Running head: REDUCING RECIDIVISM 1

Reducing Recidivism

Ashley Martin

Arkansas Tech University

REDUCING RECIDIVISM 2

Introduction

Recidivism refers to a person’s relapse into criminal behavior and their reincarceration.

This occurs after a person has already received sanctions of some sort. Could be community

punishment, fines, supervision, and even a prison sentence. Within three years of release from

prison, about two-thirds of offenders are rearrested and within five years that jumps to three-

quarters. (Durose, Cooper, & Snyder, 2014) This paper will look at new legislation and programs

being implemented and the attributes of the programs that are being successful.

. The cost of incarceration is staggering. The cost of prison varies from state to state. In

2015, Arkansas’s prison population was 17,785. Prison expenditures were $371,968,841 which

breaks down to the average cost of $20,915 per inmate each year. Other states, such as

California are triple this at $64,642 per inmate each year they are housed. ("Prison Spending

2015," 2015, p. 2) There are operational costs, staffing including payments to outside healthcare

providers, pharmaceuticals cost and the expense training the staff, physical and mental medical

costs, infrastructure maintenance, and the cost of the many programs, such as GED and

substance abuse programs. The largest spending in the department of corrections budget is

employment. This includes salaries, overtime, and benefits. Only 11 percent of spending is spent

on prison health care, including payments to outside providers, pharmaceuticals, and hospital

care. Seventeen percent was spent in a catchall category that includes facility upkeep,

programming cost for the incarcerated, debt service and legal judgements. ("Prison Spending

2015," 2015, p. 5)

Literature Review

Reducing recidivism has always been a goal of the criminal justice system. It is

becoming a predominant topic for many state’s legislature bodies. One of the first attempts to
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intervene in the revolving prison door was the establishment of “drug courts”. Drug courts are

use very intense supervision, frequent random drug tests, and a rigid policy of employment and

support meetings. These have been more effective for adult offenders than in the juvenile

offender population. (Latessa & Reitler, 2015, p. 757) If drug courts adhere to effective

interventions, such as risk, needs, and treatment, they can be a positive tool to reduce recidivism.

An article on the effectiveness of prison on drug offenders has more data that

compliments the movement towards other types of support. Mentoring, long term support

systems, and resources used in assisting the transformation from incarcerated to employed and

independent are becoming more common and showing promise. Laws requiring jail time for

drug abuse and its related crimes have been around since the 1970s. Since that time much has

been learned about how these substances affect the body. Armed with this new knowledge,

lawmakers have gradually changed their views on how to best reduce the high incidence of drug

related crimes and how to stop the cycle of prison and reoffending. ("Alcohol and drug rehab

instead of jail," 2018, p. 3)

On March 8, 2017, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson signed the Criminal Justice

Efficiency and Safety Act (Act 423) which will enable the state to avert more than $300 million

in corrections costs over the next six years, reinvest in better mental health services, and improve

public safety by reducing recidivism with more effective supervision and treatment. This is in

response to data collected over the last two years to address prison overcrowding, ineffective

probation and parole programs, and local challenges dealing with addiction and mental health

issues.

To support the implementation of this justice reinvestment legislation, Governor

Hutchinson included in his proposed $5 million for the establishment and operation of Crisis
REDUCING RECIDIVISM 4

Stabilization Units, necessary funding for the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy and

related agencies to train officers in new, more current intervention techniques for people with

dual difficulties, such as addiction and mental health, or addiction and education or employment

deficits, and permanent funding to increase the number of supervision and treatment staff. ("Act

423," 2017)

There are immediate concerns for someone getting out of prison such as how they will

get home, where will they live, and will they find a job, much less a job that can sustain them.

Housing is a problem because many properties do background checks and this instantly

disqualifies someone of a safe place to live. The same for employment applications. There is

often the question “have you ever been convicted of a felony”, answer yes, and it’s usually

placed on the bottom of the stack, answer no and you have lied on your application which if

found out is grounds for termination.

The article with the costs broken down is very compelling for the innovated programs

that are forming. New re-entry programs are meeting the offender at the gate upon release and

have a plan. They have resources and are equipped to help transition someone that was living on

state funds to a working person paying taxes. By supporting this large segment of our

population, the chances of them reoffending is greatly reduced. “The first 72 hours is the most

critical time for a person transitioning out of prison. It’s during that time, a decision is going to

be made whether he goes back to the streets or he is going to pursue a legitimate life”. ("Re-

Entry that Works," 2018, p. 2)

There is a double whammy when it comes to recidivism and that is drug addiction and

reoffending. At least 80 percent of offender’s use drugs or alcohol, and approximately 95

percent return to drug use after release from prison. Unless they are regularly supervised by a
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judge or one on one counselor, 60-80 percent will drop out of treatment programs like drug

court. (Langan, 1999, p. 357) There are many new programs cropping up now besides drug

court, and the re-entry movement is taking off. They have common threads in that they both

have goals to help people acclimate from a previous criminal lifestyle and add structure that is

needed to resume productive lives.

According to a study done in 2017, there are four key concepts that a staple in the

programs that have a high success rate. The first is to start early. Before they are released,

communication should be initiated and a positive relationship started. The second is to think and

identify them as clients, not offenders. This builds confidence and breaks away from a prison

mentality. The third is to reassess framework. This means to have individual risk-needs

assessments and tools. The final key is insisting on evidence. Follow up with everything and be

involved. Accountability is stressed as being very important. (Johnson, 2017)

Conclusion

The purpose of this review is to highlight the new area of prison re-entry programs. This

field is new in thought and in exploration. In Arkansas, it is expanding and proving to be

worthwhile cause. It has the potential to save money, yes, but lives, families, and create a surge

in our workforce. According to the statistics now been kept on the programs being implemented,

there are reasons to be hopeful for the large numbers of people coming out of incarceration.

It is clear from the research reviewed that this field will be growing and changing to meet

the demands and that there is a therapeutic value not only for the client, but also for the

communities. Research is continuing and this will help develop programs that are meeting the

needs of this segment of the population that was caught in the revolving penal system. These

articles make a case, even for the naysayers, that prison overcrowding is expensive and many
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times ineffective for nonviolent drug offenders. There are studies still being done and the

research will continue and help to make programs that are assets to our state and community.
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References

Arkansas Governor Signs Justice Reinvestment Bill into Law. (2017). Retrieved from

https://csgjusticecenter.org/jr/arkansas/posts/arkansas-governor-signs-justice-

reinvestment-bill-into-law/

Alcohol and Drug Programs Instead of Jail. (2018). Retrieved from

https://www.voa.org/correctional-re-entry-

services?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIgZLggLbG2QIVBbnACh01pQA7EAAYASAAEgLEwf

D_BwE

Durose, M., Cooper, A., & Snyder, H. (2014, April). Recidivism of Prisoners Released in 30

States in 2005, Patterns. Bureau of Justice Special Reports, NCJ244205(), .

https://doi.org/Retrieved from

Johnson, S. (2017, July 7). 4 Elements of Successful Re-Entry. USA Today. Retrieved from

http://www.socialsolutions.com/blog/4-elements-of-successful-reentry-programs-for-

inmates/

Langan, L. (1999). Annual report on drug use among adults and juvenile arrestees. Criminology,

40, 329-357. Retrieved from

https://www.nadcp.org/sites/default/files/nadcp/Facts%20on%20Drug%20Courts%20.pdf

Latessa, E., & Reitler, A. (2015). What Works in Reducing Recidivism and How Does it Relate

to Drug Courts? Ohio Northern Law Review, 41, 757-801. Retrieved from

https://law.onu.edu/sites/default/files/Latessa.pdf

Prison Re-Entry Programs That Work. (2018). Retrieved from

http://www.ccano.org/blog/prisoner-reentry-programs-that-work/
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The price of Prison. (2015). Retrieved from https://www.vera.org/publications/price-of-prisons-

2015-state-spending-trends/price-of-prisons-