Successful Reintegration Among Women Offenders: Article Analysis

women has increased significantly, increasing at a rate double to the rate of male incarceration since 1980 (Covington & Bloom, 2006). Braithwaite, Treadwell and Arriola note that incarcerated women have historically been a forgotten population, and despite the rapid growth of the population, their needs have continued to be ignored (2005). In addition to the stigma that comes with being or having been incarcerated,

Since the mid 80’s, the number of women incarcerated has tripled.The majority of women incarcerated are unskilled, impoverished and disproportionately women of color. As a result, African American children are nine times more likely to have a parent in prison than a White child.

Women have been fighting for equal rights for decades. And, as of a result of this, have gained many equal rights. But are those rights just supposed to disappear when a woman gets incarcerated, and at what price does it cost that woman, to get her rights back, or does she ever get them back? The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world, and with each year the percentage of women that make up that rate, are growing. According to Statistics on Women Offenders- 2015. (1997), “Since 2010, the female jail population has been the fastest growing correctional population, increasing by an average annual rate of 3.4 percent”. It also states that, in 2013, women made up 17% of the jail population, and 25% of probation population in the U.S. Not only have these numbers been steadily rising, but of those incarcerated, approximately 77% are likely to reoffend (p.1). This has risen quite a concern in society today. Why is there such a high chance that incarcerated women will likely reoffend? At a micro level, is it the fault of the woman? Or, a larger issue at the macro level, with society, laws, policies, and loss of the most basic rights that every citizen should be entitled to? According to Pinto, Rahman, & Williams. (2014), incarcerated women need help meeting individual needs when they are released, such as, reducing drug or alcohol use, finding a job, health issues, as well as help in dealing with the impact of

Very little work has focused on studying recidivism by offenders after punishment and how prevention measures may improve recidivism rates and affect cooperation. “National recidivism rates are at an estimated amount of 73% and of the whole jail population 42.5% are women” (Berenji, 2014, p.131). As you can see about half of the inhabitants of the jails are women; so recidivism is an ongoing issue that needs to be solved. Recidivism is a growing distress in the U.S today, not only with men but women as well. Not many studies have been steered towards women reverting back to crime as there are men, but it is a concern. It is impossible to make this issue disappear fully, but with fundamental changes the

The study of recidivism amongst women in prison is important because most research focuses on the male population. The reasons for the “revolving door” phenomenon are different for women; therefore, their treatment should be more gender focused and specific to their needs. Judging by the rates at which women recidivate, you could assume that somewhere along the way the system has failed them. What role does drug use, motherhood, mental health, physical, sexual, and mental abuse play in the recidivism of female inmates?

Given grim post-release arrest rates, it’s hard to understand why our government is not doing more to help those transitioning from incarceration to life on the outside. It doesn’t make sense for taxpayer dollars to go towards incarcerating people over and over – it seems that the money could be better spent improving rehabilitation programs for inmates. Increased funding for programs aimed at helping former inmates transition to life on the outside would likely lead to better outcomes for those individuals, fewer crimes being committed, and lower recidivism rates. One would hope that our society would want to see people who are incarcerated serve their time, get rehabilitated, get released, and become productive members of their communities.

However, evidence indicates that growing incarceration has significantly increased poverty and negatively impacts the socioeconomic opportunities for prisoner’s families upon release (Wacquant, 2010). Because African-American men are disproportionately incarcerated, increased numbers of African-American women have increased ties to prison members. The result is that African-American women disproportionately experience the effects that mass incarceration produces on social and economic success. African-American women are forced to struggle with the economic loss and stresses caused by mass incarceration and poverty (DeFina and Hannon, 2013).

Ex-offenders face many challenges after being released into society after prison. This prolonged issue has gone on for quite some time in the United States, and it has been since recent decade that the United States has discovered reentry for prisoners (Johnson & Cullen, 2015). In 2007, the Second Chance Act of 2007 was introduced to break the cycle of recidivism; to rebuild ties between offenders and their families before and after incarcerated to encourage and support offenders; to protect the public; to provide and promote law-abiding conduct; to assist offenders in establishing a self-sustaining and law-abiding life providing sufficient transition

Not many prison facilities provide educational and vocational training, leaving women unprepared to successfully transition to the community following their release.

Second Chances-Stanhope House is a non-profit residential facility for women ex-offenders located in Norfolk, VA. Second Chances was established in 1999, sponsored by the city of Norfolk, and operating under the organizational umbrella of The Garden of Hope, Inc. This program is designed to assist non-violent women ex-offenders with transitional supportive services that lead to economic and social stability. “Since 1990, the number of women in America’s jails and prisons has tripled. The number of women on probation nearly doubled from 1990 to 2003, while the number on parole more than doubled. Considered collectively, the needs of thousands of women transitioning from some form of correctional confinement to the community

Joan Petersilia’s article focuses on the consequences society and the individual face after prisoners are released into the community because of limited rehabilitation programs and parole services. The consequences are caused by policy makers not giving attention to newly released inmates because they ignore parole services. This is partially because rehabilitation programs and the parole system are scarcely funded. The lack of services results in everyone being effected by employment and economic well being, mental and physical health, homelessness, etc. Petersilia states the responsibilities of a parole officer is to enforce the conditions of the prisoner’s release. Unfortunately, there are a limited number of parole officers to fulfill

The documentary film provided for this assignment focused on the Wayne County Correction System located in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit has been characterized as a city under siege. The city is notoriously known for having one of the highest homicide rates, rapid street crimes, and prison system filled with citizens. In the film, the psychoanalyst emphasized that Wayne County Jail is targeting female offenders that are recidivist, full of rage, and simply out of control. The correction system is perceived to be the “last hope” for many of the female offenders because their life of criminality could lead to life long prison sentences or even worse death. Many of the women are in the film have been convicted of robberies, drug trafficking, prostitution,

Adjusting to life after incarceration can be a very long and difficult process to overcome. There are many obstacles people face when returning home for the first time in years. Most people generally come home to nothing and have to try to make a life out of it. As an ex-con you face stigma, lack of opportunities and the constant risk of recidivism. Recidivism is the ongoing cycle of incarceration. You continue to be in and out of prison because you cannot successfully re-transition into society. This topic is worth investigating because recidivism is a current problem in the United States and it usually takes place because the justice system fails to prepare their inmates for what life will be like. Rehabilitation is key and because there is a lack of that there is a lack of success in offenders returning home. Young adults should be aware of recidivism because they can easily be sucked into the system and this can happen to them. They can find themselves in a position where they end up in prison and fall victim to recidivism. Questions that will guide this research include:

n environment constructed to diminish the idea of self-worth and freedom, women attempt to recreate a better version of themselves while confronting the disparities between men and women in the criminal justice system. Unless sentenced for life, inmates will eventually be released from the place holding them in captivity for their crimes. Prison, however, should not just be a place that contains convicts, but it should be a place that teaches the rules of a civilized person and it should do so fairly. It may seem unjust to feel the need to bring such uniformity to a group of people, but, as far as anyone knows, once released, being a prisoner was just a label and they need to be able to adapt to a normal life. Without simple rights, such as equality in prison, incarcerated women will never be able to learn what is necessary to sustain life outside of bars based on their unique needs. If they cannot learn or adapt, prison is just a punishment. When it comes to the concept of gender equality, it is commonly applauded. However, these women should hold their applause and reconsider the logic that equal may not always mean fair.

Penal Studies for Professional Practice “Women in prison face greater resettlement problems than men on release”. Examine this statement and use research and academic writing and your own practice to find evidence to support or disprove this statement. The purpose of this essay is to support of disprove the statement “women in prison face greater resettlement problems than men on release”. Research undertaken on the resettlement of female and male offenders has highlighted that little information currently exists.