top of page

 

Recidivism in the United States

... a great challenge our Justice System is facing today.

WHAT IS RECIDIVISM?

IT IS DEFINED AS: "A TENDENCY TO RELAPSE INTO A PREVIOUS CONDITION OR MODE OF BEHAVIOR;  ESPECIALLY A  RELAPSE INTO CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR” MERRIAM WEBSTER

Recidivism is a social justice issue to both the criminals and the public. It is a very fundamental criminal justice concept, referring to the habitual actions of repeating crimes especially after an inmate has already been released. This is a major issue especially in the United States, despite having about 5% of the world's population, we have roughly 25% of the world's prison population (aclu). The U.S. is the largest jailer in the world. 
Many studies have been conducted over the years to figure out the reason behind why criminals continuously reoffend. Knowing how often criminals reoffend can help policymakers determine the best approach to keep the public safe, and keep criminals out of jail.

/ "THE RECIDIVISM STORY” / BY: THE BOB BARKER COMPANY
/ PUBLISHED: NOV 11 TH, 2013

 The graph above done by the Bureau of Justice Prisoners Series shows the dramatic increase in U.S. prison population from 1925 to 2015.  
The numbers started to spike in the 1980’s throughout the 1990’s and that is exactly when the United States enacted “get tough” policies such as:
 

Truth in sentencing laws - refers to legislation and policies that aim to get rid of parole so prisoners have to serve the entirety of their sentence.
 

Mandatory drug sentencing laws - refers to laws that force judges to give fixed prison terms to those convicted of specific crimes, most often drug offenses.
 

Life sentence without possibility of parole - refers to criminals convicted of serving the rest of their life in prison without the change of parole. A New York Times article written by Adam Liptak states "Of the criminals sentenced between 1988 and 2001, about a third are serving time for sentences other than murder, including burglary and drug crimes.”

What You Should Know

According to a study done by the Bureau of Justice: 

  • Within three years of release, about two-thirds (67.8 percent) of released prisoners were rearrested.

  • While the United States represents about 4.4 percent of the world's population, it houses around 22 percent of the world's prisoners. Corrections (which includes prisons, jails, probation, and parole) cost around $74 billion in 2007.

  • Of those prisoners who were rearrested, more than half (56.7 percent) were arrested by the end of the first year.​

In 2012, incarceration cost taxpayers $39 billion, $5.4 billion more than the $33.5 billion reflected in corrections budgets alone. Corrections spending has nearly quadrupled over the last two decades.
Source: GTL

Why This Is A Problem

When an individual is convicted of a crime, they are sentenced time in prison and then they will be released back into society after their time has been “served”, unfortunately many ex-offenders find themselves still serving time after prison. The problem is once and ex-offender is released back into society many inmates find it very difficult to find a job. Typically every job application asks if you have a criminal record and if you do, you have to check the box accordingly. Once you have a criminal record you are perceived very differently, and many employers automatically disqualify you because of that fact. Studies have shown that 

intelligence directly correlates with recidivism. Inmates with a higher I.Q. generally don’t end up back in jail as opposed to those with lower grade level intelligence. Intelligence researchers analyzed three years of incarceration of 2,500 male inmates across 30 prison units who were sent to prison between August 2004 and June 2006. The researchers looked at whether an inmate was reported for violent behavior against another inmate or against a prison staff member, resulting in at least a minor injury.The findings show that "inmates with above average IQs were at a reduced risk of being involved in a violent incident and individuals assigned to units with a higher average IQ score were significantly less likely to commit violent behavior.”It is safe to say that these types of actions can very well determine an inmates behavior when they are released from prison. 

Solutions

Cognitive help is the most important solution to lower recidivism rates. Inmates need to get out of the revolving door of the Justice System. While In prison many inmates do their time mindlessly without figuring out why they committed the crime in the first place. Many inmates need psychological help to better their chances of success in society. A great example of this is the country Norway, they have one of the lowest recidivism rates in the entire world. In relation to rehabilitating inmates Criminologist Bob Cameron states the keys to success are:

  • ​retribution 

  • incapacitation 

  • deterrence

  •  restoration

  • rehabilitation. ​

American society is aimed at punishing the criminal first and rehabilitating second. Norway however is the opposite, they focus primarily on rehabilitation in hopes the prevent future acts of crime. They still have prisons are prisoners are released when officials see them fit and ready to return back to society. For this progressive way of thinking, Norway's recidivism rate is at an astounding low of 20%. 
​
Education while behind bars is another great opportunity for growth. If prisoners could learn a valuable skill or be provided a credible certificate after release, that will make re-entry to the workforce much easier. Studies over the last two decades show across the board that providing higher education programs to prisoners reduces recidivism and reductions in crime, saves a lot of money for taxpayers, and long term safety to the population.
A 2005 IHEP report cites that recidivism rates for incarcerated people who had participated in prison education programs were on average 46% lower than the rates of incarcerated people who had not taken college classes. Currently on about 6% of correctional spending is put towards all prison programs, including education. 

Re-Entry programs and employment is a very comprehensive and daunting issue that ex-criminals face. Employment after release is crucial to an individual on whether or not they will re-commit crime. There are employers that provide re-entry programs (employment opportunities in the workforce especially for released criminals). Reentry programs are designed to assist incarcerated individuals with a successful transition to their community after they are released. In 2011 Obama Administration came up with a strategy to combat drugs and crime. The strategy calls for supporting post-incarceration reentry efforts by assisting in job placement, facilitating access to drug-free housing, and providing other supportive services. 
An example is the “Ride Home program” by the Anti-Recidivism Coalition in California. The program employs former inmates to pick up ex-prisoners on the day they are released to help guide them through the changed world. The drivers spend all day with the newly released prisoners and they buy them food and some clothing, give them advice on finding work, as well as help with calling family on smartphones or showing photos of family members on Facebook. In other words, they start to reintroduce them to the culture and provide intensive, immediate and personalized re-entry support, and being former inmates themselves, they can deliver that message in a uniquely empathetic way.
​

Research has shown that recidivism in the United States is a growing problem and is getting worse. Many studies have shown that mental illness contribute's to the issue as well as environmental factors. There are many solutions to the issue as seen above, but the revolving door that we call our Justice System remains moving. ​Many ex-criminals just need some understanding and compassion, that doesn’t mean excusing bad behavior, rather to understand why and where an individual is in life, and try to equip them with the necessary skills and tools to become a successful member of society when released. This alone can keep many criminals from committing future crimes, therefore keeping the community we live in safer.   

Sources:

Scroll here

bottom of page