Introduction
The criminal justice system is mandated to apprehend criminals and charge them for the wrongs committed. The wrongdoers are to be prosecuted, punished, and rehabilitated to make them responsible citizens. Recidivism is a criminal justice concept explaining the tendency of criminals to re-offend after they are released from custody.
The increasing recidivism rate in adult males is an emerging issue in the criminal justice system, as it illustrates inefficiencies in rehabilitating offenders to make them responsible and law-abiding citizens. High recidivism in adult males is a pressing issue in the criminal justice system. It must be addressed to ensure that societies are safe after people are released from prison. The pervasive issue of high recidivism in adult males is multifaceted and requires a holistic approach encompassing rehabilitation, re-evaluation, and social-cultural factors.
Summary of the Criminal Justice Issue
Recidivism as a Societal Concern
A successful jail term makes a person transformed and likely to shun away from criminal activities. However, the high recidivism rate among male adults is becoming an issue because it reduces the safety levels of society. When people released from custody are not transformed, they are likely to cause other offenses, making people live in fear. Other than the jeopardy to public safety, the vice burdens the correctional facilities and law enforcement agencies and increases the costs incurred in the incarceration process (Felson & Krajewski, 2020). Fundamentally, recidivism jeopardizes the community’s general peace and security and harms the justice system’s effectiveness.
Recidivism is an issue in the community because as it increases, the prisons become overcrowded, and their efficiency reduces. Prisons are designed to hold a particular number of offenders for an effective rehabilitation process. However, overcrowded prison cells not only affect the efficiency of the prisoners but also affect their health and well-being.
According to Wright (2021), recidivism increases the cycles of crimes in society, which overburdens law enforcement agencies. Consequently, the other services to be provided by the police will be unavailable since they will be overwhelmed by the increasing crime rates in society. Feelings of revenge and retaliation perpetuate the culture of violence in the society. As recidivism increases in society, the offenders may seek revenge on the people who made them to be arrested. A peaceful community can only be achieved when the recidivism rates are reduced.
Data Showing the Impact of Recidivism on Society
The USA has some of the highest rates in the world as people released from custody are re-arrested. In 2021, for example, 39% of the people were repressed after being released from American prisons (Wright, 2021, p.158). In 2022, 44% of the offenders were taken back into custody after being released (Bureau of Justice Statistics, n.d.).
The rates are different in different states, such as Arizona, which has 36%, and it lowers it by ensuring that people who are released from jail get a certificate of a second chance to ensure that they get jobs and housing (The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, n.d.). People get back to crimes because they are not fully accepted and reintegrated into society and do not have other means of survival. The presented data shows that recidivism is a major concern in society and must be eliminated to ensure society becomes equitable for people to coexist.
Arizona’s strategy of ensuring that the people have a certificate to assist them and lead normal lives makes the state witness less recidivism. The provided data shows that the high rates of recidivism in the USA are caused by the failure of the systems and may be corrected to lower them. The declining number of people being re-arrested in Arizona is because of the strategies employed to rehabilitate people (Criminal Justice Career Toolkit, n.d.).
The states with low recidivism have secure neighborhoods, and people express better quality of life. However, Alaska, a state with a 62.5% recidivism rate, has high levels of insecurity, and people in the neighborhoods live in fear (Wright, 2021). Adequate strategies must be leveraged to ensure people get the correct sentences.
Social Justice Principles Needed to Resolve the Issue
Effective application of social justice principles is the prerequisite for ensuring that the people released from jail can lead their normal lives. The most important social justice principle is rehabilitation and reintegration, which ensures that people understand their mistakes and reform to be responsible citizens and then readmitted back into society. Fairness, equity, and individualized treatment are important principles that ensure everyone is treated as unique people with different needs (Felson & Krajewski, 2020). Further, community involvement is important to ensure that the people will learn how to reintegrate and treat those released from custody. Finally, collaboration and partnerships are important principles in the criminal justice system to ensure that people are reintegrated into society.
Cultural Diversity Present in Recidivism
The recidivism rates in the USA are high in some cultural settings and not in others. For example, ethnic and racial disparities play a major role in recidivism. For example, of the 44% of the released offenders re-arrested within one year in 2022, 89.6% were African Americans (Higginbotham, 2023, p. 533). Minorities in the USA suffer higher rates of recidivism because of the racial discrimination witnessed in the country.
Racial profiling in American criminal justice jeopardizes equality in society, hence leading to more stereotyped people turning to crime. Access to legal representation is lower among people from minorities, while others can be represented by legal professionals (Brough et al., 2018). Stereotyping and stigmatization are issues that increase the rate of recidivism because the people who are not accepted in society are stereotyped and unable to find gainful employment or coexist peacefully in society.
Obtaining a More Just Society
Addressing the issue of high recidivism is important because it reduces social harm, and people are prone to be safe in society. Reducing recidivism to zero will ensure that rehabilitation will be a success in the long run. Further, it will ensure dignity and human treatment regardless of a person’s past mistakes or criminal record (Smith-Merry et al., 2019). A just society has equal opportunities for all people, and with reduced recidivism in males, they will have more opportunities to achieve a better society.
Empirical Research Analysis
The Reintegration of Former Criminals into Society
The criminal justice system is integral to society, ensuring people live in harmony regardless of past mistakes. Over-policing and under-policing are criminal justice phenomena that determine how neighborhoods are protected. Research by Boehme et al. (2022) showed that policing differs in diverse neighborhoods and leads to higher recidivism rates. For example, in the black neighborhoods in Harlem, there is more police presence compared to the other white regions, leading to stereotyping and complicating the rehabilitation process. Boehme’s argument is convincing because the racialized attitudes toward policing make people from racially segregated neighborhoods who are released from prison appear as criminals and have to avoid the police to survive. Consequently, their reintegration process is jeopardized in the discourse, and most of them are re-arrested.
A seamless transition back to society from prison is a seamless process that can only be achieved when the offenders are accepted back into society without conditions. People leaving prisons are expected to undergo a mental check-up to ensure they are in sound mind. Research by Matejkowski and Ostermann (2020) proposed that all prisoners yet to be released must be enrolled in reintegration programs which will help them realize the difference between the prison and society and be made aware that their main role is to be a part of the society’s solutions in working. The programs are likely to rehabilitate the prisoners and make them responsible citizens. The authors’ arguments are sound because enrolling in the programs helps people avoid committing crimes for a second time.
The Need for Reforms
The higher recidivism rate in the USA proves reforms are inevitable to make the criminal justice system more effective in rehabilitating offenders so they do not commit crimes. A study by Skolnik (2022) posits that the criminal justice system in the USA has fundamental flaws that lead to the high rate of recidivism in males in the USA and must be addressed to ensure that criminals and offenders learn from their past mistakes and become responsible citizens in the long run. The author argues that the reforms must be four-pronged to change all the branches that need reform. The first reform needed to lower recidivism is the criminal law reform to ensure that each crime is punished effectively.
Further, the sentence must be reformed to ensure that people are sentenced following the crimes they committed in the discourse. The criminal procedure must also be reformed to ensure that people are only sentenced after they have undergone all the required procedures are exhausted. Finally, the author proposed that institutions must be reformed to emphasize rehabilitation and ensure that inmates become better people after the sentence (Sukhatme & Jenkins, 2021). The overall aim of the reforms in the criminal justice system is to ensure that the legal changes ensure that people are treated with dignity and respect as they are punished for their wrongdoings.
The Need for Mental Health Services and Rehabilitation
When people are released from custody, it is important to ensure they have the correct mental health before being released to society. Before serious cases are heard in courts, people’s mental health is checked to ensure that they committed the offense in their correct state of mind.
Similarly, Smith-Merry et al. (2019) argued that the recidivism rate may be reduced when all people undergo a mental health program after they are released from prison. Further, the challenges faced during the transition must be incorporated into a holistic program that ensures people can learn how to achieve better results. For example, the discipline of the offender should be monitored effectively to ensure that they are fully recovered before they can be released back to society.
The Role of Fairness and Justice
Fairness and justice are important pillars of the criminal justice system, and the 6th Amendment is crucial to achieving it. According to the amendment, people in the USA who commit crimes have the right to faster and speedier prosecution and are allowed to have a council to defend them. Research by Sukhatme et al. (2021) further underscored that the government must finance defense attorneys to ensure that the accused can get justice through the realms of the law.
The confrontational clause incorporated in the Sixth Amendment allows the defendants to cross-examine and question those who testify against them in court. The clause is important because it enables the people to understand the depth of their crimes and know the punishment for their ills. After the sentence, the Sixth Amendment makes the people remorseful of their crimes and therefore makes them able to overcome the challenges of recommitting the crime.
The nature of hearing impacts the transmission of the justice system. Another research by Skolnik (2022) inferred that whenever people are exposed to public trial through the Sixth Amendment, it will be marred with integrity, transparency, and openness, which makes people understand their offenses and opt to lead better lives in the discourse. It is imperative to note that whenever people transparently undergo a justice process, the public will have positive perceptions of the justice system, and there will be no cases of stereotyping. Since the Sixth Amendment ensures that the cases are exclusively evaluated, people can understand the law effectively and be aware of the wrongdoing (Smith-Merry et al., 2019). Consequently, the law will become clear, and the people will always understand the societal and legal expectations and avoid committing crimes in the discourse.
Resolutions to the High Rate of Recidivism in Men
A holistic and multifaceted approach is required to address the issue of high recidivism in males. The resolutions span different branches of the criminal justice system to ensure that offenders are well rehabilitated and not re-arrested for committing crimes again. Different branches of the social and criminal justice system have an impact or contribute to the social justice system. This paper proposes an amalgamation of criminal justice principles, theories, and rehabilitation measures to ensure that there is teamwork and adequate strategies to ensure that the criminal justice system plays a critical role in ensuring that people are not forced or lured into committing the crime again (Robinson & Landrum, 2013). Evaluating the branches of the criminal justice system to determine which ones are affected and which hinder the preservation of the criminal justice system makes it possible to offer solutions tailored to the problems affecting the people in the long run.
Involvement Branches of the Criminal Justice System
Courts
The judiciary is the foremost institution and branch impacted by hearing and determining cases of people who were once sentenced before. Sukhatme and Jenkins (2021) argue that the judicial service contributes to the increase in recidivism because it has failed to open specialized reentry courts where all the second-time and subsequent offenders are offered a personalized hearing to determine the reason behind the continued acts of breaking the law which impacts the offenders.
It can be argued that specialized sentences will be given whenever the judicial service system is reformed. The improvements ensure that it sends offenders to centers where rehabilitation services align with their crimes and follow up on their progress (Matejkowski & Ostermann, 2020). As the offenders get sentenced in areas with rehabilitation facilities, they are likely to change and shun the crimes.
A responsible judiciary that places second-time offenders in the correct rehabilitation centers ensures that people are always exposed to customized rehabilitation to make them stay off the crime after serving a sentence. Research by Parker (2018) further proposed that when all the people in the workplace undergo training on justice, fairness, and re-entry, they are likely to offer customized treatment to offenders. Recidivism is lowered in the long run when the cases are individualized, and offenders are treated based on their unique needs.
Correctional Facilities
Correctional services such as prisons and remand cells play a major role in ensuring that people have better ways of overcoming their crimes after they have been sentenced. Suppose the correctional facilities do not have training and vocational centers to empower the offenders with skills for survival. In that case, they will likely return to crime once released from jail.
The correction facilities can either help or make the offenders remain in their initial state after being apprehended. It is, therefore, the role of the correctional facilities to ensure that the offenders are equipped with adequate knowledge for self-reliance after the sentence (Watts & Hodgson, 2019). It can be proposed that correctional facilities are empowered to offer educational opportunities, counseling for mental health disorders, and holistic treatment for drug and substance abuse among the people. Once the people are well educated and counseled, they are expected to understand the challenges and, therefore, avoid the mistakes they committed because of the effectiveness of the correctional facility.
Law Enforcement Agencies
Law enforcement agencies either facilitate or ensure that the people released from custody seamlessly transition into society. Community policing may be racialized to be done in some neighborhoods, which makes offenders from the regions feel nervous about the police presence. As stated earlier, over-policing and under-policing in neighborhoods determine the recidivism rates in the neighborhoods.
When the police and other law enforcement agencies are empowered and made to work well with the community through collaboration, it will be possible to help the offenders reintegrate into society (Smith-Merry et al., 2019). For example, the police should have a list of all the people released from custody and ensure that they are coping with the reintegration and supervise them to ensure they are not coerced into the vice. Post-release observation and supervision are essential to ensuring the people released from jail are supported to reintegrate into society (Dvoskin et al., 2020). The police can offer a second chance certificate like what is being done in Arizona to ensure that the people have a seamless reentry, such as accessing employment opportunities in society for survival.
Criminal and Social Justice Theories and Landmark Cases
Rehabilitation Theory
Social and criminal justice theories form an important basis in resolving the high recidivism cases in the USA and other parts of the world. The rehabilitation theory shares that people must transform when admitted into correctional facilities. Consequently, there should be personalized plans to ensure that people are aware of their offenses and their impact on society, agree to stay away from vices, and ensure that people are always treated with dignity.
Due Process Doctrine
The due process doctrine was applied in the Gideon vs. Wainwright case, where the judges emphasized the importance of legal representation and fair trial (Marcus & Backus, 2020). The ruling ensured that there was a seamless reentry into society and that the people would be accepted and given a chance to get employment and other benefits. The doctrine of due process, as witnessed in the landmark case, proves that accountable court processes and hearings enable people to gain a seamless reentry into society and that they will be able to overcome the challenges.
Restorative Justice
Restorative justice is a unique phenomenon where the criminal justice system gives a chance to the people who are harmed and those who take responsibility to talk about the issues and agree on a better way of life going forward. For example, a person who steals is apprehended and punished before being released and reintegrated into society. If the root cause of the stealing is not addressed in correctional facilities, there will be a higher probability that the person will re-offend to find a way of surviving (Criminal et al.).
Restorative justice proposes that offenders are given a second chance to learn from their mistakes, ensure that offender accountability is assured and that all the reasons for committing the crimes are understood and resolved. For example, suppose joblessness made a person resort to crime. In that case, they should be given another opportunity to learn a career that will enable them to earn a living after the sentence ends. The application of restorative justice ensures that offenders are healed and educated and, therefore, experience a seamless reentry into society, which enhances a way of reducing recidivism in society.
The Process of Addressing Human Rights, Solidarity, Fairness, and Social Equality
Courts
The high recidivism rate may be reduced by ensuring that the criminal justice system can address and promote fairness, equity, human rights, and solidarity to ensure that all prisoners released are successfully reintegrated into society. The three different arms of the social and criminal justice systems all have a way of ensuring that people are reintegrated into society after serving their sentences. The judiciary, for example, can improve human rights by offering customized help to individuals; they are likely to get better assistance in the court systems. For example, whenever the magistrates, probation officers, and other community workers collaborate to ensure that the cases are well investigated and reentry courts formed, a unique approach will be used for every specific behavior of the individuals (Bureau of Justice Statistics, n.d.).
Consequently, their rights, human rights, and solidarity will be achieved in the long run. When individualized and holistic approaches are taken, it will be noteworthy that every case will be resolved through justice and social equality. Therefore, people will learn about their previous crimes and avoid them going forward.
Correctional Facilities
Correctional facilities play a major role in ensuring people get justice and dignity. Once people are arraigned in court and sentenced, it is important to analyze every crime committed and ensure adequate treatment. For example, if a person is charged with theft, the root cause is to be identified, and the person is offered an opportunity to overcome the challenge through training (Boehme et al., 2022). Further, treating with dignity is fundamental to making the person appreciate that the community will coexist in peace if the given laws and statutes are observed.
Social inequality can be covered in correctional facilities (Skolnik, 2022). For example, if the people apprehended have no education to cater to their needs, they should receive training in their preferred area of specialization. For example, a petty thief jailed for stealing food in a restaurant may be assisted by being offered an educational equivalent such as plumbing. Once released, they are offered a certificate of a second chance; they are likely to find gainful employment and, therefore, start fending for their needs instead of stealing.
Law Enforcement Agencies
Law enforcement agencies may address the issues of inequality, human rights, solidarity, and overall fairness by embracing collaboration with other players in society. Since the challenge of recidivism is caused by various branches of the criminal justice system, a more holistic approach is needed. An example is partnering with religious institutions, non-profit organizations, and social services to ensure that all people and legal counsel can be heard. Since the collaborative approach helps the released offenders feel a sense of belonging to the community, they will likely overcome all the challenges affecting them in the long run (Stevenson, 2012).
When there is a community-oriented approach in the reintegration process, the barriers will be broken, the social stigma and stereotyping associated with the offense will be broken, and the people will have an opportunity to live within the society and avoid the crimes. The acceptance, continuous follow-up, and post-release support by law enforcement agencies will enable the individuals to overcome all forms of neglect and the recidivism rate in society. Consequently, the overstraining of the criminal and social justice system resources will be reduced.
Sociocultural Variables and the Contemporary Criminal and Social Justice System
Poverty
The high recidivism rate among men in society is greatly affected by sociocultural variables, which can be reduced when the factors are addressed. The contemporary social and cultural justice system can reduce recidivism by working on sociocultural variables such as poverty, racism, and religion. The poverty cycle is a major determinant of social behaviors in society, and people often engage in crime as a last resort towards aiming to survive. Poverty-stricken neighborhoods like Harlem have higher crime rates (Robinson & Landrum, 2013). Consequently, jailing the culprits without resolving their challenge will lead to repeated cycles of crimes as the people struggle to survive.
The criminal justice system and society should work towards reducing poverty by ensuring all people have equal access to education and training facilities to get better services. Therefore, correctional services must overcome poverty by ensuring that all offenders undergo mandatory vocational training and get placed into employment after leaving the organization (Zgoba et al., 2020). The post-release impact is reduced when the criminals are educated and allowed to work. As poverty levels are reduced among the offenders, recidivism will automatically reduce.
Racism
Racism is an important factor that impacts people’s ability to overcome criminal activities. After the release, the way the police service treats the post-offenders is likely to determine the likelihood of people returning to their crimes. Racial discrimination in policing has a significant impact on the rate of recidivism. When black neighborhoods and other minorities experience over-policing, they are bound to increase the recidivism rate. Instead of over-policing the neighborhoods based on the inhabitants’ race, the recidivism rate will rise.
The criminal justice system, through the police, will ensure that there are just sentences. The reentry programs are culturally sensitive and likely to enhance better ways of overcoming the rate at which people return to crime (Oudekerk & Kaeble, 2021). When there is equal treatment among all the people in society, the police, regardless of their race, will be treated equally, and recidivism will be reduced.
Religion and Culture
Religion and culture play a significant role in shaping people’s behavior. Whenever the reentry programs are culturally insensitive or show any stereotyping, people will likely disregard it and return to crime. However, when the reintegration programs consider all the people’s cultures and their ability to reform, it will achieve a more equal society with fewer crimes in the long run. For example, counseling services be provided in all languages so that even minorities have access to the services for effective reintegration into society.
Spiritual support is likely to connect the offenders to their creator and decide to embrace morals (Yukhnenko et al., 2019). The religious institutions, therefore, must be involved in the reintegration process to connect the lives of the people and the required positive morals. When religious institutions are involved in the integration process, there will be reduced profiling, stigma, and stereotyping; hence, recidivism will be eliminated.
Conclusion
Recidivism among males in the USA is a multifaceted problem requiring a comprehensive approach. It requires compassion for the offenders and thoroughly examining the intricate factors that lead to it. The first step is to explore all the principles of social justice and ensure that all people are treated with respect and dignity. Further, the criminal justice system ensures it focuses more on rehabilitation and restoring the offender’s law-abiding behavior.
Both branches of the criminal justice system must work together to ensure people have a second chance. The success of the programs can be witnessed in states such as Arizona, which has invested heavily in holistic reintegration programs and certificates of a second chance to ensure that the offenders have a chance to better their lives without crime.
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