How to prevent recidivism.

What one program is doing to strengthen re-entry success.

Over 640,000 people return to our communities from prison each year, and another nine million are released from local jails. However, due to the lack of institutional support, imposed legal barriers, stigma, and low wages, most prison sentences are for life. More than half of the formerly incarcerated are unable to find stable employment within their first year of return. Two out of three former prisoners are rearrested and more than 50% are incarcerated

The process of previously convicted criminals reoffending and reentering the prison system is known as recidivism. “ Without employment opportunities and bare necessities such as housing, food, or clothing, successful reentry into society seems nearly impossible for former prisoners.”

Preparing for re-entry.

How can we best prepare the formerly incarcerated for reintegration into life outside prison and ensure they don’t recidivate? Some experts claim rehabilitation (rather than punishment) is the answer, others believe that correctional education programs are the best way to end recidivism, while others prioritize mental health and substance abuse treatment for inmates. Helping inmates maintain family ties while incarcerated is another way to reduce recidivism, improve an individual’s likelihood of finding a job after prison, and ease the harm to family members separated from their loved ones.

There are many other promising reforms “targeted to address the core behavioral issues that result in criminality, with the goal of reducing the likelihood that inmates reoffend either while incarcerated or after their release” according to the U.S. Department of Justice. All are worthy of consideration.

Peer Support.

One notable effort towards reducing recidivism we’d like to highlight in this article is the use of peer specialist support teams: The Mental Health Peer Support Team Re-Entry Pilot Project. The project “was conceptualized to leverage peer experiences to empower justice-involved persons to successfully transition from jail into communities,” evaluators said.