitis C and tuberculosis were released from a prison or jail in
1999. When looked at in terms of the actual prevalence of infectious disease
among the prisoners, some 2 to 3 percent of individuals in the prison population are HIV positive or have AIDS; 18 percent are infected with hepatitis C;
Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

11

and 7 percent have a TB infection. These infection rates are five to ten times
greater than those found in the general U.S. population.41
Taken together, the employment, health, substance abuse, education, and
housing issues of returning inmates present formidable challenges to successful
reintegration. One survey of parolees in California reported that about 85 percent
of the state’s parole population are chronic drug or alcohol abusers; 70 to 90
percent are unemployed; 50 percent are functionally illiterate; 18 percent have
psychiatric problems; and 10 percent are homeless.42 It is worth noting that most
individuals enter prison with these problems. In some cases, prison may actually
improve these conditions, not make them worse. For example, prisoners often
have greater access to medical care than persons with similar sociodemographic
characteristics who are not incarcerated.43 On the other hand, the prison experience may itself create or exacerbate adverse physical or psychological conditions. Some prisoners experience serious physical injuries and/or psychological
trauma while incarcerated. As discussed later in this report, more can be done in
prison and upon release to address these various problems and to assist released
prisoners in transitioning successfully to life in the community.

Impact of Incarceration and Reentry on African-American Families
and Communities

Young, poor, black males are incarcerated at higher rates than any other group, and therefore
they are most affected by reentry. The Bureau of Justice Statistics calculated that, in 1991, an African-American male had a 29 percent lifetime chance of serving at least one year in prison, six
times higher than that for white males.44 Hispanic males, who may be of any race, have a lifetime
chance of imprisonment of 16 percent.45 Nine percent of African-American males age 25 to 29
were in prison in 1999, compared with 3 percent of Hispanic males and 1 percent of white males
of the same age group.46 Further, according to one estimate, more than one-third of young, black,
male high school dropouts were in prison or jail in the late 1990s—more than were employed.47
The disproportionate representation of African Americans in the criminal justice system has
been exacerbated by changes in sentencing policy. A 1990 RAND study found that while defendants in California received generally comparable sentences for comparable offenses regardless
of race, this was not the case with respect to drug offenses.48 Sentencing policy changes throughout the 1980s and early 1990s requiring mandatory minimum sentences for a variety of drug-related offenses resulted in a significant increase in drug offenders sentenced to prison and in
longer prison terms. This had a significant impact on the African-American state prison population. Overall, the number of black drug offenders sentenced to prison increased by 707 percent
between 1985 and 1995, while the number of white drug offenders increased by 306 percent.49
Drug offenders accounted for 42 percent of the rise in the black state prison population and 26
percent of the rise in the white state prison population during that same 10-year period.50
These high rates of incarceration among African Americans have intergenerational consequences. In a 1996 survey of black jail inmates, nearly half indicated that they had a family member who had been incarcerated.51 Moreover, there is evidence to suggest that children of
incarcerated parents are at high risk of future delinquency and/or criminal behavior.52
Concentrations in removal and reentry of African-American men also have implications for family formation and stability. In some communities, high rates of incarceration, homicide, and limited
employment prospects among African-American males have resulted in an imbalance of marriageable African-American males to females. Some researchers argue that severely imbal-anced
gender ratios are a predictor of family disruption and a greater likelihood of crime and violence.53
In addition, Prison Fellowship estimates that only 15 percent of married couples are able to endure a period of incarceration of one partner. Of the 15 percent who do stay together during the
prison term, only an estimated 3 to 5 percent are still together one year after release. 54

12

From Prison to Home

Female Prisoners Returning to the Community

Although female prisoners make up only a small portion of the corrections population, they
present risks and challenges in many ways more serious and widespread than do their male
counterparts.
! Females represent a small share of the corrections population. Females accounted for 6 percent of the prison population and 12 percent of the parole population in 1998.55
! Incarceration rates of females are rapidly increasing. The numbers of females per capita in
corrections institutions have grown 48 percent since 1990, compared with a 27 percent per
capita increase for men.56
A profile of female prisoners

! The majority of female prisoners are minorities. Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of those confined to state prisons are black, Hispanic, or other non-white ethnicity. Minorities make up only
26 percent of the general female population.57
! Female prisoners are more likely to come from lesser economic circumstances than male
prisoners. Thirty-seven percent of females and 28 percent of males had incomes of less than
$600 per month prior to arrest. Thirty percent of females and 8 percent of males were receiving welfare assistance prior to arrest.58
! Female prisoners are less likely to be married than the general population. Nearly half of all
women in state prisons have never been married and another 20 percent are divorced.59
Among the general population, only 21 percent of women 18 or over have never been
married.60
! Female prisoners are likely to be parents. Sixty-five percent of female prisoners have a child
below the age of 18. More than 1.3 million children have a mother who is either in prison or
under probation or parole supervision.61
Challenges facing females returning to the community

! Many women are released with serious health problems. Three-and-a-half percent of the female inmate population are HIV positive, a slightly higher percentage than for males. Nearly
one-quarter (23 percent) of women in prison receive medication for emotional disorders. More
than half of the females (60 percent) in state prisons report a history of physical or sexual
abuse.62
! Many women have serious, long-term substance abuse problems. Increasingly more women
are being incarcerated for nonviolent drug offenses (possession and distribution). Forty percent of incarcerated women report that they were under the influence of drugs and 29 percent
report they were under the influence of alcohol at the time of their offense. Sixty percent of
women in state prison were using drugs in the month before the offense. One-third of women
in prison said they committed the offense to obtain money for drugs.63
! Reestablishing relationships with children after incarceration is difficult. Research shows that
incarceration of a mother results in emotional, financial, and social suffering for children and
that often mother-child relationships are beyond repair after a period of incarceration. It may
be more difficult for mothers to have personal visits with their children while incarcerated because they are typically located in distant facilities—an average of 160 miles farther from their
children than are incarcerated fathers.64

Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

13

HOW ARE RELEASE DECISIONS MADE?
In the past, most prisoners were released after parole boards
deemed them “ready.” They would serve a portion of their sentence
in prison and a portion in the community under parole supervision.
The benefits of this method, in theory, were that release decisions
were based on some assessment of individual risk, and that
prisoners had an incentive to behave well and participate in
programs while incarcerated. In the late 1970s and early 1980s,
indeterminate sentencing and parole release fell out of favor among
policymakers, ushering in significant policy changes. In the 1980s
and 1990s, truth-in-sentencing laws were passed, functionally
eliminating the role of the parole board for certain prisoners.
As a result of these changes, there are now fewer prisoners
released because of a parole board decision, more prisoners released “automatically” under mandatory release (with
supervision to follow), and more prisoners whose sentences
expire and are released without any supervision at all.

Under indeterminate sentencing practices, prisoners were released from
prison to parole only after a parole board had deemed them “ready”—meaning,
at least theoretically, they had been rehabilitated and/or had productive connections to the community, such as a job, a housing arrangement, and ties to
family. Release to parole was positioned as a privilege to be earned. However,
this system was increasingly criticized over the years as arbitrary, racially biased, and a politically expedient way to relieve prison overcrowding.65 A series of sentencing reforms passed over the past two decades have diminished
the role and power of parole boards to make individualized release decisions.
In addition, truth-in-sentencing laws were passed in the early 1980s and
1990s to reduce the discrepancy between the sentence imposed and the actual
time individuals serve in prison. Forty states have enacted truth-in-sentencing
laws requiring that violent offenders serve at least 50 percent of their sentences
in prison; of these states, 27 and the District of Columbia require violent offenders to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences in prison.66 These laws
minimize the role of the parole board in making release decisions. As a result,
fewer prisoners are now released because of a parole board decision.
As illustrated in table 2, in 1990, 39 percent of inmates were released as a
result of a parole board decision. By 1998, the portion had dropped to 26 percent. Consequently, 40 percent of state inmates are now mandatorily released
(1998 figures), up from 29 percent in 1990.
This development has implications for corrections management. Does the
absence of a discretionary release process remove an incentive for good behavior? Does an automatic release process diminish the prisoner’s incentive to
find a stable residence or employment on the outside––the factors that traditionally influenced parole board decisions? Does a mandatory release policy
decrease a correctional agency’s commitment to developing links between an
inmate’s life in prison and his or her life outside prison? Does mandatory release remove the ability of a parole board to reconsider the risk posed by the

The term “parole” refers to two
different matters:

! the decision made by a parole board to
release a prisoner onto parole supervision, and
! the period of conditional supervision
following a prison term.
The movement to abolish parole release
resulted in significant reductions in the
percentage of prison release decisions
made by parole boards. The “truth-insentencing” movement also capped the
portion of a sentence served in the community, typically to 15 percent of the original
sentence. As a result, more prisoners are
now returned to the community with less
or no time under supervision, and with less
consideration of “readiness” for release.
A system of parole supervision, however,
is still operational in some form in nearly all
states.

During the past few decades, the

importance of victim participation in parole
release decisions has grown. In a recent
study of state parole boards, a majority
ranked the input of victims as a very important component of the decision-making
process. As of 1991, 31 states allow victims
to participate in parole board hearings, and
an additional 4 states allow victims to
attend the hearings. More than 90 percent
of state parole boards provide information
to victims on the status of the parole
process.69

14

From Prison to Home

Definitions 68
Table 2. Inmate Release Decisions, 1990–98

Year

Released to Supervision
Parole
Mandatory Other
Board
Release
Conditional

Unconditional Releases
Expiration of
Sentence
Other

1990

39.4%

28.8%

15.5%

12.7%

3.6%

1995

32.3%

39.0%

10.1%

14.5%

4.0%

1996

30.4%

38.0%

10.2%

16.7%

4.7%

1997

28.2%

39.7%

10.4%

16.8%

4.9%

1998

26.0%

40.4%

11.2%

18.7%

3.7%

! Determinate Sentencing—A prison
sentence with a fixed term of imprisonment that can be reduced by good-time
or earned-time credits.
! Indeterminate Sentence—A prison
sentence whose maximum or minimum
term is established at the time of sentencing—but not a fixed term. Parole
boards determine when to release
individuals from prison.
! Mandatory Release—The release of an
inmate from prison that is determined by
statute or sentencing guidelines and is
not decided by a panel or board.

Source: A. J. Beck, “State and Federal Prisoners Returning to the Community: Findings from the Bureau of
Justice Statistics.” Paper presented at the First Reentry Courts Initiative Cluster Meeting, April 13, 2000.

! Discretionary Release—The release of
an inmate from prison to supervision
that is decided by a board or other
authority.
! Conditional Release—The release of
an inmate from prison to community
supervision with a set of conditions
for remaining on parole. Conditions
can include regular reporting to a
parole officer, drug testing, curfews,
and other conditions. If the conditions
are violated, the individual can be returned to prison or face another sanction
in the community.

individual, once his or her prison behavior has been observed? And, for states
with policies granting victims’ rights to participate in parole board hearings,
what role do victims have in the release process?
In addition, more prisoners are serving their full term and therefore are
released with no supervision at all. As shown in table 2, some 22 percent of
prisoners were released “unconditionally” in 1998. The number of inmates released unconditionally has nearly doubled since 1990: More than 100,000 prisoners are now released unconditionally each year.67 In most of these cases,
prisoners have served their full term in prison (i.e., “maxed out” or “wrapped”)
and therefore face no time under parole or community supervision at the end of
their sentence.

! Unconditional Release—The release of
an inmate from prison where he is not
under supervision of a community corrections agency and is not required to
abide by special conditions (and therefore cannot be returned to prison without
conviction for the commission of a new
offense).

Figure 6. Sentenced Prisoners Released from State Prisons,
by Conditional or Unconditional Release, 1977–98
450,000
400,000
350,000
300,000
250,000

Conditional releases

200,000
150,000
100,000

Unconditional releases

50,000
0
1977 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997
Source: The Urban Institute, 2001. Based on Bureau of Justice Statistics National Prisoner Statistics.

Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

15

Typically, prisoners are released unconditionally for one of these three
reasons: (1) they were convicted of a particularly violent crime, and may be
less likely to be paroled;70 (2) they behaved poorly in prison, thereby forfeiting
possible good-time that would allow an earlier release; and (3) they were sentenced to relatively short terms, so parole or mandatory release may not be
options.71 For these prisoners, there are no additional obligations to report to a
parole officer or to abide by certain conditions of release. Nationally, very little
is known about the behavior and recidivism rates of prisoners released who are
under criminal justice supervision compared with those who are not. This issue
clearly warrants further examination.

Unconditional Releases

Figure 7. Unconditional Releases as a Percentage of All Releases, by State, 1998

As illustrated in figure 7, the practice
of releasing prisoners “unconditionally”
varies widely by state. While some states
do not release any prisoners without postprison supervision, some release more
than half of the state’s prison population
unconditionally.

0 – 7%
8 – 14%
15 – 29%
30 – 43%
44+%

Source: The Urban Institute, 2001. Based on Bureau of Justice Statistics National Prisoner Statistics.

HOW ARE PRISONERS PREPARED FOR
RELEASE AND REINTEGRATION?
Given that nearly all prisoners will eventually be released back to the
community—40 percent within the next 12 months—prison could be
viewed as an opportunity to improve inmates’ skills, treat their
addictions, and prepare them generally for life on the outside. As
discussed above, many prisoners have histories of substance abuse
and addiction, mental and physical health problems, and low levels of
job skills and education. There is some evidence that in-prison
programs are cost-effective and beneficial in preparing inmates for
life outside of prison. However, recent surveys indicate that relatively
few inmates receive treatment or training while in prison.

16

From Prison to Home

Following a period of pessimism that characterized the “nothing works”
sentiment of the 1970s, experts are increasingly, albeit cautiously, optimistic
about the effectiveness of certain in-prison programs at changing behavior.
While the quality and quantity of the available evidence varies widely according to the type of intervention, it does seem that certain treatment interventions—including cognitive skills, drug treatment, vocational training, educational, and other prison-based programs—are successful at reducing recidivism. These interventions are most effective when programs are matched to
prisoner risks and needs, when they are well-managed, and when the intervention is supported through post-release supervision. While current studies cite
only modest reductions in recidivism rates for participants, these small reductions can have significant aggregate impacts on criminal behavior in communities with high concentrations of returning prisoners.72
In addition to individual rehabilitative benefits, programming also may be
beneficial to the internal management of correctional institutions.73 Idle prisoners are more likely to cause trouble than other prisoners. According to research
on the topic, some level of structured activity (education, job training, prison
industry, or similar activities) is vital to running a safe and humane prison.74
Most prisoners do not participate in prison programs, however, and the
rate of participation has dropped over the last decade. As shown in figure 8,
about one-third of soon-to-be-released inmates reported they participated in
vocational programs (27 percent) or educational programs (35 percent), down
from 31 percent and 43 percent, respectively, in 1991.75 These decreases in the
participation rates are steeper than they appear, because smaller shares of bigger populations are involved—meaning significantly larger numbers of prisoners are being released without vocational and educational preparation.

Program Participation Versus
Program Availability

Most of the national data on in-prison
program participation comes from the
Survey of State and Federal Inmates.
The survey asks inmates whether they have
“attended,” “been in,” or “participated in” any
one of a list of prison programs. It does not
measure the extent of program availability.
For this reason, one should not infer that a
decrease in participation levels means that
prisoners are less in need of or less motivated to access these services. Rather, it is
likely that participation levels are a proxy for
availability levels. It is reasonable to assume that existing programs cannot accommodate all prisoners who need treatment,
vocational training, and education, and that
if more program slots were available, participation rates would increase accordingly.

Figure 8. Prisoners to be Released in the Next 12 Months: Percentage Participating
in Prison Programs, 1991 and 1997

1991 cohort
1997 cohort

Pre-release

Educational

Vocational

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Source: J.P. Lynch and W.J. Sabol, “Prisoner Reentry in Perspective.” Urban Institute Crime Policy Report, forthcoming.

Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

17

In 1996, nearly $22 billion was spent

Further, although the majority of prison inmates enter prison with substance abuse problems, only 10 percent of state inmates in 1997 reported receiving professional substance abuse treatment, down from 25 percent in 1991.
Of the soon-to-be-released population, 18 percent of those with a substance
abuse problem received treatment while incarcerated.76 In addition, an estimated 7 percent of the prison population report participating in prison industries, and 24 percent are altogether idle.77 Participation of soon-to-be-released
inmates in the activities explicitly labeled “pre-release programs” remained
stable between 1991 and 1997, hovering at just 12 percent.78
In sum, the profile of the prison population reveals significant deficiencies in human capital that reduce an individual’s capacity to function and contribute to society. Many of these deficits are also associated with high rates of
recidivism. The emerging research knowledge about effective prison programs
suggests that targeted investments in these interventions could produce public
safety benefits and increase social functioning overall. Ironically, the research
consensus comes at a time when a smaller share of prisoners seem to be receiving treatment and training than in the past.

to build facilities, staff, maintain, and house
adult prisoners in state prisons. Of this
total, about 6 percent was used to support
in-prison programs involving vocational
and lifeskills training, educational activities,
treatment, and recreation.81
Spending for
in-prison programs
(6%)

Other (94%)

THE MOMENT OF RELEASE
The “moment of release” from prison, and the hours and days that
follow, may be quite pivotal to the transition back to community life.
There are multiple hurdles—many of a largely logistical nature—that
could be overcome relatively easily with appropriate planning.
Systematic attention to small but significant details, important at the
moment of release, such as the time of day prisoners are released,
whether they have identification, and arranging for housing, treatment, jobs, and family reunification immediately upon release could
help ease their transition from prison to community.
It is important to note that all states
have some form of pre-release program, or

Following release from prison, inmates are moved directly from a very
controlled environment to a low level of supervision or complete freedom.
They may immediately be exposed to high-risk places, persons, and situations,
and few have developed relapse prevention skills during their incarceration to
deal with these risks. Prisoners facing release often report feeling anxious about
reestablishing family ties, finding employment, and managing finances once
they return to their communities.79 Indeed, even though the existence of “gate
fever”—a syndrome defined by anxiety and irritability at the time of a prisoner’s
release—is widely recognized among correctional workers, few empirical studies have investigated the issue. The little research that has been conducted
concludes that while very few prisoners ultimately find the experience of release debilitating, the heightened stress levels documented at the time of release reflect very real anxieties about successfully managing a return to the
outside world. 80
The heightened stress levels among inmates associated with the moment
of release stem from anxieties about everyday problems—whether related to
interpersonal relationships or financial pressures—that did not exist for the

transitional services, intended to ease the
inmate’s transition back into society. These
programs provide ex-inmates with a
semistructured environment before full
release. They range from work-release
programs and substance-abuse treatment
to halfway houses and major prerelease
facilities. However, capacity and participation policies vary widely by state. Many
states that have transitional centers can
serve only a small fraction of the prison
population, and eligibility restrictions limit
involvement for certain offenders.82

18

From Prison to Home

Work Release

inmates while in prison. As previous studies have demonstrated, released offenders tend to cope with everyday problems in ineffective and sometimes destructive ways. In fact, research that has attempted to measure the coping process has shown that some offenders are unable to successfully recognize and
deal with problem situations, leading to increased stress levels and rash, often
criminal reactions.83
There has been little systematic attention, by corrections agencies or communities, on ways to reduce the risks associated with the moment of release.
Many practices may in fact heighten the anxiety prisoners have about successfully returning to the outside world. Some may even increase the risk of failure.
Most prisoners are released with little more than a bus ticket and a nominal amount of spending money. Some states provide bus tickets to return exprisoners to their destination (often the county of sentencing), but only half
report making any transportation arrangements. For those states that do provide funds, the amount ranges from about $25 to $200. About one-third of all
departments of corrections report that they do not provide any funds upon release.84
Prisoners are often returned to their home community at odd hours of the
night, making it difficult for them to connect with family and service providers
during the critical first few hours following release. Prisoners are often returned home without the important pieces of identification necessary to obtain
jobs, get access to substance abuse treatment, or apply for public assistance.
For example, some former prisoners experience delays in entering drug treatment because they do not have Medicaid.85 Finally, those who are released
may not fully understand the criminal justice system requirements they need to
fulfill. In a survey of all states conducted in 2000 by the American Correctional
Association, two-thirds reported that they do not provide any documentation or
reporting instructions to inmates upon release.86
Thus, the “moment of release” presents opportunities for policy innovation and attention—to develop strategies that build a short-term bridge during
this immediate transition period. Currently, released prisoners encounter few
resources to help them secure employment, access substance-abuse treatment,
and reestablish family and community ties. The combination of these pre-release preparations coupled with follow-up on the outside (via parole, nonprofit
community organizations, faith institutions, family, or friends) might reduce
the risk of recidivism or drug relapse and improve the odds of successful reintegration after release.

Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

Since the early 1920s, work-release programs have provided soon-to-be-released
prisoners with the skills and training necessary to secure employment. These programs allow for selected prisoners to work
in the community, returning to their correctional facilities during non-working hours.
Work-release programs provide prisoners
with income that may be used to build up
savings for when they are eventually released, to help reimburse the state for portions of their confinement costs, and to help
pay for victim restitution or make child support payments.
While extremely popular in the 1970s,
today, only about one-third of prisons operate work-release programs and fewer than
3 percent of all inmates participate in them.
Certain highly publicized work-release failures, combined with shrinking funding and
a general philosophical move away from the
ideal of rehabilitation, have contributed to
the decline of such programs.
However, some states such as Washington maintain high levels of funding and
other means of support for its work-release
program. Two National Institute of Justicesponsored evaluations of Washington’s program found it relatively successful. Almost
40 percent of all prisoners released in
Washington went through a work-release
program in 1990, and fewer than 5 percent
of these prisoners committed new crimes
while in the program. Ninety-nine percent of
these crimes were less serious property
offenses. Fifty-six percent of all program
enrollees were judged successful in work
release. Results from a follow-up study
tracking recidivism among former work-release participants were also positive, but to
a lesser degree: Researchers found that
within one year 22 percent of work-release
participants had been rearrested, compared
with 30 percent of ex-prisoners who had not
participated in the program.87

19

The First Month Out: Post-Incarceration Experiences in New York City88

In 1999, the Vera Institute of Justice followed a group of 49 adults released from New York state
prisons and city jails for 30 days, interviewing them on seven separate occasions to learn about the
major challenges facing returning prisoners during this period. The study sought to gain insight into
returning prisoners’ expectations, the release experience, reunions with family and friends, attempts to find work, and parole supervision experiences. This study indicates that the initial period
following release from prison is critical. Although the small sample size limits the broader applicability of the findings, the patterns found can help enrich our understanding of the experience and
challenges of reentry and reintegration from the perspective of the returning prisoner.
This study documented a few key hurdles to successful reintegration—namely, finding a job,
finding housing, and getting access to needed health care services. Most returning prisoners who
found a job within the first month following their release were either re-hired by former employers
or had help from family or friends. Relatively few found new jobs on their own, often because they
lacked the skills to conduct an effective job search or could not find employers who would hire exoffenders. Few parolees reported receiving help from their parole officers. In fact, strong family
involvement or support was an important indicator of successful reintegration across the board.
Returning prisoners who indicated that their families or friends were supportive of their efforts to
rebuild their lives had lower levels of drug use, greater likelihood of finding a job, and less continued criminal activity. Most people lived with their families following their release, indicating some
level of support. Those who went to homeless shelters were seven times as likely
to abscond from parole.
Vera also found that the moment of release is an important opportunity for starting out on the
right path. The majority of people interviewed at the time of their release returned to their communities alone. Only a small number of returning prisoners were met by family members, friends, or
social service representatives. Further, some prisoners were released without basic identification,
hindering their efforts to apply for public assistance or drug treatment. Others experienced delays
in getting drug treatment because they did not have Medicaid or could not obtain a referral to a
treatment program. In fact, lack of Medicaid—a process that could begin before release—was the
biggest obstacle to accessing treatment following release. None of the individuals who relapsed
attended treatment regularly.

POST-RELEASE SUPERVISION
Although fewer release decisions are being made by parole boards,
the great majority of returning prisoners are subject to some period
of post-prison supervision in the community. Of the more than halfmillion state prisoners released last year, more than three-fourths
were released to some kind of post-prison supervision, most frequently “parole.” Growing incarceration and release rates over the
last two decades have resulted in a growing parolee population, and
resources have not kept pace with those increases. Caseloads are
higher, per capita spending is lower, and services have diminished.
We know little about parole effectiveness, but what we do know
suggests that surveillance alone does not work. Supervision strategies that include some level of treatment or a rehabilitation component in combination with surveillance techniques have been shown
to reduce recidivism.

The majority of prisoners—78 percent—are released from prison onto some
type of conditional supervision status.89 Individuals released to parole supervi20

From Prison to Home

Reinventing Probation:
Lessons for Parole?

sion serve an average of just under two years in their states.90 There are 713,000
individuals now on parole (or another form of conditional release),91 up from
220,000 in 1980.92 The increase in the prison population has had the predictable
impact of increasing the parole population, without proportionate increases in
resources. This translates into bigger caseloads for parole officers. In the 1970s,
the average parole officer supervised a caseload of 45 parolees. Today, most
officers are responsible for about 70 parolees—about twice as high as is considered ideal.93 At the same time, per capita spending per parolee has decreased
nationally—from more than $11,000 per year in 1985 to about $9,500 in 1998.94
These limited resources often translate into only nominal supervision. More
than 80 percent of parolees are supervised on “regular” caseloads—each meeting with a parole officer for about 15 minutes, once or twice a month.95 An
additional 8 percent of parolees (or more than 56,000 individuals in 1998) are
classified on “abscond” status at any given time, meaning they cannot be found
and have no contact with their parole officer.96 In California, 18 to 20 percent
of parolees are on abscond status.97 Because supervisory agencies have lost
touch with this group of released prisoners, we have little data about their behavior.
Conditions of parole vary widely by jurisdiction, but they typically include abstinence from drugs, maintaining employment, observing curfews, and
staying away from certain high-risk places and persons. Enforcement of those
conditions varies as well, but it may include home visits, drug testing, and
electronic monitoring. A few states are experimenting with Global Positioning
System satellites, where individuals’ movements are tracked 24 hours a day.
New surveillance technologies such as these have made supervision—at least
the monitoring aspect—more efficient, but they raise important civil liberties
issues as well.
Unfortunately, there is little research that examines the relationship between parole supervision and deterrence or rehabilitation. We do know that supervision strategies that simply increase the level of supervision, such as intensive community supervision, increased drug testing, and home confinement, have
not been found to reduce reoffending. Rather, enhanced supervision involves
increased surveillance that increases the likelihood of detecting technical violations.98 If noncompliance with technical conditions of release signaled patterns
of criminal behavior among individuals, then returning them to incarceration
might prevent future crime. However, research on the issue has shown no support for the argument that violating parolees on technical conditions suppresses
new criminal arrests.99 Accordingly, there is no solid evidence to support the
conclusion that solely increasing parole supervision will result in fewer crimes.
At the same time, supervision strategies that include some level of rehabilitation or treatment in combination with surveillance techniques have been
shown to reduce recidivism. According to the research literature, a treatment
component is important to changing behavior and reducing crime. 100
On the whole, services for this population have diminished. More resources
have gone into building new prison beds, making fewer funds available for
investing in services. As discussed in the “communities” section at the end of
Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

One approach is currently being explored
under the heading “reinventing probation.”
Spearheaded by the Reinventing Probation
Council—a group of experienced and innovative probation practitioners (in collaboration with the Manhattan Institute)—this
approach builds on the community policing
model and involves place-based supervision strategies and partnerships among law
enforcement agencies, community residents and organizations, and other public
and private organizations. Policies under
this rubric include proactive, problem-solving practices intended to prevent, control,
and reduce crime and to repair harm to the
victim and the community. Though the
focus of the model is probation, the strategies are applicable to parole and reentry.
In the Council’s most recent monograph,
Transforming Probation Through Leadership: The “Broken Windows” Model,
the authors describe a new strategy that
involves
! placing public safety first;
! supervising individuals in the
neighborhood;
! allocating resources where they are
needed most;
! enforcing probation conditions and
responding quickly to violations to
deter behavior;
! developing partners in the community;
! establishing performance-based
initiatives; and
! cultivating strong leadership.101
The question for policymakers is how to
use probation and parole conditions, monitoring strategies, and graduated sanctions
to help prisoners make a successful transition into the community and to deter criminal activity. To what extent could the
combination of place-based strategies, individualized case plans based on empirically
derived risk/needs instruments, and graduated responses to failure improve supervision outcomes?

21

this report, there is a large gap between the needs and availability of services
around issues such as substance abuse, mental health, and housing.
Given the high rates of reoffending within this population, there seems to
be an important opportunity to supervise parolees—particularly the high-risk
individuals—by combining treatment and surveillance to prevent future crimes.

PAROLE VIOLATIONS
More parolees are returning to prison than ever before, both for
technical violations and for committing new offenses. In 1980, parole
violators constituted 18 percent of prison admissions. Parole violators now account for one-third of prison admissions nationally. Of the
parole violators returned to prison, nearly one-third were returned for
a new conviction and two-thirds for a technical violation. There is
little research on the nature of technical violations or the parole
revocation process itself, nor do we know the impact of the increasing numbers of parole revocations and reincarceration on public
safety.
Between 1990 and 1998, there has

If parolees fail to meet their conditions of supervision or are convicted for
a new crime, their parole can be revoked and they can be returned to prison.
That is happening more frequently. In 1984, 70 percent of parolees successfully completed their parole term. By 1998, that number had dropped to 45
percent. Put another way, in 1998 nearly half of all parolees (42 percent) were
returned to prison, translating to some 206,000 parole violators who were returned that year.102 Parole violators as a share of prison admissions have doubled
since the 1980s. In 1980, parole violators constituted 18 percent of prison admissions; they now represent a full one-third of all prison admissions.103
Unfortunately, the administrative recording of parole violations does not
tell us much about the underlying behavior of the parolee. Of the parole violators returned to prison, nearly one-third were returned for a new conviction and
two-thirds for a technical violation.104 However, although many violations are
formally recorded as “technical,” they may not be crime-free in nature. Often
technical violators are actually arrested (but not tried for) a new crime while
under parole supervision. For example, 43 percent of the “technical” violators
in 1991 reported having been arrested for a new crime at least once while on
parole.105 For policy and practice, it is important that we better understand the
actual reasons behind parole violations and revocations.
It is unclear why parole failures are higher now than in the past. It may be
a function of better monitoring techniques and technologies that make it easier
to detect violations such as drug use and missed curfews. It is also possible that
technical violations are being used as a tool for managing increasingly large
caseloads. Parole revocation may be an expression of tough-on-crime sentiment in some jurisdictions, or perhaps more individuals are actually committing crimes while on parole. This failure rate may also reflect cutbacks in preparation for reentry, such as in-prison and community-based treatment, job train-

been a 54 percent increase in the number
of individuals returned to prison for a
parole violation. Drug offenders account
for more than half of this increase.106

Policy-Driven Responses to
Parole Violations

Beginning in 1998, the National Institute of
Corrections provided funding to 19 paroling
authorities and probation agencies to test
policy-driven responses to technical parole
violations. A report by the Center for Effective Public Policy documents significant
variation in parole practices, both across
these states and across localities within
states. In many jurisdictions, probation and
parole officers have enormous discretion
and relatively little guidance from formal
policy.107
Through this effort, state parole administrators began to review the decisions (both
formal and informal) that led to parole
violations. Many jurisdictions have since
formulated new responses to technical
violations, ranging from violation guidelines
designed to keep individuals on parole in
lieu of incarceration to new alternatives to
incarceration.108

22

From Prison to Home

ing, and education. Importantly, it is not clear whether supervision agencies are
efficiently identifying the highest-risk parolees and preventing new crimes or
inefficiently returning individuals to the correctional system—at high cost to
state taxpayers without clear crime control benefits.
As an alternative to reincarceration, some states—still a minority—use
intermediate sanctions for violations, such as residential treatment, community
service, electronic monitoring, curfew, increased supervision level, loss of travel
privileges, counseling, increased drug/alcohol testing, or reprimand by officer
or supervisor. Structured sanctions provide a graduated response, with
reincarceration as the most severe sanction. The hypothesis here is that immediate, intermediate sanctions could increase the certainty of punishment, change
offender behavior, and reduce returns to prison, while reserving prison beds for
violent individuals. Limited evidence suggests that a system of graduated sanctions may be more effective in reducing recidivism than simply returning parole violators to prison. Certainty of sanctions appears to be highly correlated
with positive changes in individual behavior. This certainty is based on consistent application of a sanctioning schedule and intense monitoring of behaviors
where individuals are not able to have infractions go undetected, thereby reinforcing the unwanted behavior.
Despite the significant fiscal and public safety implications, parole has
received remarkably little attention from policymakers, practitioners, or researchers. Research could shed light on the costs associated with the growing
number of parole violators, the nature of technical violations, the parole revocation process, and the impact of parole policies on preventing new crimes.
Imposing rationality on a process that is little understood even by those in the
criminal justice system can result in tremendous benefits. In this view, the prison
funding now spent on the increasing admissions of technical violators could be
made available for strengthening or creating community corrections systems
or funds for other areas of government.

Fiscal Implications of
Technical Violators

Figure 9. Parole Violators as a Percentage of All Prison Admissions, by State, 1998

Just as there is wide variation

In California, where approximately 120,000
people are on parole, some 70,000 violate
their conditions of parole each year. According to analysis by Michael Jacobson,
professor at John Jay College of Criminal
Justice and an Open Society Institute
Fellow, the cost to California is almost
$900 million annually, given that the average length of stay is about five months per
violator. Jacobson estimates that if California “only” technically violated 35,000 of its
parolees, it would save almost $500 million
annually in corrections expenditures. If half
of that money were reinvested into community corrections programs to create alternative programming for technical violators
(day centers, intensive supervision with
electronic bracelets, etc.), then parole officers would have far more options than short
stays in prison.
Many states are experiencing similar
impacts of technical parole and probation
violators on correctional systems and
budgets. Even in a small state like Iowa,
technical violations are one of the primary
drivers of its correctional system population.
With almost 1,200 technical probation violators spending an average of between oneand-a-half and two years in prison, almost
25 percent of Iowa’s prison population is
comprised of technical violators.

across the states in supervision practices,
we see enormous variation in parole revocation rates. Figure 9 illustrates these differences through the percentage of prison
admissions who are parole violators. In
1997, for example, 65 percent of the individuals admitted to California’s prisons were
parole violators, while in Florida, parole violators accounted for just 12 percent of new
admissions. In Pennsylvania, parole violations account for 33 percent—just under the
national average.109

7 – 18%
19 – 31%
32 – 44%
1234
45+ %
1234
1234 No Data

Source: The Urban Institute, 2001. Based on Bureau of Justice Statistics National Prisoner Statistics.

Chapter 2. The Reentry Process

23

24

From Prison to Home

CHAPTER

3

Challenges for Prisoner Reentry

Given the high prevalence of substance abuse, mental illness, infectious disease, unemployment, and even homelessness among returning prisoners, it is
important to explore the role of these factors in successful reentry and reintegration. To the extent that these issues present serious barriers to transitioning
prisoners, they also present serious risks to the communities to which large
numbers of prisoners return. It is important to note how little we know about
how these problems overlap. The difficulties faced in dual and triple diagnosis
(for substance abuse, mental illness, and HIV infection, for example) are particularly acute, and the associated service needs are even more complex and
challenging. This section examines the role of substance abuse, health, employment, and housing in post-prison adjustment and points to programmatic
and policy strategies that may reduce the likelihood of future offending.

SUBSTANCE ABUSE
Substance abuse among prisoners presents significant challenges to
the reentry process. Studies have found that while most prisoners
have a history of drug or alcohol abuse, only a small share receive
treatment while incarcerated and upon release. Importantly,
treatment has been shown to reduce drug use and criminal activity,
particularly when in-prison treatment is combined with treatment
in the community. In this section, we discuss the prevalence of
substance abuse among returning prisoners, the effectiveness
of treatment, and the implications of both on reentry.

Eighty percent of the state prison population report a history of drug and/
or alcohol use,110 including 74 percent of those expected to be released within
the next 12 months.111 In fact, more than half of state prisoners report that they
were using drugs or alcohol when they committed the offense that led to their
incarceration.112
The movement from confinement in prison to liberty on the street poses
unique hazards for prisoners with a history of substance abuse. Rates of relapse
Chapter 3. Challenges for Prisoner Reentry

25

Drug Treatment in Action: The
Key-Crest Program in Delaware122

following release from prison are strikingly high in the absence of treatment.
For example, an estimated two-thirds of untreated heroin abusers resume their
heroin/cocaine use and patterns of criminal behavior within three months of
their release.113 The extent to which substance abuse problems are treated prior
to and following release from prison has significant implications on the outcomes of returning prisoners.
Several studies have found that drug treatment can be a beneficial and costeffective way to reduce both substance abuse and criminal activity.114 Two common treatment modalities typically used with correctional populations and found
to have positive effects are cognitive behavioral interventions and in-prison therapeutic communities. In the last 15 years, there has been general agreement among
researchers that cognitive-behavioral programs can reduce recidivism among
the general offender population. These programs, based on social learning theory,
assume that criminal behavior is learned and therefore they focus on improving
interpersonal and coping skills.115 Although research has found that such programs can reduce criminal recidivism, they also have been found to be less effective among individuals below the age of 25 and among those whose offenses
involved property and nonviolent robbery.116 In fact, cognitive, skill-building
programs were most effective with individuals on probation.
Another common approach found to have positive effects on relapse and
recidivism is in-prison residential treatment. Therapeutic communities or residential treatment typically lasts 6 to 12 months and often involves separating
the participants from the general prison population. Several studies have found
that these programs can reduce drug use following release from prison. For
instance, inmates who participated in residential treatment programs during
incarceration had criminal recidivism rates between 9 and 18 percent lower
and drug relapse rates between 15 and 35 percent lower than those who received no treatment in prison.117 An ongoing evaluation of a residential drug
treatment program within the Federal Bureau of Prisons has found reduced
recidivism and relapse rates among treated inmates six months following release. Specifically, inmates who completed the residential treatment program
were 73 percent less likely to be rearrested than untreated inmates. Likewise,
treated inmates were also 44 percent less likely than untreated offenders to use
drugs within the first six months following release.118
In-prison drug treatment has also been associated with significantly reduced use of injection drugs, reduced income from crime, fewer prison returns,
and fewer hospital stays for drug and alcohol problems.119 However, the most
successful outcomes were found among those who participated in both in-prison
treatment and community treatment during the period of post-release supervision.120 There are also indications that the longer the treatment intervention—
at least 90 days—the more successful it will be in reducing relapse.121 (Research also shows that the presence of criminal justice supervision increases
the likelihood that an individual will stay in treatment beyond the 90-day mark.)
Although more than three-quarters of state inmates indicate a history of
drug and/or alcohol use, in-prison treatment is not readily available to most of
those who need it. In fact, only 10 percent of state inmates in 1997 reported

Most prisoners released from the Delaware
correctional system participate in a threepart, in-prison treatment and work-release
program during the last six months of their
sentence. The first phase involves participation in an in-prison therapeutic community
to address substance abuse issues. During
the second component, inmates are released to a community work-release center
where they are expected to hold a job while
they continue to live at the facility and participate in drug treatment. This aftercare
component, which lasts up to six months,
requires complete abstinence from drugs
and alcohol, attendance at group sessions,
individual counseling, and drug testing.
Graduates of the program are also required
to return once a month to serve as role
models for current participants. In the final
phase of the program, individuals are
released to the community under some
form of continued supervision.
Evaluation results indicate that residential
treatment, coupled with community aftercare, can be very effective in reducing drug
relapse and criminal recidivism. (See table
3.) Of those who participated in both the
in-prison and work-release treatment
programs, 77 percent were arrest-free 18
months following the completion of the
program, compared with 46 percent of the
control group. Similar results were found for
drug relapse rates: Nearly half of those who
completed both the in-prison and workrelease treatment components were drugfree at 18 months, compared with 22
percent of those who completed only the
in-prison treatment component, one-third
of those who completed only the workrelease treatment, and 16 percent of the
control group.
Table 3. Results from Key-Crest
Program
Treatment
group

No arrest
at 18
months

Drug free
at 18
months

In-prison TC
treatment

43%

22%

Work-release
TC treatment

57%

31%

Both

77%

47%

Control
group

46%

16%

26

From Prison to Home

Treatment is Cost-Effective

receiving formal substance abuse treatment, down from 25 percent in 1991.123
Of the soon-to-be-released prisoners (in 1997) who were using drugs in the
month before their incarceration, only 18 percent had received treatment since
they were admitted to prison.124
Alcohol abuse is also a significant and under-addressed problem for prisoners. Among violent offenders in state prison, some 38 percent had been drinking at the time of their offense, yet only 18 percent of this group received inprison treatment.125 Of those inmates who were alcohol-dependent at the time
of their incarceration, slightly more than one-fifth received in-prison treatment.126
The positive effects of in-prison treatment have been found to be most
effective when combined with community-based aftercare. One study of inprison treatment combined with aftercare found a 28 percent reduction in criminal recidivism and a 62 percent reduction in drug use.127 In a world of limited
resources, attention should be paid to when treatment is made available during
the period of incarceration. Participation in a treatment program may be most
effective for prisoners who are nearing the end of their term and preparing to be
released back into society. It also suggests that links to and participation in
community-based care following in-prison treatment are warranted.
Research on substance abuse has also found that “addiction is a brain
disease.”128 The experience of a prisoner returning to his old neighborhood and
friends places him at high risk for relapse, in part because the familiar places
and people may act as a trigger to his brain and heighten cravings. Helping to
smooth this transition—through connections to community-based treatment,
perhaps immediately upon release––could reduce the likelihood of recidivism
and the resumption of drug use.

A 1997 RAND study looked at the relative
benefits of spending an additional $1 million
to cut drug consumption and related drug
crime via different policy interventions.
Researchers concluded that spending funds
to reduce drug consumption through treatment rather than incarceration would reduce
serious crimes 15 times more effectively.132
Another study in California reported savings
from treatment of $1.5 billion over 18
months, with the largest savings coming
from reductions in crime.133 The study estimated that for every $1 spent on treatment,
approximately $7 could be gained in future
savings.

PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH
The prevalence of major mental disorders and chronic and infectious
disease is many times greater among the prison population than
among the general population.129 While most individuals receive
needed health care services in prison, access to mental health
services is more limited, and follow-up to community-based care is
lacking. There is an opportunity to maximize the investment in prison
health care by linking those services to treatment in the community.
Such links would also reduce public health and public safety risks.

Social and policy shifts have resulted in an inmate population with relatively high rates of serious physical and mental health problems. The 1980s
and 1990s were marked by increased drug use, tougher sentencing policies,
and enhanced enforcement, resulting in a larger number of incarcerated drug
offenders. One quarter of all state and federal inmates reportedly have histories
of injection drug use and a higher risk of infectious disease.130 Also, the passage of mandatory minimum and truth-in-sentencing reforms has resulted in an
older inmate population.131 In inmate surveys, older prisoners were more likely
to report medical problems than younger inmates. Finally, following the widespread deinstitutionalization of mentally ill persons from state psychiatric hosChapter 3. Challenges for Prisoner Reentry

27

pitals in the 1960s and 1970s, more of these individuals are now involved in
the criminal justice system.135 In fact, 16 percent of state inmates report a mental condition or an overnight stay in a psychiatric hospital.136
A large number of people carrying communicable diseases pass through
correctional facilities each year. As shown in table 4, released prisoners account for a significant share of the total population who are infected with HIV
or AIDS, hepatitis B and C, and tuberculosis. During 1997, between 20 and 26
percent of the nation’s individuals living with HIV or AIDS, 29 to 32 percent
of the people with hepatitis C, and 38 percent of those with tuberculosis were
released from a correctional facility (prison or jail).

Table 4. Percentage of Total Burden of Infectious Disease Among People Passing
Through Correctional Facilities, 1997

Condition

Est. number of
releasees with
condition, 1997

Total number in
U.S. population
with condition

Releasees with condition
as percentage of total
population with condition

AIDS

39,000

247,000

16%

HIV Infection

112,000–158,000

503,000

22–31%

Total HIV/AIDS

151,000–197,000

750,000

20–26%

Hepatitis B
Infection

155,000

1–1.25 million

12–16%

Hepatitis C
Infection

1.3–1.4 million

4.5 million

29–32%

Tuberculosis
Disease

12,000

32,000

38%

Source: T.M. Hammett, “Health-Related Issues in Prisoner Reentry to the Community.” Paper presented at the Reentry Roundtable,
Washington, D.C., Oct. 12–13, 2000.

Considering only the prison population, we see substantially higher rates
of serious infectious disease than in the general population. For instance, the
overall rate of confirmed AIDS cases among inmates was five times the rate
found among the general population (0.55 percent versus 0.10 percent, respectively).137 In 1997, 2.2 percent of state prisoners tested HIV positive, a rate five
to seven times greater than that in the general population. And 18 percent of the
inmate population were infected with hepatitis C, nine to ten times the rate of
the general population.138
These high infection rates present an enormous public health opportunity.
Treatment regimens that begin in prison and continue upon release could have
significant public health benefits and could reduce future costs of more expensive interventions and treatment of additional individuals.139 Interestingly, a
period of incarceration often has positive consequences for the physical health
status of a prisoner—in part because adequate health care is constitutionally
required, but also because the food and the living environment are more condu-

State correctional agencies spend

an average of 10 percent of their budgets
on inmate health services, according to
survey results reported in the Correctional
Compendium.134

28

From Prison to Home

cive to better health outcomes than many situations in the community.140 Inmates typically have limited access to health care services before they arrive at
a correctional facility. Once incarcerated, they have greater access to medical
care than persons with similar sociodemographic characteristics.141
A survey of state inmates found that 80 percent reported receiving a medical exam since they were admitted to prison. More than half (nearly 60 percent) reported being checked to see if they were sick, injured, or intoxicated at
the time of admission, and most (82 percent) were asked about their medical
histories. Of those who reported a medical problem since admission, 91 percent reported visiting a health care professional about it.142
While access to in-prison health care services may be readily available,
continued adherence to treatment regimens following release is a critical public health issue, especially for diseases such as HIV and tuberculosis. Although
most state and federal prison systems provide some discharge planning for
HIV-infected inmates, those services vary widely in quality.143 For example,
three-quarters of prison systems make referrals for HIV treatment/medications,
Medicaid benefits, or sexually transmitted disease treatment. However, fewer
than one-third of the correctional facilities report actually making appointments
for releasees with specific treatment providers.144 Even providing appointments,
while an important first step, does not ensure that the person receives services.
Another important barrier is the time it takes for many returning inmates to
finalize their enrollment in various benefit programs.145
The extent of mental health disorders is also relatively high. While estimating the prevalence of mental illness among the inmate population is difficult, we know that serious mental health disorders such as schizophrenia/psy
hosis, major depression, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder
are more common among prisoners than the general population.146 Rates of
mental illness among incarcerated individuals are at least twice (some estimates
range as high as four times) as high as the rates in the overall U.S. population.147
It is estimated that between 8 and 16 percent of the prison population have at
least one serious mental disorder and are in need of psychiatric services.148
More than half (60 percent) of mentally ill state inmates have reportedly
received some form of mental health treatment during their period of incarceration.149 Of these, half said they had taken prescription medication and 44
percent had received counseling services. Ensuring the successful reintegration of ex-prisoners with mental disorders depends, at least in part, on the availability of treatment in the community. Unfortunately, several studies have concluded that parole agencies are unable to effectively identify and address the
needs of mentally ill parolees. A national survey of parole administrators indicated that fewer than a quarter provide special programs for parolees with mental
illness.150
A closer look at this population of inmates reveals that they are at high
risk on several fronts. A significant number have dual diagnoses of mental
health and substance abuse issues.151 More than one-third of mentally ill state
inmates indicated a history of alcohol dependence, and nearly six in ten indicated that they were under the influence of alcohol or drugs while committing
Chapter 3. Challenges for Prisoner Reentry

Studies of adherence to tuberculosis
treatment after release have found adher-

ence to be low. However, after a New York
City health department program offered
incentives for follow-up appointments, appearances at those appointments increased
from less than 20 percent to 92 percent. 152

29

their current offense. This combination is a strong predictor of recidivism.153
Mentally ill inmates also reported longer criminal histories than other inmates.154
More than half (52 percent) reported three or more prior offenses. Likewise,
among repeat offenders, mentally ill inmates were more likely to have a current
or past sentence for a violent offense. Finally, mentally ill prisoners were more
likely to have been homeless before incarceration and on average are expected
to serve 15 months longer in prison than other inmates.155
In sum, in-prison health systems have become significant providers of
physical and mental health services to a population of poor and unhealthy persons. In-prison treatment is important, but as was noted with regard to substance abuse services, the critical point for reentry management is to link prisonbased services with community-based services.

Models for Providing Mental Health Services to Parolees 156

Specialized services for parolees with mental illness may help reduce recidivism and ensure a more
successful reintegration. A number of jurisdictions have implemented specialized units or programs
that are staffed by officers with educational backgrounds and experience working with mentally ill
populations. Specialization is needed to identify and address the multiple and complex issues facing mentally ill returning prisoners, who often are struggling with substance abuse, developmental
disabilities, poor physical health, homelessness, and little social support.
For example, the California Department of Corrections provides specialized services for mentally
ill parolees through five Parolee Outpatient Clinics in San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento, and Fresno. The clinics serve only mentally ill parolees and are staffed by licensed psychiatrists and psychologists. While these clinics served nearly 9,000 mentally ill parolees in 1998,
estimates suggest that half of those in need of service live outside the catchment area and are not
receiving services.
California also operates a community-based Conditional Release Program for seriously mentally
ill inmates who are transferred from prisons, to state hospitals, and then to outpatient psychiatric
programs as a condition of parole. Eligible participants must have been in mental health treatment
in prison for 90 days or more during the past year and assessed as substantial public safety risks.
Following completion of treatment services in a hospital facility, parolees are released to community
supervision where they continue to receive mental health care. Studies show that treatment participants are four times less likely to reoffend than similar parolees who do not go through the program—a success rate comparable to that of parolees in similar programs in New York and Oregon.
Another example is the Hampden County, Mass., Public Health Model for Corrections. Working
with a jail population, the program provides intensive screening to inmates on arrival, education on
health issues throughout their incarceration, and access to regular long-term health care during their
jail stay and after release. The program, which began in 1992 with an HIV-awareness course, now
provides comprehensive medical services to inmates through contractual agreements with established nonprofit community health centers. Each inmate is assigned to a physician and caseworker,
and these assignments provide continuous long-term health care to an inmate during his or her stay
and after release. The effects of the program are impressive: 100 percent of Hampden County jail
inmates are provided with a complete physical during their stay in jail, and 90 percent of the inmates
keep medical appointments after they have been released back into the community. The Hampden
County recidivism rate stands at 9 percent, far lower than recidivism rates for comparable correctional facilities.157

30

From Prison to Home

EMPLOYABILITY AND WORKFORCE PARTICIPATION
There is a complex relationship between crime and employment.
Having a legitimate job lessens the chances of reoffending following
release from prison. Also, the higher the wages, the less likely it is
that returning prisoners will return to crime.158 However, studies also
show that released prisoners confront a diminished prospect for
stable employment and decent wages throughout their lifetimes.
Job training and placement programs show promise in connecting
ex-prisoners to work, thereby reducing their likelihood of further
offending. Yet, fewer inmates are receiving in-prison vocational
training than in the past and fewer still have access to transitional
programs that help connect them to jobs in the community.

The ability to find a stable and adequate source of income upon release
from prison is an important factor in an individual’s transition from prison
back to the community. Studies have shown that having a job with decent wages
is associated with lower rates of reoffending. Put another way, reductions in
wages are likely to lead to increases in illegal earnings and criminal activity.
According to one estimate, a 10 percent decrease in an individual’s wages is
associated with 10 to 20 percent increase in his or her criminal activity and the
likelihood of incarceration.159
Many offenders were connected to the world of legitimate work prior to
incarceration and presumably want to find legal and stable employment following their release. Three-quarters of state inmates reportedly held a job just
before their incarceration and, of those, just over half were employed full time.160
Therefore, they must have had some skills and connections to mainstream work.
It is no surprise, however, that released prisoners confront a diminished prospect for stable employment and decent wages throughout their lifetimes.
There are several reasons why incarceration reduces the employability
and subsequent earning potential of released inmates. First, the stigma attached
to incarceration makes it difficult for ex-prisoners to be hired. Employers are
reluctant to hire individuals with a criminal record, because it signals that they
may not be trustworthy.161 A survey of employers in five major cities across the
country revealed that two-thirds of all employers indicated they would not knowingly hire an ex-offender and at least one-third checked the criminal histories
of their most recently hired employees.162
Returning inmates are also banned from working in certain fields. At least
six states (Alabama, Delaware, Iowa, Mississippi, Rhode Island, and South
Carolina) permanently bar ex-offenders from public employment.163 Most states
also impose restrictions on hiring ex-offenders for particular professions including law, real estate, medicine, nursing, physical therapy, and education.164
Additionally, time out of the labor market interrupts individuals’ job experience and prevents them from building important employment skills. During the prison experience, they also become exposed to a prison culture that
frequently serves to strengthen links to gangs and the criminal world in general.165 Advancing in the legitimate labor market is a product of learning through
new experiences and opportunities. The same is true for involvement in crimiChapter 3. Challenges for Prisoner Reentry

31

nal activity for profit. Several studies looking at the impact of incarceration on
future employment have concluded that as time spent in prison increases (net
of other background factors) the likelihood of participating in the legal economy
decreases.166
For all of these reasons, ex-prisoners have difficulty securing employment. While there are no national statistics about unemployment and underemployment among parolees, data from California are suggestive. In the early
1990s, only 21 percent of the parolee population in that state had full-time
jobs.167 When returning prisoners do secure jobs, they tend to earn less than
individuals with similar background characteristics who have not been incarcerated. One researcher estimates the “wage penalty” of incarceration at about
10 to 20 percent.168 Moreover, on average ex-inmates experience no real wage
increases through their twenties and thirties, in sharp contrast to never-incarcerated young men whose wages grow rapidly through this period.169
The time of incarceration could be viewed as an opportunity to build skills
and prepare for placement at a future job. The evaluation literature provides
mixed support on the effectiveness of job training programs for offenders. Some
studies have concluded that it is difficult to improve an individual’s employment prospects and earnings, particularly if they have become “embedded in
criminal activity.”170
However, a more recent review of in-prison vocation and work programs
provides a more optimistic outlook. There is some evidence that involvement
in job training and placement programs can lead to employment and lower
recidivism. On average, participants in vocational programs were more likely
to be employed following release and to have a recidivism rate 20 percent
lower than nonparticipants.171 Although the current body of research does not
provide enough evidence to support a definitive assertion that these programs
“work”—because evaluations with positive findings have been methodologically weak—it does suggest that vocational programs may reduce recidivism
for some motivated individuals.172
The most effective programs are those aimed at released prisoners in their
mid-twenties or older. Specifically, a review of several studies indicates that
work programs had a significant impact on the employment outcomes and recidivism rates of males who were over the age of 26.173 These individuals may
be more motivated than younger offenders to change their lifestyle and connections to crime. The fact that 80 percent of the prison population are 25 or older
argues for more vocational training for a larger share of prisoners.
Studies also suggest that it is not enough to attempt to improve an
individual’s human capital. It is also important to address changes in motivation and lifestyle away from criminal activity to positive engagement in the
community. This takes time, it is more complicated than teaching marketable
skills, and it may mean reestablishing connections with organizations in the
community.
One reason cited for why job training has not been more effective in reducing recidivism is the general lack of job placement assistance and other
follow-up after release from prison. Programs such as the Safer Foundation,

In 1997, fewer than one-third of
soon-to-be-released state prisoners

reported participating in vocational
programs, down slightly from 1991.174
Only 7 percent of the prison population
participated in prison industries.175

32

From Prison to Home

the Center for Employment Opportunities, and Re-Integration of Offenders
(Project RIO) work to not only improve individuals’ job skills but also to improve job readiness, provide case management for other services, place former
prisoners in jobs, and continue to work with them for a follow-up period. This
follow-up period may be particularly important for employers, who indicate a
willingness to hire ex-prisoners if a third-party intermediary or case manager is
available to work with the new hire to help avert problems.176 Programs such
as these, working within departments of correction or operating as communitybased organizations, offer promise in connecting ex-prisoners to full-time employment, and lowering levels of criminal activity and substance abuse.

Job Placement Programs for Returning Prisoners
Opportunity to Succeed (OPTS) is a multi-site program designed to provide comprehensive
aftercare services to felony offenders (parolees and probationers) who have alcohol and drug offense histories. In addition to services that deal with substance abuse, housing, family strengthening, health, and mental health issues, services are available to assist clients in finding and maintaining employment. OPTS is successful in helping clients attain full-time employment. An Urban Institute evaluation showed that OPTS clients demonstrated significantly longer periods of full-time employment than did control groups. OPTS clients who did find full-time employment showed lower
rates of recidivism than those who did not.182

The Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) is a New York City nonprofit organization
that helps ex-offenders prepare for, locate, and retain jobs. The program offers day-labor assignments to provide structure in participants’ lives and to develop good work habits. Participants are
paid at the end of each day to provide them with immediate spending money, reinforce their dependability, and improve their self-esteem. CEO offers ongoing services to placed individuals for at
least six months after placement. About 70 percent of participants find full-time employment within
two to three months, and most jobs pay more than minimum wage and provide fringe benefits.
Approximately three-fourths of participants are still employed at the same job after one month
and about half are still at the same job after six months.183
Re-Integration of Offenders (Project RIO) in Texas provides job preparation services to inmates while they are still incarcerated in state prisons, giving them a head start on post-release job
hunting. The program offers a weeklong job search workshop, one-on-one assistance with job
placement, a resource room, and post-placement follow-up. Project RIO has more than 100 staff
and 62 offices, and it serves some 16,000 individuals each year. The program has a pool of 12,000
employers who have hired parolees referred by Project RIO. In 1992, an independent evaluation
found that 69 percent of RIO participants found jobs, compared with 36 percent of non-RIO parolees. Only 23 percent of high-risk RIO participants returned to prison, compared with 38 percent of
comparable control groups.184

Chicago’s Safer Foundation is a community-based provider of employment services for
ex-offenders. Safer uses employment specialists to help place released prisoners in jobs and a
small-group, peer-based approach in its basic educational skills program. These two programs help
prepare individuals for life after incarceration. Special case managers are assigned to follow ex-offenders for one year after they have secured employment. In 2000, Safer placed 1,015 clients in
jobs. Of these, nearly 60 percent were still employed after 30 days. Further, in a 1996 survey conducted by Safer, the majority of employers noted little or no difference between ex-prisoner job candidates referred by Safer and nonoffenders referred through more traditional channels. Also, in
2000, of the 168 16- to 21-year-old individuals Safer enrolled in the basic education course, nearly
all (91 percent) completed the course and half (51 percent) received their general education degree
(GED). A significant number of those who complete the course enter school, vocational training, or
employment.185
Pioneer Human Services, based in Seattle, provides (among many other non-corrections-related services) housing, jobs, and social support for released prisoners, as well as sheltered workshops for hard-to-place offenders. What differentiates Pioneer Human Services from other work-release programs and social service agencies is that its funding comes almost entirely from the various businesses it operates.186

Chapter 3. Challenges for Prisoner Reentry

33

In-Prison Educational Programs

Beginning in the 1870s, American prisons began experimenting with programs aimed at improving
the basic literacy and communication skills of prisoners. By the 1930s, prison rehabilitation efforts
centered around educational programs, which had expanded greatly in size and scope. Today, most
American prison systems offer a wide range of educational programs, from vocational training to
postsecondary education courses. These diverse programs all aim to improve prisoners’ behavior
while in incarcerated, by facilitating the maturation and conscientiousness of the inmate, and to reduce recidivism, by improving employment prospects and by providing a broader frame of reference
within which to make important decisions.177
Despite their longevity and prominence within the correctional system, rigorous evaluative research on the effectiveness of prison educational programs has been lacking. However, the available research does indicate that certain carefully designed and administered prison education programs can improve inmate behavior and reduce recidivism. For example, a recent study sponsored
by the Virginia Department of Correctional Education tracked reincarceration rates among offenders
in Virginia over a fifteen-year period and found that recidivism rates were 59 percent lower for those
inmates who had participated in and completed prison educational programs versus those who had
not participated.178 Preliminary results from the largest and most comprehensive correctional education and recidivism study to date also show lower rates of recidivism among inmates who participated in these programs, although the findings are not as dramatic as the Virginia study. In this
study of over 3,000 inmates, rates of reincarceration for offenders who participated in education programs were 20 percent lower than inmates who did not.179 Moreover, certain studies that have attempted to measure the effect prison education programs have on post-release employment also
show positive results. A 1994 meta-analysis indicated that in three of the four studies under investigation prison education programs significantly increased chances of securing employment following
release from prison.180
Despite these promising findings, evidence suggests that funding for these programs has not kept
pace with the recent expansion of the prison population. During the “get tough on crime” environment that dominated the 1990s, many states cut existing prison educational programs, often to fund
new prisons. In California, for example, the number of prison teachers has dropped by 200 over the
last 15 years, as the prison population grew from 30,000 to 160,000.181 Also, in 1994 inmates were
declared ineligible for college Pell grants, leaving many prisoners unable to pursue college degrees
during their incarceration.

34

From Prison to Home

REENTRY AND HOUSING
An often overlooked challenge facing the returning prisoner is the
issue of housing. One of the first things a prisoner must do upon
release is find a place to stay. Housing presents problems, for
several reasons. First, returning prisoners rarely have the financial
resources or personal references necessary to compete for and
secure housing in the private housing market. In addition, federal
laws bar many ex-prisoners from public housing and federally
assisted housing programs. And, some number of prisoners are not
welcome back in their family home. For a combination of these and
other reasons, some returning prisoners end up homeless, with all
the attendant risks.

All returning prisoners must find a place to live when they leave prison. The
initial barriers to finding affordable and stable housing are similar to those for
finding employment. Most individuals leave prison without enough money for a
security deposit on an apartment. Landlords typically require potential tenants to
list employment and housing references and to disclose financial and criminal
history information. For these reasons, offenders are often excluded from the
private housing market. Importantly, public housing also may not be an option
for returning prisoners. Federal housing policies permit—and in some cases require—public housing authorities, Section 8 providers, and other federally assisted housing programs to deny housing to individuals who have engaged in
certain criminal activities.187 The guidelines for denying housing are fairly broad
and may encompass those who have, at any point in the past, engaged in drugrelated activity, violent criminal activity, or other criminal activity that would
negatively affect the health and safety of other residents. (Housing authorities
have the right to obtain criminal records on tenants and applicants.)
Individuals who have been evicted from public housing because of drugrelated criminal activity cannot reapply to live there for three years. However,
housing providers do have discretion to shorten the three-year restriction for individuals who can show that they are getting help for their drug problem through
participation in a treatment or rehabilitation program. Likewise, anyone who is
found to be abusing alcohol or illegal drugs is ineligible for public housing benefits, although here too providers can make exceptions for individuals who are
participating in treatment programs. Convicted sex offenders who are subject to
a lifetime registration requirement, on the other hand, are ineligible for all public,
Section 8, and other federally supported housing programs.
One option for ex-prisoners is to stay with family members following release. There is some evidence to suggest, however, that among the many who
do,, these arrangements are often short-lived solutions. One reason is that family members living in public housing may not welcome a returning prisoner
home when doing so may put their own housing situation at risk. These familial relationships may also be so severely strained and tenuous that staying with
family members or friends is not a viable option.
Given the restrictions of the private housing market, the policies of public
housing, and the host of other issues returning prisoners face, it is perhaps not
Chapter 3. Challenges for Prisoner Reentry

35

surprising that many of them end up living on the streets. One study from the
late 1980s estimated that as many as one quarter of all homeless individuals
had served time in prison.188 In California, the Department of Corrections reports that at any given time 10 percent of the state’s parolees are homeless.189
This rate is significantly higher in major urban areas such as San Francisco and
Los Angeles, where as many as 30 to 50 percent of parolees are estimated to be
homeless.190
Although homeless shelters may be a last resort for many former prisoners in need of housing, it is not always available. All federally funded shelters
require that individuals be homeless for at least 24 hours before they are eligible for a bed. Also, shelters with limited bed space may be reluctant to house
offenders. The period immediately following release, when a returning prisoner may be most tempted to fall back into old habits, is critical. Providing
access to affordable housing options that will aid the transition back to the
community may be an important factor in relapse prevention.

Loss of Civil Liberties

In addition to the substance abuse, health, housing, and employment issues facing returning prisoners, released inmates as a group experience a series of collateral consequences, most often as a
result of a felony conviction. For example, in many states, convicted felons are precluded from voting, holding political office, serving on jury duty, owning a firearm, or holding certain jobs. In addition, they may temporarily or permanently lose eligibility for certain public benefit programs.191
Voting Rights. Denial of the right to vote has significant implications for individual offenders
and, increasingly, for certain communities in the United States. Nearly all states restrict the voting
rights of convicted felons in some way.192 The laws of 46 states and the District of Columbia stipulate that convicted offenders cannot vote while in prison, and 32 states prohibit offenders on probation or parole from voting. In more than a dozen states, a convicted felon loses the right to vote for
life.193 According to one estimate, nearly 4 million Americans—one in fifty adults—are either currently or permanently prohibited from voting because of a felony conviction. Of these, 1.4 million are
African American, accounting for 13 percent of the adult black male population. In states that impose lifetime voting bans on convicted felons, the aggregate consequences in African-American
communities are profound. One in every four African-American men have lost the right to vote for
life in Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Mississippi, New Mexico, Virginia, and Wyoming.194 Viewed at the
community level, these restrictions have far-reaching consequences for democratic participation
and political influence.
Criminal Registration Requirements. Over the last 15 years the trend has been to extend
the period of punishment beyond an individual’s probation, prison, and parole sentence, particularly
for sex offenders. In 1986, only eight states required released offenders to register with a police department in their area. A series of high-profile, violent crimes committed by released offenders resulted in legislative initiatives requiring offenders to register with law enforcement agencies upon
their release. By 1998, convicted sex offenders in every state were subject to a registration requirement following release from prison. These registration requirements vary widely. While most states
mandate sex offender registration for those convicted after the effective date of the legislation, several states made the requirement retroactive. Eight states require registration of all eligible offenders
convicted before 1980. The durations of offender registration requirements range from 10 years to
life; 12 states mandate lifetime registration of everyone in the registry. As of 1998, there were nearly
280,000 sex offenders listed in state sex offender registries across the country.195

36

From Prison to Home

CHAPTER

Implications of Prisoner Reentry for
Families and Communities

4

One clear consequence of imprisonment is that relationships with families and
the broader community are strained. Most prisoners are parents—about half of
male inmates and two-thirds of female inmates leave at least one child behind
when they enter the prison gates. In 1999, more than 1.5 million minor children
had a parent who was incarcerated, an increase of more than a half-million
since 1991. In some cases, the removal of a family member may be beneficial
for those left behind—particularly someone who has been violent at home or
draining needed financial resources to support a drug habit. But in many cases
it is a traumatic event for families with consequences that reverberate well
beyond an individual’s release from prison. Further, for communities with high
rates of removal and return of offenders, these consequences have far-reaching
implications. This section outlines the consequences and implications of reentry from the perspective of the families and communities to which prisoners
return.

THE IMPACT OF REENTRY ON FAMILIES AND
CHILDREN OF FORMER PRISONERS
The growth in incarceration over the past two decades has significant implications for families and children of former prisoners.
In 1999, more than half of all state inmates were parents of children
below the age of 18—a total of more than 1.5 million children.196
The substantial increase in the number of female offenders sentenced to prison in recent years—the female prisoner population has
more than doubled since 1990197 —contributes significantly to the
number of inmates who have children. This is an important distinction, because incarcerated mothers and fathers typically have a
different level of involvement with their children before incarceration,
which affects the subsequent caregiving arrangement, ongoing
contact during imprisonment, and reunification upon release.

Chapter 4. Implications of Prisoner Reentry for Families and Communities

37

Although removing particular individuals can clearly be beneficial for
some families—resulting in more attention to children, more resources available, fewer distractions from home life, and less fear or
actual violence in the home—there is considerable evidence that
many children and families suffer when a parent is removed from the
home. This section explores the consequences of the removal and
release of offenders for child care, custody and parental rights, child
welfare, and the future criminality of children.

Incarcerated males are fathers to 1.2 million children. Although only 44
percent of these fathers lived with their children prior to incarceration, most
contributed income, child care, and social support.198 Several studies have documented the desire of nonresident fathers to remain involved in their children’s
lives through regular visits and financial support.
At the same time, prison life disrupts these relationships between fathers
and their children. Only 40 percent of incarcerated fathers report having weekly
contact with their children, mostly by mail or phone.199 And the frequency of
contact decreases as the length of time served in prison increases.200 Given that
the majority of state prisoners (60 percent) are held in facilities more than 100
miles from their homes, it is not surprising that most fathers (57 percent) report
never having a personal visit with their children after admission to prison.201
Although women represent a much smaller proportion of the prison population, the female prison population is growing faster than the male population.
From the child’s perspective, the incarceration of a mother has quite different
consequences from incarceration of a father. First, because mothers are more
likely to be the primary caregivers, a child’s placement after a mother is incarcerated is more uncertain than when the father is imprisoned. Fewer than onethird of all children with an incarcerated mother remain with their fathers. Most
are cared for by extended family—53 percent of children with an incarcerated
mother live with a grandparent and 26 percent live with other relatives. Some
children, however, become part of the foster care system. Ten percent of incarcerated mothers and 2 percent of incarcerated fathers report they have a child
placed in foster care.202
Mothers also tend to stay in closer contact with their children while in
prison. Nearly 80 percent reported monthly contact and 60 percent reported at
least weekly contact. However, as with fathers, more than half of all mothers
report never receiving a personal visit from their children. Visits are even more
difficult for incarcerated mothers who, because of the scarcity of prisons for
women, tend to be an average of 160 miles farther from their children than are
incarcerated fathers.203 Despite this separation, most mothers expect to be reunited with their children upon release.204
Incarceration of a parent is increasingly a factor in many children’s lives.
Two percent of all minor children in the United States and about 7 percent of
all African-American children had a parent in state or federal prison in 1999.205
How is the experience of having a parent incarcerated felt by these children
and what are the long-term consequences? Unfortunately, such questions have
received little empirical attention, and the studies that exist do little to parse

Of the soon-to-be-released prisoner

population in 1997:

206

! About two-thirds had children
! Nearly 60 percent had never married
and another one quarter were divorced.

According to research conducted by
Denise Johnston at the Center for Children
of Incarcerated Parents, the family configurations of incarcerated parents and their
children can be very complicated.207 It is not
uncommon for both incarcerated fathers
and mothers to have children by more than
one partner. This means that while 44 percent of fathers and 64 percent of mothers
report living with their children prior to admission, they may have only lived with
some of their children rather than all of their
children.208 Further, although a parent may
have been living with their children before
being sent to prison, that does not necessarily mean that the parent was the primary
caregiver. These families may include extended family members who have taken on
the role of primary caregiver. In Johnston's
current study of female prisoners living in
mother-child correctional facilities, less than
one-third of the women had been living with
all of their children prior to incarceration and
even fewer were their children's primary
caregiver.

One of every 14 African-American

children has a parent in state or federal
prison.209

38

From Prison to Home

A Family-Focused Approach to
Reentry: La Bodega de la Familia 219

out the causal connection between incarceration of parent and child outcomes.210
What we do know is that children whose parents have been incarcerated experience a range of negative consequences, but we cannot say the extent to which
these consequences are a direct result of a parent being incarcerated or the
nature of family life in that household.211 For instance, several studies have
found that children of incarcerated parents are more likely to exhibit low selfesteem, depression, emotional withdrawal from friends and family, and inappropriate or disruptive behavior at home and in school. There is also some
evidence to suggest that children of incarcerated parents are at high risk of
future delinquency and/or criminal behavior.212 Two studies have found that
children of offenders are significantly more likely than other children to be
arrested or incarcerated.213
Understanding the impact of parental incarceration on children is complicated because these consequences may be related to any number of conditions—
the parent-child separation, the crime and arrest that preceded incarceration, or
the general instability and inadequate care at home. Further, the degree to which
a child is affected by incarceration of a parent rests on a number of variables,
including the age at which the child is separated from the parent, the length of
the separation, the level of disruption, the number and result of previous separation experiences, and the availability of family or community support.214
The role parents play in the development of their children’s lives and the
potential impact of a parent-child separation as a result of incarceration highlight the need to find ways to help families keep in touch during incarceration
and reunite upon release. However, maintaining these relationships—between
the parents and between the parent and child—during a period of incarceration
can be difficult. Obstacles identified by the Women’s Prison Association include inadequate information on visiting procedures, little help from correctional facilities about visiting arrangements, the time involved in traveling great
distances to get to the correctional facility, visiting procedures that are uncomfortable or humiliating, and concerns about children’s reactions to in-prison
visits.215 These circumstances can easily strain relationships between parents
and their children.216
According to one expert, even struggling families can provide some level
of “protective” support that may result in lower recidivism rates among released inmates. For example, one study found that, overall, prisoners with family ties during the period of incarceration do better when released than those
without such ties.217 And, as discussed in a sidebar earlier in this report, a small
study by the Vera Institute of Justice reported that supportive families were an
indicator of success across the board, correlating with lower drug use, greater
likelihood of finding jobs, and reduced criminal activity.218
At the same time, there are situations where families are better off without
a neglectful or abusive parent or partner in their lives. Some individuals may
have been convicted of a crime of violence or abuse in the home, while others
were convicted of different crimes but may exhibit a pattern of abuse. Likewise, some individuals are better served by not returning to a family environment still characterized by substance abuse, criminal behavior, and other negaChapter 4. Implications of Prisoner Reentry for Families and Communities

La Bodega de la Familia (“the family
grocery”), on New York’s Lower East Side,
connects substance-abusing individuals
and their families to services and supports
in the community, including family case
management, counseling and relapse
prevention, and 24-hour crisis intervention.
A project of the Vera Institute of Justice,
La Bodega is built on the proposition that
strengthening families will improve treatment outcomes, reduce the use of arrest
and incarceration in response to relapse,
and reduce the intrafamilial harms often
associated with substance abuse. The
program’s primary service, family case
management, engages the individual,
family members, supervision officers, and
treatment providers to develop a plan for
tapping the family’s strengths and supporting the individual’s successful reintegration.
Many families are referred to the program
by parole or probation. A La Bodega staff
member accompanies parole officers on
visits to prepare the family for a prisoner’s
release. Once the individual is released, the
whole family is assessed to identify the
strengths they bring to address the challenges of addiction, previous criminal
history, and child welfare involvement.
La Bodega case managers work with the
family to develop a plan for services and set
goals for the individuals and their family,
broadly defined.
La Bodega also helps facilitate the relationship among families, former prisoners,
and supervision officers. The New York
State Division of Parole has assigned five
parole officers to work exclusively with La
Bodega families. During the initial community visit, family members are introduced to
both the parole officer and La Bodega, and
given the opportunity to have input on the
reintegration process from the beginning.
Throughout the period of supervision,
individuals make regular visits with both
their parole officers and La Bodega staff.
And to the extent that the ex-prisoner’s
reintegration goals are related to supervision requirements, the parole officer is
involved in all discussions on these issues
and given regular progress reports. The
program is now being evaluated by the Vera
Institute of Justice, which will release its
findings in 2001.220

39

tive influences that could act as triggers of past behaviors and habits.
Although children may be better off without a neglectful and abusive parent in their lives, there are many caring and committed incarcerated mothers
and fathers who expect to resume their parenting role upon release. Recent
legislative initiatives, however, have made it more difficult for incarcerated
parents—particularly mothers—to reunite with their children upon release. For
example, the 1997 Adoption and Safe Families Act, replacing the 1980 Adoption Assistance and Child Welfare Act, mandates termination of parental rights
once a child has been in foster care for 15 or more of the past 22 months.
Incarcerated women serve an average of 18 months in prison.221 The result is
that the average woman sentenced to prison whose children are placed in foster
care could lose the right to reunite with her children upon release.
Welfare reform legislation could also make it very difficult for parents to
rebuild a life with their children. As was discussed in an earlier section, returning prisoners are at a disadvantage for finding a job for various reasons. Access
to public benefits that could help families find a stable footing following release has been limited under certain conditions. Individuals in violation of a
condition of their parole or probation can be barred from receiving federal
welfare benefits (TANF), food stamps, Supplemental Security Income, and
access to public housing.222 Further, individuals convicted of a drug felony are
permanently banned from receiving TANF or food stamps. This could have
profound implications for incarcerated mothers, because 35 percent are incarcerated for a drug charge.223
Incarceration and reentry have substantial impacts on a large and growing
number of families—ranging from the loss of financial and emotional support
to the social stigma attached to having a family member in prison. These complex relationships, combined with the great distance between many prisons
and their home communities, require creative management on the part of the
families, government agencies, and community support systems to minimize
the harm to children and families.

THE IMPACT OF REENTRY ON COMMUNITIES
Returning prisoners are concentrated in a few states, a few core
urban counties within those states, and a few neighborhoods within
those counties. In 1998, for example, five states accounted for half of
all releases, and 16 states accounted for 75 percent.224 Within these
states and others, prisoners typically return to a relatively few
neighborhoods, which are already experiencing significant disadvantage. Some researchers have found that high concentrations of
prisoner removal and return can further destabilize these communities, and that high incarceration rates can, under certain conditions,
lead to even higher crime rates. A number of efforts are under way
that leverage these concentrations—where community, corrections,
service providers, and the private sector are creating partnerships to
anticipate and address the population of prisoners returning home.

40

From Prison to Home

The majority of prisoners are released into counties that contain the central cities of metropolitan areas. In 1996, approximately two-thirds of state
prisoners were released into these “core counties”—up from 50 percent in
1984.225 This means that a higher percentage of a larger volume of prisoners
are returning to a relatively small number of metropolitan areas. The central
cities typically are poorer than neighboring areas, and they face other challenges, such as loss of labor market share to suburban regions.226
New research also suggests that large numbers of prisoners come from a
relatively small number of neighborhoods within the central cities of the core
counties. For example, in some Brooklyn neighborhoods, one out of eight
parenting-age males is admitted to jail or prison in a single year.227 Moreover,
as figure 10 shows, the six police precincts with the highest number of residents on parole account for only 25 percent of the total population of Brooklyn,
but the same six precincts are home to 55 percent of all the parolees in Brooklyn.228 Looking at the block-group level (small areas within census tracts), one
finds that 11 percent of the block groups account for 20 percent of the population in Brooklyn, yet are home to 50 percent of the parolees.

Figure 10. Parolees per Block Group, Brooklyn, N.Y.

Community Concentrations

As can be seen in figure 10, returning
prisoners may be concentrated in a
relatively few neighborhoods. For example,
in Brooklyn, 3 percent of the block groups
account for 9 percent of the population, yet
they house 26 percent of the parolees.
Looked at differently, 11 percent of the block
groups account for 20 percent of the population and 50 percent of all the parolees in
Brooklyn.

Parolees per Block Group
0
1–4
5–9
10 – 19
20 – 70

Source: NYS Division of Parole Snapshot File, Nov. 2000.
Map produced by Charles Swartz & Eric Cadora. Community Justice Project, CASES. Copyright © 2001 CASES.

Chapter 4. Implications of Prisoner Reentry for Families and Communities

41

The question of whether incarceration policies of the past 15 years have

Similarly, analysis conducted using data on Ohio state prisoners from
Cuyahoga County (which includes the city of Cleveland) shows that two-thirds
of the county’s prisoners and most of the block groups with high rates of incarceration come from Cleveland. Concentrations are such that well under 1 percent of the block groups in the county account for approximately 20 percent of
the county’s prisoners. In such “high-rate” block groups, somewhere between
8 and 15 percent of the young black males are incarcerated on a given day.230
Similar conclusions can be drawn from a study in Baltimore, where 15 percent
of the neighborhoods accounted for 56 percent of prison releases.231
High rates of removal and return of offenders may further destabilize disadvantaged neighborhoods. Recent research by Todd Clear and Dina Rose indicates that high incarceration rates may disrupt a community’s social network,
affecting family formation, reducing informal control of children and income
to families, and weakening ties among residents. The researchers posit that
when removal and return rates hit a certain tipping point, they may actually
result in higher crime rates, as the neighborhood becomes increasingly unstable and less coercive means of social control are undermined.232
Community concentrations are also significant because the economic, social, and emotional impact of reentry on individuals and families become compounded. These communities may have little capacity to address the needs of
their residents, offenders and nonoffenders alike, such as substance abuse treatment, employment opportunities, health care, housing, and counseling. In California, for example, a study found significant gaps between the needs of parolees and available services: There are only 200 shelter beds for more than 10,000
homeless parolees, 4 mental health clinics for 18,000 psychiatric cases, and
750 treatment beds for 85,000 released substance abusers.233 Physical proximity to services in the high-rate neighborhoods may be an issue as well. Clear
and Rose looked at where ex-offenders (in Tallahassee, Fla.) lived, in relation
to where the social services and supervision offices were located. They found
that services and supervision offices were often very distant from the high-concentration neighborhoods that housed their clients and caseloads.
This mismatch between expenditures and community needs can be seen
from a third perspective. Analysis by the Wisconsin Sentencing Commission
found that approximately $2 million in criminal justice funds were spent in one
year on arrest, prosecution, and incarceration of drug offenders in one Milwaukee neighborhood—the corner of a local park on 9th and Concordia streets—
that suffered a high crime rate. Police had reportedly made 94 drug arrests at
that particular corner within a three-month period. Despite the high conviction
rate for these cases and the relatively severe sentences being handed out, the
crime conditions at 9th and Concordia did not change. The Sentencing Commission asked the strategic question: Could those state resources have been
invested differently to improve safety outcomes?234
This community-level analysis of the impact of removal and return has
prompted new questions about effective ways to address reentry and reintegration. For example, would place-based strategies that involve a small team of
parole officers working with local services be a more effective way to manage

had a beneficial or a detrimental effect on
the social capital of communities is far from
settled.229 Alternative theories suggest that
this tipping point may differ across communities and that, in some cases—particularly
in very high-poverty, high-crime areas—
incarceration may be an effective tool for
controlling crime. We do not yet know the
relative benefits of removal and returns in
various types of communities—there are
clearly incapacitation benefits to crime
control in many communities, but those
may erode without a focus on reentry and
reintegration.

Reentry Partnerships and
Reentry Courts Initiatives

The Department of Justice has two initiatives under way to address prisoner reentry—the Reentry Partnerships and Reentry
Courts Initiatives. The Reentry Partnerships
Initiative involves institutional and community corrections, law enforcement, faithbased organizations, social services, victim
support groups, and neighborhood organizations to build the monitoring, coordinating
services, and community links that are essential to support the individual’s successful
reentry and to enhance public safety. Participating states are Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nevada, South
Carolina, Vermont, and Washington.
The Reentry Courts concept draws on the
authority of the court to promote positive
behavior of returning prisoners—similar to
the approach of drug courts but applied at
the back end of a term of imprisonment.
Graduated sanctions and incentives are
integral to this model. Reentry Court sites
are in California, Colorado, Delaware,
Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, New York, Ohio,
and West Virginia.
Congress has appropriated nearly $100
million in federal funds (FY 2001) to support
a broad-based reentry initiative that spans
three cabinet agencies—the Departments
of Justice, Labor, and Health and
Human Services. Under this initiative, state
corrections and parole agencies, local
workforce development agencies and treatment providers, community groups, and
police organizations will be encouraged to
devise collaborative reentry initiatives.
For more information on the Department
of Justice pilot sites or the federal funding,
see http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/reentry/
whats_new.htm.

42

From Prison to Home

What Can Communities
Do about Reentry?

this population? Or could community-based social service providers, employers, neighborhood associations, faith institutions, and families work with the
corrections and paroling authorities to prepare for prisoner returns, deter bad
behavior, and enhance opportunities for reintegration?
New efforts are under way that center on community partnerships, problemsolving, and public safety. Building on the community policing model, this
community supervision approach involves place-based supervision strategies
and partnerships between law enforcement agencies and community residents.
Such efforts may involve diverse entities—from prospective employers to social service agencies to family members to community corrections components
to faith-based organizations. Each one has a unique role to play in anticipating
and preparing for prisoner release. A number of small-scale reentry experiments are under way to test some of these coordinated, proactive strategies.
The goal of these pilot efforts is to improve risk management of released prisoners by strengthening individual and community support systems, enhancing
surveillance and monitoring, and repairing the harm done to victims. (See “Reentry Partnerships and Reentry Courts Initiatives” sidebar.)
A community-based perspective on prisoner reentry raises important questions about the role of the public in the justice system. In the mid-1990s, the
Vermont Department of Corrections commissioned market research to find out
what the public expects from the criminal justice system and from offenders.235
They found that citizens want safety from violent offenders, accountability for
the offense, treatment for the individual, and involvement in decision-making.
They want offenders to accept responsibility for their behavior, to acknowledge their wrongdoing (perhaps even with an apology), and to repair the harm
done to victims and the community. Citizens signaled a willingness to be involved in justice strategies, feeling they could contribute valuably in helping
corrections create a safe and just community. This approach to the justice process, sometimes called “community justice,” opens up new possibilities for the
individual, the system, and the community.

Chapter 4. Implications of Prisoner Reentry for Families and Communities

! Begin working with prisoners and the
department of corrections before prisoners are released to arrange for jobs,
housing, treatment, and health care
upon release.
! Meet prisoners upon release, helping
navigate the first hours or days in the
community.
! Create or build on neighborhood-based
networks of workforce development
partners and local businesses who will
target the preparation and employment
of parolees.
! Engage local community-based organizations that can learn how to help family
members support the parolee to overcome substance abuse problems, stay
employed, and meet the overall requirements of his or her supervision and reintegration plan.
! Involve local faith institutions that can
facilitate mentoring support in the neighborhood to parolees and their family
members.
! Provide parolees opportunities to participate in community service and demonstrate that they can be community
assets rather than simply neighborhood
liabilities.
! Develop coalitions of resident leaders
who will oversee the reentry efforts and
provide accountability for community
and offender obligations.

43

44

From Prison to Home

CHAPTER

5

Conclusion

This monograph on the dimensions and consequences of prisoner reentry has
sought to accomplish two different goals: first, to shed light on some old issues
that lie at the core of our philosophy of criminal justice and second, to highlight new opportunities for improving the outcomes of the process of prisoner
reintegration.
The phenomenon of prisoner reentry is not new, of course, nor are the
questions it raises. Ever since prisons were built, society has been confronted
with the implications of that moment when a prison sentence is completed and
the prisoner returns home. What are the mutual obligations of the ex-offender,
his or her family, the victim, the community, and the state? What are the terms
on which reintegration can be achieved? What social goals are to be pursued
following the prisoner’s return home, and who is responsible for them? How is
failure defined, and how does society respond to the inevitable failures?
Generations of philosophers, legal scholars, practitioners, and members
of the general public have wrestled with these fundamental questions. The contemporary portrait of prisoner reentry contained in these pages leads to the
conclusion that the goal of prisoner reintegration has not yet received sufficient attention. One cannot escape the conclusion that the attention focused on
prison expansion and the frenetic pace of sentencing reform over the past generation have been at the expense of systematic thinking about the goals and
processes of prisoner reentry. The reductions in per capita funding for parole
supervision, at a time of substantial increases in funding for prison construction, present a clear example of the policy tradeoff. Increasing the size of the
prison population, as we have seen, does not reduce the problems associated
with prisoner reentry—those problems are compounded and redefined as more
people leave prison.
Similarly, the movement from indeterminate sentencing to determinate
sentencing—and the related shift from discretionary prison terms to mandatory prison terms—has far-reaching consequences for the process of reintegration.
Even if prison populations had not expanded, this shift in sentencing philosophy
alone would require a fresh look at our expectations for prisoner reentry. If release
Chapter 5. Conclusion

45

from prison is automatic, does that change the incentives of the prisoner and
the obligations of the correctional agency to prepare for the prisoner’s release?
If the prisoner walks out the prison door having completed his sentence, is
there no societal interest in his reintegration?
The dimensions of prisoner reentry described here argue for a reexamination of the nexus among the jurisprudence of sentencing, the mission of corrections agencies, the availability and quality of services for prisoners and their
families, and the social goal of prisoner reintegration.
At the same time, a focus on reentry illuminates new ways to approach
these questions, some of them quite simple, some more complex. For example,
a focus on the moment of release, with its attendant risks and opportunities,
suggests that correctional agencies and community groups could create new
links to smooth the transition from prison to liberty. Something as simple as
ensuring that the prisoner has proper identification, a roof over his or her head,
and a community agency to report to the next day may avert some failures of
the immediate transitional phase. Even more substantial linkages come to mind
when the health and substance abuse needs of returning prisoners are being
considered—such as links to health care providers, drug treatment, transitional
work environments, family counseling, and faith institutions. This strategy suggests moving the reentry planning process into the prison itself so that these
linkages are created well before the moment of release.
While prisoner reentry is ultimately felt at the community level, state agencies play a large role in the management of the reentry process. Using the “levers” of conditional supervision and the tools of graduated sanctions, criminal
justice agencies could play an enhanced role in deterring criminal behavior and
reducing drug use.236 But government neither could nor should manage reentry
alone. There are various opportunities for supervision agencies to work in concert with treatment providers, law enforcement, and the community to employ
problem-solving methodologies that address the situational risks of reoffending,
such as high-risk places, drug relapse, and reunification with criminal peers.
These innovations do not require a shift in jurisprudence so much as the articulation of a new goal—shared among state corrections and parole agencies, and
local organizations—to improve the likelihood of a successful return to the
community.
Finally, prisoner reentry raises important questions about the ultimate objectives of the reentry process. Public safety remains an essential yardstick.
This monograph has identified the safety risks posed by returning prisoners as
well as a number of interventions that have been proven successful at reducing
those risks. Renewed attention to prisoner reentry, if carefully implemented,
has the potential to improve the safety of the communities and families most
affected by the return of prisoners. Yet this portrait of reentry’s impact underscores the wide variety of related objectives. Could improvements in prisoner
reentry produce gains in public health? Reductions in levels of drug use in a
community? Improved worker productivity? Measurable enhancements in child
development and father-child relationships? Would a focus on prisoner reentry

46

From Prison to Home

create a new sense of civic attachment on the part of both the returning prisoners and those involved in their transition to communal life?
This broader view of prisoner reentry suggests that the ultimate goal is
perhaps best conceptualized as social reintegration, not just as reductions in
recidivism. This view also envisions a new partnership of public and private
entities that have an interest in improving those outcomes, not only out of concern for the former prisoners, but out of concern for those whose well-being is
affected by the dynamics of their transition from prison to community. This
broader focus, in turn, should lend new richness to the contemporary debates
over those age-old questions of the purposes of the criminal law and the goals
of sentencing.

Chapter 5. Conclusion

47

48

From Prison to Home

References

1

The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates that
585,400 prisoners were released in 2000. A.J.
Beck, “State and Federal Prisoners Returning to
the Community: Findings from the Bureau of
Justice Statistics.” Paper presented at the First
Reentry Courts Initiative Cluster Meeting,
Washington, D.C., April 13, 2000. For more
information, see http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/
pub/pdf/sfprc.pdf.

2

Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of
Justice, “Direct expenditure on criminal justice,
by level of government, 1982-97.” http://
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/glance/expgov.txt.
(Accessed March 20, 2001.)

3

A.J. Beck, “Prisoners in 1999.” Bureau of
Justice Statistics, Bulletin. Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 183476, August 2000.

4

A. Blumstein and A.J. Beck, “Population Growth
in U.S. Prisons, 1980-1996.” In M. Tonry and J.
Petersilia (Eds.), Prisons. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1999.

5

Of note, aside from drug offenses, the adult
arrest rate per crime remained remarkably
stable from 1980 to 1996. The increasing prison
population results from a rise in the use of
incarceration in the sanctioning phase, coupled
with a significant growth in the time served by
prisoners. According to Blumstein and Beck,
“Time served is the single factor influencing
prison population that has been increasing
steadily during the 1990s.” See Blumstein and
Beck, 1999, “Population Growth in U.S. Prisons,
1980-1996,” p. 56.

6

See Beck, 2000, “Prisoners in 1999.”

7

J. Travis, “But They All Come Back: Rethinking
Prisoner Reentry.” Sentencing & Corrections,
Issues for the 21st Century, 7: Washington,
D.C.: National Institute of Justice, NCJ 181413,
2000.

8

The 1977 figure comes from Bureau of Justice
Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice,
“Sentenced Prisoners Released from State or
Federal Jurisdiction.” http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/
bjs/dtdata.htm#justice. (Posted June 9, 2000.
Accessed February 28, 2001.)

10

M. Tonry, “The Fragmentation of Sentencing
and Corrections in America.” Sentencing &
Corrections, Issues for the 21st Century, 1.
Washington, D.C.: National Institute of Justice,
NCJ 175721, September 1999.

11

M. Tonry, Sentencing Matters. New York, New
York: Oxford University Press, 1996.

12

As of 1998, 17 states had created sentencing
commissions, quasi-independent administrative bodies that have designed sentencing
grids that significantly constrain judicial
sentencing discretion. See D.B. Rottman, C.R.
Flango, M.T. Cantrell, R. Hansen, and N.
LaFountain, “State Court Organization 1998.”
Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice,
Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ 178932,
2000. Legislation creating mandatory minimum
sentences has been enacted in all 50 states.
See J. Austin, C. Jones, J. Kramer, and P.
Renninger, “National Assessment of Structured
Sentencing, Final Report.” Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Assistance, NCJ 167557, 1995. Three-strikes
laws have lengthened prison terms for
persistent offenders in 24 states. See J. Austin,
J. Clark, P. Hardyman, and D.A. Henry, “Impact
of ‘Three Strikes and You’re Out.’” Punishment
& Society, 1, 131-162, 1999. Forty states have
enacted truth-in-sentencing laws requiring that
violent offenders serve at least 50 percent of
their sentences in prison; of these 40 states,
27 and the District of Columbia require violent
offenders to serve at least 85 percent of their
sentences in prison. See P.M. Ditton and D.J.
Wilson, “Truth in Sentencing in State Prisons.”
Bureau of Justice Statistics, Special Report.
Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice,
Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ 170032,
January 1999.

13

M. Lynch, “Waste Managers? New Penology,
Crime Fighting, and the Parole Agent Identity.”
Law and Society Review, 32, 839-869, 1998.

14

J.P. Lynch and W.J. Sabol. Forthcoming.
“Prisoner Reentry in Perspective.” Urban
Institute Crime Policy Report. Washington,
D.C.: Urban Institute.

15

J. Petersilia, “Parole and Prisoner Reentry in
the United States.” In M. Tonry and J. Petersilia
(Eds.), Prisons. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1999.

The 2000 estimate comes from Beck, 2000,
“State and Federal Prisoners Returning to the
Community: Findings from the Bureau of
Justice Statistics.”
9

See Beck, 2000, “Prisoners in 1999.”

References

49

16

M. Kleiman, “Getting Deterrence Right:
Applying Tipping Models and Behavioral
Economics to the Problems of Crime Control.”
Perspectives on Crime and Justice: 1998-1999
Lecture Series, 3. Washington, D.C.: National
Institute of Justice, NCJ 178244, 1999.

22

M. Rennison, “Criminal Victimization 1999:
Changes 1998-1999 with Trends 1993-1999.”
Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime
Victimization Survey. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 182734, August 2000.

17

See Blumstein and Beck, 1999, “Population
Growth in U.S. Prisons, 1980-1996.”

23

D.J. Levin, P.A. Langan, and J.M. Brown,
“State Court Sentencing of Convicted Felons,
1996.” Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of
Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ
175708, February 2000.

18

At the same time, because length of stay for
parole violators is, on average, significantly
less than a sentence for a new commitment,
parole violators do not account for a large
share of the growth in the prison population.
See Blumstein and Beck, 1999, “Population
Growth in U.S. Prisons, 1980-1996.”

24

19

A.J. Beck and B.E. Shipley, “Recidivism of
Prisoners Released in 1983.” Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Special Report. Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 116261, April 1989.

20

Note that each arrest could involve up to six
charges, so there were fewer than 326,746
incidents for which the releasees were
arrested.

21

25

A small fraction of offenders are responsible for
a disproportionate share of crime. For
example, 5 percent of the 1983 release cohort
in the Bureau of Justice Statistics study
accounted for 19 percent of the 1,700,000
arrests this group was charged with (either
prior to their imprisonment or following
release). See Beck and Shipley, 1989,
“Recidivism of Prisoners Released in 1983.”
Generally, characteristics of “high-rate”
offenders include a criminal record for violent
and drug offenses, very frequent use of
multiple types of illegal drugs, early involvement in criminal activity, and use of serious
illegal drugs as a juvenile. They are also
typically “occupationally unstable,” younger
than other offenders, and often have a history
of violence as a juvenile. See J.R. Chaiken
and M.R. Chaiken, “Varieties of Criminal
Behavior.” Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department
of Justice, National Institute of Justice, R2814-NIJ, 1982. For a discussion on the
relationship of certain risk factors and rearrest
rates for the 1983 cohort, see Beck and
Shipley, 1989, “Recidivism of Prisoners
Released in 1983.”

50

D.M. Kennedy, “Pulling Levers: Chronic
Offenders, High-Crime Settings, and a Theory
of Prevention.” Valparaiso University Law
Review, 31, 2, 449-484, Spring 1997. Of
course, where an individual lives and where he
or she commits the crime are often different
places. Nonetheless, the Boston experience
and others illustrate the nexus between
neighborhoods, criminal activity, and
supervision strategies.
W. Spelman, “The Limited Importance of
Prison Expansion.” In A. Blumstein and J.
Wallman (Eds.), The Crime Drop in America.
Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge
University Press, 2000; and R. Rosenfeld,
“Patterns in Adult Homicide: 1980-1995.” In A.
Blumstein and J. Wallman (Eds.), The Crime
Drop in America. Cambridge, United Kingdom:
Cambridge University Press, 2000.

26

See W. Spelman’s discussion in “The Crime
Decline: Why and What’s Next.” Forthcoming.
Washington, D.C.: Urban Institute.

27

T.R. Clear, D.R. Rose, and J.A. Ryder, “Coercive Mobility and the Community: The Impact
of Removing and Returning Offenders.” Paper
prepared for the Reentry Roundtable, Washington, D.C., October 12 and 13, 2000.

28

T.J. Ambrosio and V. Schiraldi, “From Classrooms to Cell Blocks: A National Perspective.”
Washington, D.C.: Justice Policy Institute,
1997.

29

See Beck, 2000, “State and Federal Prisoners
Returning to the Community: Findings from the
Bureau of Justice Statistics.”

30

For a more detailed discussion on the characteristics of returning prisoners, see forthcoming
Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner Reentry in Perspective.”

From Prison to Home

31

Violent offenses include murder, negligent
and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, sexual
assault, robbery, assault, extortion, intimidation, criminal endangerment, and other violent
offenses. Drug offenses include possession,
manufacturing, trafficking, and other drug
offenses.

32

T.P. Bonczar and L.E. Glaze, “Probation and
Parole in the United States, 1998.” Bureau of
Justice Statistics, Bulletin. Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 160092, August 1999.

33

Thirteen percent of parolees have an
education level below eighth grade, and 45
percent have an educational level between
ninth and eleventh grades. Bureau of Justice
Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice, National
Corrections Reporting Program. Washington,
D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of
Justice Statistics, 1997.

34

See Bonczar and Glaze, 1999, “Probation and
Parole in the United States, 1998.”

35

The fact that the share of prisoners convicted
of violent offenses has increased faster than
the proportion of reentry cohorts consisting of
violent offenders indicates that future reentry
cohorts are likely to include more violent
offenders. See Lynch and Sabol, forthcoming,
“Prisoner Reentry in Perspective.”

36

See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.” (Analysis based on
Bureau of Justice Statistics NPS-1 data.)

37

Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department
of Justice, Correctional Populations in the
United States, 1997. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 177613, November 2000.

38

See Beck, 2000, “Prisoners in 1999.”

39

See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”

40

See Beck, 2000, “State and Federal Prisoners
Returning to the Community: Findings from the
Bureau of Justice Statistics.”

41

T.M. Hammett, “Health-Related Issues in
Prisoner Reentry to the Community.” Paper
prepared for the Reentry Roundtable,
Washington, D.C., October 12 and 13, 2000.

42

California Department of Corrections,
Preventing Parolee Failure Program: An
Evaluation. Sacramento: California Department
of Corrections, 1997.

43

44

See Hammett, 2000, “Health-Related Issues in
Prisoner Reentry to the Community.”
T.P. Bonczar, and A.J. Beck, “Lifetime Likelihood of Going to State or Federal Prison.”
Bureau of Justice Statistics, Special Report.
Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice,
Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ 160092,
March 1997.

45

Ibid.

46

See Beck, 2000, “Prisoners in 1999.”

47

B. Western and R. Pettit, “Incarceration and
Racial Inequality in Men’s Employment.”
Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 54,
3-16, 2000.

48

49

S. Klein, J. Petersilia, and S. Turner, “Race and
Imprisonment Decisions in California.”
Science, 247, 812-816, Feb. 16, 1990.
C. Mumola and A. Beck, “Prisoners in 1996.”
Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice,
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1997.

50

Ibid.

51

Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department
of Justice, Correctional Populations in the
United States, 1996. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 170013, April 1999.

52

53

D. Johnston and K. Gabel, “Incarcerated
Parents.” In K. Gabel and D. Johnston (Eds.),
Children of Incarcerated Parents. New York:
Lexington Books, 1995.
D.T. Courtwright, “The Drug War’s Hidden
Toll.” Issues in Science and Technology, 13.2,
73, Winter 1996.
See also W.A. Darity Jr. and S. Myers Jr., 1995,
“Family Structure and the Marginalization of
Black Men: Policy Implications.” In M.B.
Tucker and C. Mitchel-Kernan (Eds.), The
Decline in Marriage Among African-Americans:
Causes, Consequences, and Policy Implications. New York: Russell Sage Foundation,
1995.

54

55

M. Dallao, “Coping with Incarceration from the
Other Side of the Bars.” Corrections Today, 59,
96-98, 1997.
L.A. Greenfeld and T.L. Snell, “Women
Offenders.” Bureau of Justice Statistics,
Special Report. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 175688, December 1999.

56

Ibid.

57

Ibid.

58

B.E. Richie, “Issues Incarcerated Women Face
When They Return to Their Communities.”
Paper prepared for the Reentry Roundtable,
Washington, D.C., October 12 and 13, 2000.

59

Ibid.

60

U.S. Bureau of the Census. 1998. “Unpublished Tables—Marital Status and Living
Arrangements: March 1998 (Update).” http://
www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/
ms-la.html. (Accessed on April 12, 2001.)

61

See Richie, 2000, “Issues Incarcerated Women
Face When They Return to Their Communities.”

62

Ibid.

63

Ibid.

64

J. Hagan and J. Petty, “Returning Captives of
the American War on Drugs: Issues of
Community and Family Reentry.” Paper
prepared for the Reentry Roundtable,
Washington, D.C., October 12 and 13, 2000.

65

See Petersilia, 1999, “Parole and Prisoner
Reentry in the United States.”

66

See Ditton and Wilson, 1999, “Truth in
Sentencing in State Prisons.”

67

Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department
of Justice, “Prisoners Released Unconditionally
from State or Federal Jurisdiction, 1977-98.”
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dtdata.htm#time.
(Accessed March 20, 2001.)

68

69

70

See Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S.
Department of Justice, 2000, Correctional
Populations in the United States, 1997. Also
see Ditton and Wilson, 1999, “Truth in
Sentencing in State Prisons.”
J.C. Runda, E.E. Rhine, and R.E. Wetter, The
Practice of Parole Boards. Lexington, KY:
Association of Paroling Authorities, International, 1994.
Nearly one-third of the unconditional releases
from state prison (as proxied by first releases
in the National Corrections Reporting Program
states) were individuals who had been
sentenced for a violent offense. National
Corrections Reporting Program, Unpublished
table, Washington, D.C.: Bureau of Justice
Statistics, 1998.

References

71

There are exceptions, of course. In Ohio, for
example, some lower-risk prisoners are
released at the end of their term because it
was determined at the time of sentencing that
they did not require post-prison supervision.
Additionally, some prisoners waive their right to
early release under community supervision in
favor of serving out their full term and are
thereby free of any criminal justice supervision
once released.

72

G.G. Gaes, T.J. Flanagan, L.L Motuik, and L.
Stewart, “Adult Correctional Treatment.” In M.
Tonry and J. Petersilia (Eds.), Prisons.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999.

73

Ibid.

74

C. Riveland, “Prison Management Trends,
1975-2025.” In M. Tonry and J. Petersilia
(Eds.), Prisons. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1999.

75

See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”

76

See Beck, 2000, “State and Federal Prisoners
Returning to the Community: Findings from the
Bureau of Justice Statistics.”

77

J. Austin, M.A. Bruce, L. Carroll, P.L. McCall,
and S.C. Richards, “The Use of Incarceration
in the United States.” Paper prepared for the
annual meeting of the American Society of
Criminology, San Francisco, November 2000.

78

See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”

79

I. Waller, Men Released From Prison. Toronto:
University of Toronto Press, 1974.

80

K. Adams, “Adjusting to Prison Life.” In Crime
and Justice: A Review of Research, Volume 16.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1992.

81

J. J. Stephan, “State Prison Expenditures,
1996.” Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of
Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ
172211, August 1999.

82

See Austin et al., 2000, “The Use of Incarceration in the United States.”

83

E. Zamble and F.J. Porporino, Coping,
Behavior, and Adaptation in Prison Inmates.
New York: Springer, 1988; E. Zamble and V.L.
Quinsey, The Criminal Recidivism Process.
Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press,
1997.

51

84

85

Research Council of the American Correctional
Association, “A Survey of Correctional
Agencies’ Research Topics and Interests.”
Corrections Compendium, 25, 8, 2-25, August
2000.
M. Nelson, P. Deess, and C. Allen, The First
Month Out: Post-Incarceration Experiences in
New York City. New York: Vera Institute of
Justice, September 1999.

86

See American Correctional Association, 2000,
“A Survey of Correctional Agencies’ Research
Topics and Interests.”

87

S. Turner and J. Petersilia, “Work Release:
Recidivism and Corrections Costs in Washington State.” NIJ Research In Brief. Washington,
D.C.: National Institute of Justice, December
1996.

88

See Nelson, Deess, and Allen, 1999, The First
Month Out: Post-Incarceration Experiences in
New York City.

89

See Beck, 2000, “State and Federal Prisoners
Returning to the Community: Findings from the
Bureau of Justice Statistics.”

90

92

713,000 is a 1999 figure. See Bureau of
Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice,
“Correctional Populations in the United States,
1980-1999.” http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/
glance/corr2.txt. (Accessed February 28,
2001.)

95

96

98

J. Petersilia, “A Decade of Experimenting with
Intermediate Sanctions: What Have We
Learned?” In Perspectives on Crime and
Justice. Washington, D.C.: National Institute of
Justice, 1998.

L. Sherman, D. Gottfredson, D. MacKenzie, J.
Eck, P. Reuter, and S. Bushway, Preventing
Crime: What Works, What Doesn’t, What’s
Promising. College Park: University of
Maryland, 1997.

101

Reinventing Probation Council, Transforming
Probation Through Leadership: The “Broken
Windows” Model. Center for Civic Innovation
and the Robert A. Fox Leadership Program.

102

Another 9 percent of adults leaving parole did
not successfully complete parole because
they had absconded. See Bonczar and Glaze,
1999, “Probation and Parole in the United
States, 1998.” The 206,000 figure is from
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2000, “Conditional Release Violators Returned to State or
Federal Jurisdiction.” Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics Data
Series (NPS 1), August 2000. http://
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dtdata.htm#justice.
(Accessed February 2001.)

103

J. Petersilia, “Prisoners Returning to Communities: Political, Economic, and Social Consequences.” Paper prepared for the Reentry
Roundtable, Washington, D.C., October 12 and
13, 2000.
See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”
See Petersilia, 2000, “Prisoners Returning to
Communities: Political, Economic, and Social
Consequences.”

52

See Beck, 2000, “Prisoners in 1999.” Also
see A.J. Beck, 1999, “Understanding Growth
in U.S. Prison and Parole Populations.” Paper
presented at the Annual Conference on
Criminal Justice Research and Evaluation:
Enhancing Policy and Practice, Washington,
D.C., July 1999.

104

Of the 42 percent returned to prison, 13
percent were for a new sentence, 29 percent
for a technical violation. See Bonczar and
Glaze, 1999, “Probation and Parole in the
United States, 1998.”

105

R.L. Cohen, “Probation and Parole Violators in
State Prison, 1991.” Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 149076, August 1995.

106

See Bonczar and Glaze, 1999, “Probation and
Parole in the United States, 1998.”

J. Petersilia and S. Turner, “Intensive Probation
and Parole.” In M. Tonry (Ed.), Crime and
Justice: A Review of Research, Vol. 17.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.

100

Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department
of Justice, National Corrections Reporting
Program. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department
of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, various
years.
In many jurisdictions the parole supervision
function is called something else (community
supervision, supervised released, etc.), but it is
functionally parole.

94

See Petersilia, 1999, “Parole and Prisoner
Reentry in the United States.”

99

91

93

97

See Petersilia, 1999, “Parole and Prisoner
Reentry in the United States.”

From Prison to Home

107

P. B. Burke, “Policy-Driven Responses to
Probation and Parole Violations.” Washington,
D.C., U.S. Department of Justice, National
Institute of Corrections, March 1997.

108

National Institute of Corrections, “Status
Report on Parole, 1995: Results of an NIC
Survey.” Washington, D.C., U.S. Department
of Justice, National Institute of Corrections,
November 1995.

109

Bureau of Justice Statistics, “Sentenced
Prisoners Admitted to State or Federal
Jurisdiction.” Washington D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, National Prisoner Statistics Data
Series (NPS 1), August 2000. http://
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dtdata.htm#justice.
(Accessed February 2001.)

110

C.J. Mumola, “Substance Abuse and
Treatment, State and Federal Prisoners,
1997.” Bureau of Justice Statistics, Special
Report. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of
Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ
172871, January 1999.

111

See Beck, 2000, “State and Federal Prisoners
Returning to the Community: Findings from
the Bureau of Justice Statistics.”

112

See Mumola, 1999, “Substance Abuse and
Treatment, State and Federal Prisoners,
1997.”

113

H.K. Wexler, D.S. Lipton, and B.D. Johnson,
“A Criminal Justice System Strategy for
Treating Cocaine-Heroin Abusing Offenders in
Custody.” Washington, D.C.: National
Institute of Justice, NCJ 113915, 1998.

114

See Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult Correctional
Treatment.” See also Harrison, 2000, “The
Challenge of Reintegrating Drug Offenders in
the Community.”

115

The most widely adopted (and evaluated)
program is the Cognitive Thinking Skills
Program (CTSP) developed by Robert Ross
and Elizabeth Fabiano. It has been widely
implemented in several correctional systems,
including the United States, Canada, Europe,
New Zealand, and throughout the British
prison system. See Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult
Correctional Treatment,” p. 374.

116

See Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult Correctional
Treatment.”

117

Ibid.

118

B.M.M. Pelissier et al., “TRIAD Drug
Treatment Evaluation Project Six-Month
Interim Report.” Federal Bureau of Prisons,
Office of Research and Evaluation, January
31, 1998.

119

See Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult Correctional
Treatment.”

120

See Harrison, 2000, “The Challenge of
Reintegrating Drug Offenders in the
Community.” See also Gaes et al., 1999,
“Adult Correctional Treatment.”

121

122

123

124

National Center on Addiction and Substance
Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University. Behind
Bars: Substance Abuse and America’s Prison
Population. New York: CASA, January 1998.

131

L. M. Maruschak and A.J. Beck, “Medical
Problems of Inmates, 1997.” Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Special Report. Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 181644, January 2001.

132

See Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult Correctional
Treatment.”
See Harrison. “The Challenge of Reintegrating
Drug Offenders in the Community.” Paper
presented at the Reentry Roundtable,
Washington, D.C., October 12-13, 2000. See
also Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult Correctional
Treatment.”
Formal treatment includes professional counseling, detoxification units, residential facilities,
and maintenance drug programs. When one
includes participation in other drug abuse
programs, such as self-help groups and educational programs, the participation rates
increase to 24 percent of the 1997 prison
population, down from 30 percent in 1991.
See Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice, 2000, Correctional Populations in the United States, 1997.

133

134

See Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S.
Department of Justice, 2000, Correctional
Populations in the United States, 1997.

126

See Beck, 2000, “State and Federal
Prisoners Returning to the Community:
Findings from the Bureau of Justice
Statistics.”
See Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult Correctional
Treatment.”

128

A.I. Leshner, “Addiction Is a Brain Disease—
and It Matters.” National Institute of Justice
Journal, 237, 2-6, 1998.

129

T.M. Hammett, “Health-Related Issues in
Prisoner Reentry to the Community.” Paper
prepared for the Reentry Roundtable,
Washington, D.C., October 12 and 13, 2000.

J.P. Caulkins, C.P. Rydell, W. Schwabe, and
J.R. Chiesa, “Mandatory Minimum Sentences:
Throwing Away the Key or the Taxpayers’
Money?” RAND publication MR-827-DPRC,
1997.
D.R. Gerstein, R.A. Johnson, H.J. Harwood,
D. Fountain, N. Suter, and K. Malloy,
Evaluating Recovery Services: The California
Drug and Alcohol Treatment Assessment
(CALDATA). Sacramento, CA: California
Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs,
1994.
Research Council of the American Correctional Association, Corrections Compendium,
“Correctional Budgets.” Corrections Compendium, 25, 12, 8-17, December 2000.

141

D.C. McDonald, “Medical Care in Prisons.” In
M. Tonry and J. Petersilia (Eds.), Prisons.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999.
At the same time, some of this may be
countered by the possible negative mental
health consequences of a period of incarceration.

142

See Maruschak and Beck, 2001, “Medical
Problems of Inmates, 1997.”

143

See Hammett, 2000, “Health-Related Issues
in Prisoner Reentry to the Community.”

144

Ibid.

145

Ibid.

146

Ibid.

147

See Ditton, 1999, “Mental Health and
Treatment of Inmates and Probationers.”

148

See forthcoming Lurigio, “Effective Services
for Parolees with Mental Illnesses.”

149

See Ditton, 1999, “Mental Health and
Treatment of Inmates and Probationers.”

150

See forthcoming Lurigio, “Effective Services
for Parolees with Mental Illnesses.”

135

A.J. Lurigio (forthcoming), “Effective Services
for Parolees with Mental Illnesses.” Crime and
Delinquency.

151

Mentally ill offenders are more likely than
others to be under the influence of alcohol or
drugs when they commit an offense.

136

P.M. Ditton, “Mental Health and Treatment of
Inmates and Probationers.” Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Special Report. Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 174463, July 1999.

152

See Hammett, 2000, “Health-Related Issues
in Prisoner Reentry to the Community.”

153

H.J. Steadman, E.P. Mulvey, J. Monahan, P.C.
Robbins, P.S. Appelbaum, T. Grisso, L.H Roth,
and E. Silver, “Violence by People Discharged
from Acute Psychiatric Inpatient Facilities and
by Others in the Same Neighborhoods.”
Archives of General Psychiatry, 55, 1-9, 1998.

154

See Ditton, 1999, “Mental Health and
Treatment of Inmates and Probationers.”

155

Ibid.

156

See forthcoming Lurigio, “Effective Services
for Parolees with Mental Illnesses.”

157

For a program description, see the Innovations in American Government Web page:
http://ksgwww.harvard.edu/innovat/2000/
publicheal00.htm. Also, Ted Hammett
indicates that a preliminary program analysis
found that program participants had lower
rates of recidivism than prisoners who did not
participate in the program. See Hammett,
2000, “Health-Related Issues in Prisoner
Reentry to the Community.”

See Beck, 2000, “State and Federal Prisoners
Returning to the Community: Findings from
the Bureau of Justice Statistics.”

125

127

130

137

138

L.M. Maruschak, “HIV in Prisons 1997.”
Bureau of Justice Statistics, Bulletin.
Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of
Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ
178284, November 1999.
See Hammett, 2000, “Health-Related Issues
in Prisoner Reentry to the Community.”

139

Ibid.

140

Medical problems were more prevalent
among inmates who had been homeless or
unemployed prior to incarceration. Of the
state inmates who reported that they had
been homeless for some period of time in the
year before incarceration, nearly half reported
a physical impairment or mental condition and
one-third said they had a medical problem.
See Maruschak and Beck, 2001, “Medical
Problems of Inmates, 1997.”

References

53

158

J. Kling, D.F. Weiman, and B. Western, “The
Labor Market Consequences of ‘Mass’
Incarceration.” Paper prepared for the Reentry
Roundtable, Washington, D.C., October 12
and 13, 2000.

159

Ibid.

160

Bureau of Justice Statistics, Survey of State
Prison Inmates, 1991. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, NCJ 136949, March 1993.

161

H. Holzer, What Employers Want: Job
Prospects for Less-Educated Workers. New
York: Russell Sage, 1996.

163

See Petersilia, 1999, “Parole and Prisoner
Reentry in the United States.”

164

See Rottman et al., 2000, “State Court
Organization 1998.”

165

J. Hagan and R. Dinovitzer, “Collateral
Consequences of Imprisonment for Children,
Communities, and Prisoners.” In M. Tonry and
J. Petersilia (Eds.), Prisons. Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1999.

166

Ibid.

167

J. Irwin and J. Austin, It’s About Time.
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1994.

168

B. Western and R. Pettit, “Incarceration and
Racial Inequality in Men’s Employment.”
Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 54,
3-16, 2000.

169

Ibid.

170

S. Bushway and P. Reuter, “Labor Markets
and Crime.” In J.Q. Wilson and J. Petersilia
(Eds.), Crime: Public Policies For Crime
Control, 2nd Edition. San Francisco, CA: ICS
Press, forthcoming.

171

See Slambrouck, 2000, “Push to Expand
Book-Learning Behind Bars.”

172

Ibid.

173

Few approaches have proven effective for
younger ex-offenders. Ensuring a successful
post-prison adjustment for this population
remains a challenge. See forthcoming
Bushway and Reuter, “Labor Markets and
Crime.”

See Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S.
Department of Justice, 2000, Correctional
Populations in the United States, 1997.

175

C.G. Camp and G.M. Camp, The Corrections
Yearbook: 1999. Middletown, CT: Criminal
Justice Institute, Inc., 1999.

176

S. Bushway, “The Stigma of a Criminal History
Record in the Labor Market.” In J.P. May (Ed.),
Building Violence: How America’s Rush to
Incarcerate Creates More Violence. Thousand
Oaks: Sage, 2000.

162

174

177

See Gaes et al., 1999, “Adult Correctional
Treatment.”

178

K.A. Hull, S. Forrester, J. Brown, D. Jobe, and
C. McCullen, “Analysis of Recidivism Rates
for Participants of the Academic/Vocational/
Transition Education Programs Offered by the
Virginia Department of Correctional Education.” Journal of Correctional Education, 51,
2, 256-261, June 2000.

179

180

S.J. Steurer, L. Smith, A. Tracy. Preliminary
analyses of the Office of Correctional
Education and Correctional Education
Association Three-State Recidivism Study.
Partial reports from the study will be available
soon. See for more information: http://
www.ceanational.org/.
J. Gerber and E.J. Fritsch, “The Effects of
Academic and Vocational Program Participation on Inmate Misconduct and
Reincarceration.” Ch. 3 in Sam Houston State
University, Prison Education Research
Project: Final Report. Huntsville, TX: Sam
Houston State University, 1994.

181

P. Van Slambrouck, “Push to Expand BookLearning Behind Bars.” The Christian Science
Monitor, September 15, 2000, p. 3.

182

S. Rossman, S. Sridharan, and J. Buck, “The
Impact of the Opportunity to Succeed
Program on Employment Success.” National
Institute of Justice Journal, 236, July 1998.

183

See program Web site: http://
www.ceoworks.org. See National Institute of
Justice Web site for program description and
evaluation: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/reentry/
publications.htm.

184

54

The Welfare to Work Partnership, Member
Survey: Taking the Next Step. 2000 Series,
No. 1.

185

See program Web site: http://www.saferfnd.org. See National Institute of Justice Web
site for program description and evaluation:
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/reentry/
publications.htm.

186

See Petersilia, 1999, “Parole and Prisoner
Reentry in the United States.”

187

Legal Action Center, “Housing Laws Affecting
Individuals with Criminal Convictions.”
Washington, D.C.: Legal Action Center. For
more information, see http://www.lac.org/.

188

P.H. Rossi, Down and Out in America: Origins
of Homelessness. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1989.

189

California Department of Corrections,
Preventing Parolee Failure Program: An
Evaluation. Sacramento: California Department of Corrections, 1997.

190

Ibid.

191

A recent survey of state statutes identified
statutory restrictions on the rights and
opportunities of released inmates implemented since the mid-1980s. M. Love and S.
Kuzma, Civil Disabilities of Convicted Felons:
A State-by-State Survey. Washington, D.C.:
Office of the Pardon Attorney, 1996. Also see
Rottman et al., 2000, “State Court Organization 1998.”

192

M. Mauer, The Race to Incarcerate.
Washington, D.C.: The Prison Project, 2000.

193

Puerto Rico and the following states
permanently prohibit convicted felons from
voting: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Iowa,
Kentucky, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New
Mexico, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, and
Washington. While most states have
procedures for petitioning the government for
reinstatement of voting rights, they can be
complicated and in many cases require
gubernatorial pardon. See Rottman et al.,
2000, “State Court Organization 1998.”

194

J. Fellner and M. Mauer, “Losing the Vote:
The Impact of Felony Disenfranchisement
Laws in the United States.” The Sentencing
Project, 1998. For more information, see http:/
/www.sentencingproject.org/policy/9080.htm.
Also see Mauer, 2000, The Race to
Incarcerate.

195

See Mauer, 2000, The Race to Incarcerate.

See National Institute of Justice Web site for
program description and evaluation: http://
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/reentry/publications.htm.

From Prison to Home

196

C.J. Mumola, “Incarcerated Parents and Their
Children.” Bureau of Justice Statistics, Special
Report. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of
Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ
182335, August 2000.

197

See Beck, 2000, “Prisoners in 1999.”

198

See Mumola, 2000, “Incarcerated Parents and
Their Children” and C.F. Hairston, “The
Forgotten Parent: Understanding the Forces
that Influence Incarcerated Fathers’
Relationships with Their Children.” Child
Welfare 77, 617-639, 1998.

199

200

See Mumola, 2000, “Incarcerated Parents and
Their Children.”
See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”

201

See Mumola, 2000, “Incarcerated Parents and
Their Children.”

202

Ibid.

203

See Hagan and Petty, 2000, “Returning
Captives of the American War on Drugs:
Issues of Community and Family Reentry.”

204

Ibid.

205

See Mumola, 2000, “Incarcerated Parents and
Their Children.”

206

See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”

207

D. Johnston, “Incarceration of Women and
Effects on Parenting.” Paper presented at a
conference on the Effects of Incarceration on
Children and Families, Northwestern
University, May 5, 2001.

208

See Mumola, 2000, “Incarcerated Parents and
Their Children.”

209

Ibid.

210

See Hagan and Dinovitzer, 1999, “Collateral
Consequences of Imprisonment for Children,
Communities, and Prisoners.”

211

212
213

D. Johnston, Jailed Mothers. Pasadena, CA:
Pacific Oaks Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents, 1991.
214

C. Seymour, “Children with Parents in Prison:
Child Welfare Policy, Program, and Practice
Issues.” Child Welfare, 77, 5, 469–493,
September/October 1998.

215

Women’s Prison Association, “When a Mother
is Arrested: How the Criminal Justice and
Child Welfare Systems Can Work Together
More Effectively.” A needs assessment
initiated by the Maryland Department of
Human Resources, 1996.

216

See Dallao, 1997, “Coping with Incarceration
from the Other Side of the Bars.”

217

C.F. Hairston, “Family Ties During Imprisonment: Important to Whom and for What?”
Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, 18,
87–104, 1991, p. 99.

218

219

220

See Nelson, Deess, and Allen, 1999, The First
Month Out: Post-Incarceration Experiences in
New York City.
C. Shapiro and M. Schwartz, “Coming Home:
Building On Family Connections.” Corrections
Management Quarterly, forthcoming.
La Bodega de la Familia is about to spin off
from the Vera Institute of Justice to become
part of Family Justice, a new national
nonprofit organization dedicated to the
identification, application, and dissemination
of best practices in using family supports with
individuals under community-based
supervision. For more information, see
http://www.familyjusticeinc.org.

221

See Hagan and Petty, 2000, “Returning
Captives of the American War on Drugs:
Issues of Community and Family Reentry.”

222

Legal Action Center, “Public Assistance Laws
Affecting Individuals with Criminal Convictions.” Washington, D.C.: Legal Action Center.
For more information, see http://www.lac.org/.

See Johnston and Gabel, 1995, “Incarcerated
Parents.”

223

See Mumola, 2000, “Incarcerated Parents and
Their Children.”

Ibid.

224

See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”

D. Johnston, Children of Offenders.
Pasadena, CA: Pacific Oaks Center for
Children of Incarcerated Parents, 1992. See
also D. Johnston, Intergenerational Incarceration. Pasadena, CA: Pacific Oaks Center for
Children of Incarcerated Parents, 1993; and

225

Ibid.

226

Ibid.

References

227

Analysis by E. Cadora and C. Swartz for the
Community Justice Project at the Center for
Alternative Sentencing and Employment
Services (CASES), 1999. For more information, see http://
www.communityjusticeproject.org/.

228

Analysis by E. Cadora and C. Swartz for the
Community Justice Project at the Center for
Alternative Sentencing and Employment
Services (CASES), 2001. Based on data from
the New York State Division of Parole. For
more information, see http://
www.communityjusticeproject.org/.

229

J.P. Lynch and W.J. Sabol, “Prison Use and
Social Control.” In Criminal Justice: Policies,
Processes and Decisions of the Criminal
Justice System. Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, Office of Justice
Programs, National Institute of Justice, 2000.

230

See forthcoming Lynch and Sabol, “Prisoner
Reentry in Perspective.”

231

S. Gottfredson and R. Taylor, “Community
Contexts and Criminal Offenders.” In T. Hope
and M. Shaw (Eds.), Communities and Crime
Reduction. London: Home Office, 1988.

232

T.R. Clear, D.R. Rose, and J.A. Ryder,
“Coercive Mobility and the Community: The
Impact of Removing and Returning Offenders.” Paper prepared for the Reentry
Roundtable, Washington, D.C., October 12
and 13, 2000.

233

Little Hoover Commission, Behind Bars:
Correctional Reforms to Lower Prison Costs
and Reduce Crime. Sacramento, CA: Little
Hoover Commission, 1998.

234

M.E. Smith and W.J. Dickey, “Reforming
Sentencing and Corrections for Just
Punishment and Public Safety.” Sentencing
and Corrections: Issues for the 21st Century,
NIJ Research In Brief. Washington, D.C.:
National Institute of Justice, September 1999.

235

J.G. Perry and J.F. Gorczyk, “Restructuring
Corrections: Using Market Research in
Vermont.” Corrections Management Quarterly,
1, 26–35, 1997.

236

D.M. Kennedy, “Pulling Levers: Chronic
Offenders, High-Crime Settings, and a Theory
of Prevention.” Valparaiso University Law
Review, 31, 449–484, 1997.

55

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56

From Prison to Home

Reentry Projects
For more information about any of these Urban Institute projects, send an email to jpc@ui.urban.org.

Reentry Roundtable

The Urban Institute has inaugurated the
Reentry Roundtable, a group of prominent
academics, practitioners, service providers,
and community leaders, to build our
understanding of prisoner reentry and
advance policies and innovations that reflect
solid research. The Roundtable met for the
first time in Washington, D.C., in October
2000 to discuss the state of knowledge
about the issues associated with reentry. A
second meeting, held in New York City in
March 2001, featured presentations on
reentry research projects across the country,
as well as an in-depth discussion on the
Urban Institute's Returning Home research
initiative. (See below.) In the future, the
Roundtable will oversee a number of
research initiatives, serve as a forum for
sharing findings from related research, and
constitute a national network of individuals
and institutions committed to increasing
our capacity to develop effective policies.
Returning Home: Understanding the
Challenges of Prisoner Reentry

The Urban Institute's cornerstone reentry
research initiative is a multistate project
called “Returning Home: Understanding the
Challenges of Prisoner Reentry.” Eleven
states have been invited to participate, and
the initial 4 to 5 states will be selected by
Fall 2001. This study will document the
pathways of prisoner reintegration at four
levels—individual, family, community, and
state. We will look at what factors play a
role in the successful reintegration of
prisoners and will examine the impact of
prisoner reentry, and related criminal
justice policies, on the communities that
experience the greatest concentrations of
returning prisoners. To do so, we will survey
approximately 400 prisoners returning to
one or more urban areas in each of the
participating states prior to release and at
several points during the first year of their
release from prison. We will also interview
family and community members for a
subset of prisoners, and policymakers and
practitioners in each state, to place the
reentry experience in context. An intensive
research design phase will begin this
summer, and we envision launching the
project in early 2002.

Impact of Incarceration and
Reentry on Children, Families
and Communities

With funding from the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, the Urban
Institute is surveying the state of knowledge
on the impact of incarceration and reentry on
children, families, and communities, with
particular focus on child development, child
welfare, family violence, parenting issues,
and service integration at the local level. We
will commission a number of papers by
leading academics to assess the state of
knowledge on the dynamics of incarceration
and reentry as seen through the prism of
individual, family and community perspectives. A conference is planned for January
2002 that will bring together the research,
policy, advocacy, and practice communities
to share promising strategies, develop a
research agenda, and inform policy
development. We are also planning to
convene a group of state policymakers to
assess the intersection of criminal justice
and health and human services policies, with
particular attention to those states that are
experimenting with innovative approaches.
Federal Supervision Study

In collaboration with PricewaterhouseCoopers, the Urban Institute is working with
the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for
improving the delivery of pretrial and
probation services in the federal system. The
study will articulate the system's objectives,
consider how to assess program quality,
describe the future environment, consider
ways to enhance program performance, and
identify the resources needed to accomplish
work effectively. This work includes
documenting the legislative, policy, and
practice context of the community supervision component of the federal criminal
justice system. The Urban Institute is
conducting a review of comparable
community supervision systems, examining
responses from surveys of judges and field
offices, and analyzing historical data on the
number of offenders, the characteristics of
offenders, staffing levels, and budgets.

A Review of Drug Treatment
in Prisons

The Urban Institute is conducting a study
of substance abuse treatment in correctional systems. Requested by the National
Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), this study
consists of a review of six dimensions:
prevalence of drug treatment demand/
need; screening and assessment; treatment
programming; treatment effectiveness; postrelease treatment; and barriers to substance
abuse treatment in correctional settings.
These reviews will be followed by interviews
with practitioners and policymakers. A
workshop then will be held to discuss the
issues raised by the reviews and interviews.
The end goals of the project are (1) to
provide NIDA with specific recommendations for research that can enhance
knowledge about drug treatment in
correctional settings and (2) to identify
research, program, and policy strategies for
systematically linking effective treatment
with correctional operations.
Evaluation of the Reentry Partnership Initiative in Maryland

The Urban Institute is evaluating the
Maryland Reentry Partnership Initiative
(REP). REP, which includes both pre- and
post-release programming, is designed to
prepare inmates, through vocational/
occupational, educational, or other training,
to successfully return to their communities,
and thereby reduce recidivism and enhance
public safety. The REP targets offenders in
Maryland who are returning to one of three
fragile communities in Baltimore, and links
integrated social services with systematic
oversight by the police, corrections, parole,
and the community. The Urban Institute is
conducting an action evaluation of this
effort and will work with the project
partners to define program goals, develop
performance indicators and quality controls
to facilitate the program’s operational and
conceptual development.

About 600,000 individuals—roughly 1,600 a day—will be released from state
and federal prisons this year to return to their communities.
On one level, these transitions from prison to community might be viewed as
unremarkable. Ever since prisons were built, individuals have faced the challenges of moving from confinement in correctional institutions to liberty on the
street. Yet, from a number of policy perspectives, prisoner reintegration is taking
on new importance.
This monograph is the first to document in a single source the various aspects of
prisoner reentry—from preparation for release to post-prison supervision. This
focus on reentry sheds light on issues of sentencing, punishment, public safety,
and prisoner reintegration. The report also explores the challenges posed by
substance abuse, health problems, employment, and housing, as well as the
complex implications of prisoner reentry for families and communities. The
monograph covers the state of knowledge in each of these areas, identifying key
research findings and highlighting opportunities for policy innovation.

URBAN INSTITUTE

Justice Policy Center

2100 M STREET, NW
WASHINGTON, DC 20037
www.urban.org
(202) 833-7200

The Urban Institute (UI) is a nonprofit
policy research organization established in Washington, D.C., in 1968.
The Institute's goals are to sharpen
thinking about society's problems and
efforts to solve them, improve government decisions and their implementation, and increase citizens' awareness
about important public choices.

UI’s Justice Policy Center (JPC)
carries out nonpartisan research to
inform the national dialogue on crime,
justice, and community safety. JPC
researchers collaborate with practitioners, public officials, and community
groups to make the Center’s research
useful not only to decisionmakers and
agencies in the justice system but also
to the neighborhoods and communities
harmed by crime and disorder.