Rethinking The Reentry Paradigm

The perspective that this text will take presupposes that offender reentry is not a static isolated event, but a process that occurs over time. Moreover, if reentry policy and practice is contextualized as a process rather than as a finite event, preparation and planning can drive reentry, not a prison release date. Consequently, this text will discuss the issue of offender reentry in more global terms and locate solutions to reentry issues on a continuum of service that begins at entry to prison, includes release from prison, and culminates with integration into the community.

This book addresses the core issues in prisoner reentry into society after incarceration. The chapters are written by academic scholars who have much experience researching and writing about prisoner reentry and by people who work in the field of prison reentry. Comprising reviews of empirical literature, this study is also supplemented by the workings of a reentry agency in the state of California. The focus of the work is to provide the best practices within prisoner reentry programs, to explore the barriers experienced by both prisoners and reentry agencies as they work toward the reentry of prisoners, and to discuss critical issues associated with prisoner reentry. The authors broach various topics regarding life after imprisonment, such as: the financial burden, problems faced by sex offenders, changing family dynamics and employment. An engaging and thought-provoking study, this book will be of particular interest to scholars of criminology theory, the justice system and sociology.

Understanding and Improving Prisoner Reentry Outcomes Prisoner Reentry is an engaging and comprehensive examination of prisoner reentry and how to improve public safety, well-being, and justice in the “era of mass incarceration.” Renowned authors Daniel P. Mears and Joshua C. Cochran investigate historical trends in incarceration and punishment policy, the salience of in-prison and post-prison contexts and experiences for reentry, and the importance of understanding group differences in offending, punishment, and social context. Using extensive reliance on both theory and empirical research, the authors identify how reentry reflects criminal justice policy in America and, at the same time, has profound implications for crime prevention and justice. Readers will develop a diverse foundation for current policies, identify the implications of reentry for families, community, and society at large, and gain a conceptual and empirical toolkit for analyzing and improving the lives of those released from prison.

This groundbreaking edited volume evaluates prisoner reentry using a critical approach to demonstrate how the many issues surrounding reentry do not merely intersect but are in fact reinforcing and interdependent. The number of former incarcerated persons with a felony conviction living in the United States has grown significantly in the last decade, reaching into the millions. When men and women are released from prison, their journey encompasses a range of challenges that are unique to each individual, including physical and mental illnesses, substance abuse, gender identity, complicated family dynamics, the denial of rights, and the inability to voice their experiences about returning home. Although scholars focus on the obstacles former prisoners encounter and how to reduce recidivism rates, the main challenge of prisoner reentry is how multiple interdependent issues overlap in complex ways. By examining prisoner reentry from various critical perspectives, this volume depicts how the carceral continuum, from incarceration to reentry, negatively impacts individuals, families, and communities; how the criminal justice system extends different forms of social control that break social networks; and how the shifting nature of prisoner reentry has created new and complicated obstacles to those affected by the criminal justice system. This volume explores these realities with respect to a range of social, community, political, and policy issues that former incarcerated persons must navigate to successfully reenter society. A springboard for future critical research and policy discussions, this book will be of interest to U.S. and international researchers and practitioners interested in the topic of prisoner reentry, as well as graduate and upper-level undergraduate students concerned with contemporary issues in corrections, community-based corrections, critical issues in criminal justice, criminal justice policies, and reentry.

Often, research concerning the female offender is scarce. This book adds to the criminological literature on the topic of reentry for women, focusing on the barriers women face as they return to society and adjust to life after incarceration. Each chapter addresses specific issues, challenges, and obstacles affiliated with the hindrance of successful reentry processes associated with female offenders, as well as data-driven empirical studies. While corrections has often misunderstood or overlooked the needs of returning offenders, the shortcomings of the institutions have a greater impact on women than on their male counterparts, particularly regarding the occurrence of social and medical problems, especially those related to mental health and substance abuse. Female Offenders and Reentry helps criminal justice students and practitioners see the full picture when considering the challenges faced by female offenders reintegrating into society.

Today’s high recidivism rates, combined with the rising costs of jails and prisons, are increasingly seen as problems that must be addressed on both moral and financial grounds. Research on prison and jail reentry typically focuses on barriers stemming from employment, housing, mental health, and substance abuse issues from the perspective of offenders returning to urban areas. This book explores the largely neglected topic of the specific challenges inmates experience when leaving jail and returning to rural areas. Rural Jail Reentry provides a thorough background and theoretical framework on reentry issues and rural crime patterns, and identifies perceptions of the most significant challenges to jail reentry in rural areas. Utilizing three robust samples—current inmates, probation and parole officers, and treatment staff—Ward examines what each group considers to be the most impactful factors surrounding rural jail re-entry. A springboard for future research and policy discussions, this book will be of interest to international researchers and practitioners interested in the topic of rural reentry, as well as graduate and upper-level undergraduate students concerned with contemporary issues in corrections, community-based corrections, critical issues in criminal justice, and criminal justice policy.

Although surveillance hit the headlines with revelations by Edward Snowden that the National Security Agency had been tracking phone calls worldwide, surveillance of citizens by their governments actually has been conducted for centuries. Only now, with the advent of modern technologies, it has exponentially evolved so that today you can barely step out your door without being watched or recorded in some way. In addition to the political and security surveillance unveiled by the Snowden revelations, think about corporate surveillance: each swipe of your ID card to enter your office is recorded, not to mention your Internet activity. Or economic surveillance: what you buy online or with a credit card is recorded and your trip to the supermarket is videotaped. Drive through a tollbooth, and your license plate is recorded. Simply walk down a street and your image could be recorded again and again and again. Where does this begin and end? In all levels of social structure, from the personal to the political to the economic to the judicial, The SAGE Encyclopedia of Surveillance, Security, and Privacy uncovers and explains how surveillance has come to be an integral part of how our contemporary society operates worldwide and how it impacts our security and privacy. Key Features: Approximately 450 signed entries from contributors around the globe Further readings and cross-references conclude each article to guide students further as they explore a topic A Reader′s Guide organizes entries by broad thematic areas