Introduction
The return of ex-offenders into the community and their establishment in society is one of the correction system’s critical challenges. The rate of re-entry success depends on various factors and is associated with particular risks and issues. This paper aims to discuss the problems that might occur during the offender’s re-entry into the community and possible actions implemented by the corrections system and members of society to ensure this transition.
Risks and Problems of Offender Re-entry
There are multiple risks and problems associated with offender re-entry into the community. They include reincarceration risks, health problems, substance abuse, lack of necessary qualifications, and education, resulting in employment and housing deficits (National Institute of Justice, 2018). These challenges are typically determined for groups of inmates by screening and assessing their future criminal behavior with the Risk-Needs-Responsivity (RNR) model, which has already shown significant results in reducing recidivism. It assesses risks based on the previous arrest history, determines needs and deficits that an ex-offender might face, and offers interventions to respond to the identified risks and needs (Hunter et al., 2016). Moreover, apart from the RNR, other models allow the assessment of ex-offender’s strengths and “focus on identifying assets and building on those assets to promote positive change” (Hunter et al., 2016, p. 1301). However, while specialists can relatively quickly determine the risks and problems, addressing these issues effectively is still a significant challenge.
Measures and Actions of the Corrections System
The corrections system is currently providing several initiatives that address offenders’ needs in re-entering their communities. They are the Serious and Violent Offender Re-entry Initiative (SCORI) and the Second Chance Act (SCA), which have been moderately successful in decreasing the number of post-release arrests and improving partnerships with community agencies (National Institute of Justice, 2018, p. 2). Moreover, since the early 2000s, researchers and the National Institute of Justice have been working on the “What Works” paradigm to determine the most effective and promising programs to be implemented on the national level (James, 2015). Furthermore, to address particular risks and problems, correctional facilities all over the country are offering a wide range of prison-based education, employment, therapy, chemical dependency treatment, and social support programs (Duwe, 2017). However, while all these measures have shown their effectiveness as they provide incarcerated people with necessary life skills, the low number of successful re-entries shows that they are not enough and demand more resources and additional community assistance.
The Community Assistance
Community assistance is crucial in helping the newly released inmates to re-establish themselves in society. However, while the support of the public is vital, “community across the country have vocalized their opinions against programs that encourage a return of offenders back to “our” community” (Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2015, p. 5). Therefore, the first step in this direction is to transform public opinion and provide wider opportunities for those members of the public who are willing to help. It can be done by increasing support for the programs to assist ex-offenders with re-entry into society, offering incentives for companies willing to employ people with a criminal record, and promoting community work by emphasizing the importance of ex-offender integration for public safety.
Conclusion
The acknowledgment of the challenges that ex-inmates face upon their re-entry into the community is crucial for society. This transition’s success depends on the effective assessment of needs, providing necessary preparatory prison-based training, and ensuring a sufficient amount of community support. The holistic approach to the program will allow guaranteeing the reestablishment of individuals with criminal records back into society and a decrease in recidivism.
References
Bureau of Justice Assistance. (2015). Building an offender reentry program: A guide for law enforcement. Web.
Duwe, G. (2017). The use and impact of correctional programming for inmates on pre- and post-release outcomes. National Institute of Justice. Web.
Hunter, B. A., Lanza, A. S., Lawloe, M., Dyson, W., & Gordon, D.M. (2016). A strengths-based approach to prisoner reentry: The fresh start prisoner reentry program. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 60(11), 1298-1314. Web.
James, N. (2015). Offender reentry: Correctional statistics, reintegration into the community, and recidivism. Federation of American Scientists. Web.
National Institute of Justice. (2018). An overview of offender reentry. Web.