Rehabilitate Offenders

The USA has a higher percentage of its citizens behind bars than any other nation. Our crime rate is higher than that of any other advanced nation. Among the leading industrialized nations our murder rate is 3-1/2 times higher than the second place nation, Italy. The majority of persons released from prison in the US- estimates run as high as 70%- are convicted of new crimes within five years. These are statistics that are very real. My purpose is to research and determine if a convicted criminal can be rehabilitated. We will take this opportunity to further delve into the controversial world of rehabilitation for the “outcast dredges” of our

More than 700,000 prisoners are discharged from Federal and state prison every year, while another nine million cycle through regional prisons. Surprisingly, more than two-thirds of these inmates are arrested again within three years of their discharge and many of them end up reincarcerated (White House, 2011). Such high rates of relapse and recidivism are adding a huge burden on the current criminal justice system, calling for the public support for improvements and promotion of effective offender reentry programs in local communities.

That the rates of imprisonment and criminal justice supervision have grown significantly in America is no longer a surprise to anyone. What has become one of America’s invincible elephant and unspoken problems is another form of criminal sanction, the network of laws that limit the rights and privileges of ex-offenders. These sanctions, called "invisible punishment," range from barriers to public housing for drug offenders to lifetime registration requirements for sex offenders. These sanctions reduce the chances of successful reintegration for ex-offenders.

Additionally, the inmates are being taught to redeem themselves in prison by earning a degree, becoming substance abuse counselors, working outside of the prisons on the highways and streets and they are training dogs for the community to adopt from shelters, but this is not always a sign of being rehabilitated. Prisoners can show a good side to them in the prison, but be a completely different person on the outside of those barbed wire fences. People truly who want to change will, but those that have been in and out of the system are not going to change their behavior or minds. Some parolees will reoffend just to get back into the prison, as it is the only life that they know. Kroll argues the point that the prison system and officials depend on their livelihood to be meant by these prisoners

The definition of rehabilitation according to professor Mona Lynch, is “any discourse or practices that speak transforming or normalizing the criminal into a socially defined non-deviant citizen, including psychological programs, drug treatment programs, educational and work-training programs, work and housing placement assistance, and halfway houses.” This definition of rehabilitation is unique because it focuses on outcomes, encompasses an array of inmate services, and is more multidimensional than any of the preceding works. I believe that prisoners should be treated with exactly the same degree of respect and kindness as we would hope they would show to others after they return to society. People learn by example. The Timelist program showed that offenders hearing from ex-offenders who are on the outside and are doing well is very powerful. These rehabilitation programs; The Timelist, Edovo, and the GreenHouse Program all provide evidence to support the Prison Rehabilitation Act of 1965, which devoted full attention exclusively to the crime problem in the U.S. and the high numbers of population in our prisons, by providing more flexible rehabilitation programs. It would be beneficial to every man, women, and child in America, if we were to continue providing resources for existing rehabilitation

The courts are reducing punishment for non-violent offenders by putting them in rehabilitation programs (Berenji, B., Chou, T., & D'Orsogna, 2014).The reintegration will help these offenders to become new are whole again. However, resources may be limited these offenders should be offered the chance to participate in these programs. There are lots people who have been locked upon returning back into society it is hard for them to get a job, therefore, they go back to their life of crime. The people that are not violent criminals should at least be given a second chance. The program recidivism constituted studies by researchers to see if it has helped habitual offenders in becoming complete again (Rice, & Harris, 2014). Nevertheless, some may fall back into the system simply these intervention programs will be a great success for the ones who truly want to change their lives. The implementing of these programs is no guarantee that the convicts will not continue to violate the law. The statistic shows that age and sexual violent is a predictor of recidivism. The three strike law is ridiculous because stealing can be an addiction just like drugs are (Bohm, R. M. & Haley, 2011). The cons to the three strike law are that lots children that will grow up without their parents. The non-violent offenders should have mentors to help them get a job and put them in rehabilitation programs to reach the core of their addiction. The pros to this three strike law are that it will help some people to

I chose an article from the US National Library of Medicine and the National Institute of Health. The title of the article is Predicting recidivism for released state prison offenders. Since I started my career in law enforcement, it seems like our detention facility has always been a revolving door. Our detention center routinely interacts and deals with the same offenders. Recidivism is an issue that affects our entire nation. This article was written by Gerald Stahler in February 2016.

Rehabilitative programs that are focused on the principles of effective intervention are able to target the known factors of recidivism thereby necessitating change and also enabling the incorporation of cognitive or behavioral treatments to reinforce the behavior of the criminal offender by eliminating criminal thinking patterns. Principles of effective intervention ensure that rehabilitative programs are able to take into account the various characteristics of offenders which would affect their response to rehabilitative treatments. Various rehabilitation programs such as vocational and academic education, community based programs; moral recognition therapy and behavioral treatment programs have proved to be effective in reducing recidivism among released convicts. It has also been noted that these programs were effective in treating criminal offenders as they mostly focused on their behavior and the contributing factors

With more than “2 million people” (B, "Rehabilitate or Punish") incarcerated in the United States, it’s a wonder how rehabilitation can possibly be a factor anymore in United States Prison. However, at one point rehabilitation or reform was the main goal up “until the mid-1970” (B, "Rehabilitate or Punish"). So why is rehabilitation no longer an objective? Is it the overabundance of prisoners in the system? Or that the public’s approach on crime has changed from understanding to tough and preventive. In this case Jonathan Wayne Nobles fate was decided based on society’s lapsed views on incarceration, lack of knowledge of mental disorders, as well as the non-apparent recognition of positive change in

Obligations the criminal justice system beyond containment, prosecution and punishment in my opinion would be to work on rehabilitating the offender. This can be a very difficult task at times. For one, funding is an issue to incorporate programs into the prison system.

The likelihood of an offender being rehabilitated is very unlikely for the simple fact that most offenders, once they have been convicted of a crime and served their sentence they will become a repeat offender. This means they are more likely to commit that same crime again or different crime. Once an offender gets the mindset to commit a crime they will follow through with it, because in their mind no one will be able to stop them. This is not saying that an offender can not be rehabilitated, because they can. If an offender is given the right punishment it is likely they can serve their sentence and never commit another crime. Rehabilitating a criminal is much like medical rehabilitation if given the right treatment to someone that is sick

never implemented as intended. Although the contours of the correctional system changed—the juvenile court, indeterminate sentencing, probation, parole, and discretion became integral features of this system—the resources and knowledge needed to provide effective treatment to offenders were in short supply. Cullen and Gendreau (2000).

Rehabilitation has shown positive results concerning repeat offenders. When a person received rehabilitative treatment, designed for that person, the chances they will re-offend decrease. However, so few of the prisons offer the type of rehabilitation required to reduce re-incarceration rates. There aren 't enough workers to develop a plan for each inmate, and generic rehabilitation plans don 't always work. We use our prison system to exact justice on offenders. This creates a vicious cycle -- someone breaks the law and is sent to prison, because they do not get rehabilitative treatment, they re-offend when they get out of prison, and the cycle continues until the person gets a sentence that leaves them behind bars for a long period of time, or they commit a crime so heinous that they must spend the rest of their life in prison.

With the highest incarcerated rate in the world, does the United States prison systems offer quality rehabilitation or just punishment? According to data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, there was approximately 706 prisoners per 100,000 residents, or about 2.2 million prisoners in 2012 and within 3 years, almost 6 out of 10 released inmates will be rearrested and half will be back in prison. According to data from www.gpo.gov , the vast majority of prisoners are not rehabilitated. Two-thirds of released prisoners are re-arrested and one-half are re-incarcerated within three years of release from prison. Rates of recidivism rise to approximately 75%-85% of released prisoners are likely to be re-arrested within a decade of release. Successful rehabilitation is vital when releasing an inmate into the community as it produces a significant reduction in criminal recidivism. The purpose of incarceration is to protect the public and punish as well as rehabilitate the criminal. It is designed to change an inmate's view of life and alter their future behavior when re-entering society. Prisons offer education, labor, and other rehabilitation sources to inmates, so why is the recidivism rate so high with these programs in place?

Partner abuse treatment programs were created to educate and provide prevention and intervention information for men and women who batter. In addition, they provide a comprehensive approach to the physical and mental health needs of those who abuse (Conklin, 2004). Statistics show that African Americans have a lower domestic enrollment and completion rate in these types of programs than their White counterparts. This is because most treatment programs are not culturally specific. The approach followed by most domestic violence treatment centers can best be described by the public health model.