Tackling the real cause of recidivism
It is no secret that one of the main causes of recidivism is a lack of opportunities for recently released offenders. As I’ve stated before, I’d like to see states take steps to ensure that, upon release, offenders have access to housing and jobs. If we provide them with a support system, then the need to turn to crime is greatly diminished.
So it makes me happy to see that one city is trying an innovative tactic. Philadelphia’s mayor announced today that employers would receive a $10,000 tax credit for hiring ex-cons.
Mayor Michael Nutter announced a program, being headed by an ex-offender, that gives $10,000 a year in municipal tax credits to companies that hire former prisoners and provide them tuition support or vocational training.
This is a fantastic program and one that should encourage more employers to hire ex-cons. Speak to any ex-con and you will hear stories of countless interviews, empty promises and, in the end, rejection, despair and frustration.
I can understand the point of view of employers, don’t get me wrong. People are hesitant to hire ex-convicts, because of the stigma. But that’s like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg. If ex-cons, who are willing to make a change in their lives, who want to make that change, aren’t given any opportunities, then they will get lumped in with those that have no such aspirations. They won’t get jobs, they won’t have housing or insurance or any money earned legally. Something’s gotta give and what better way to entice businesses than with money.
The scope of the ex-offender problem in Philadelphia was detailed in a report last fall that showed about 40,000 former inmates return to the city annually from federal, state and local incarceration.
At any given time, according to the study by the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice, the city of 1.4 million is home to 200,000 to 400,000 ex-cons, many in need of not only jobs but also education, health care and addiction counseling.
The study cites federal statistics showing that nearly two out of every three inmates released from state or federal prison are expected to be rearrested within three years.
This volume cannot be sustained. There has to be a way to provide opportunites for these masses and to curb recidivism. The savings in prison costs also warrant a mention. Let’s hope this program succeeds and that other states follow suit.
No state needs such an innovative program more than CT. Almost half the inmates in CT prisons are incarcerated for a violation of probation. I wouldn’t be surprised if more than half of those inmates returned to a crime for lack of legal employment.
One can hope.
| Print article | This entry was posted by Gideon on May 28, 2008 at 8:32 pm, and is filed under inmate issues, prison overcrowding, psa. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site. |
about 3 years ago
What about the crushing tort liability and insurance coverage rules that come from hiring ex-cons. Of course, to fix that would interfere with the tort bar, a friend of Dems. We can’t have that, can we?
about 2 years ago
The true cause of recidivism in most cases is temperment. There are those who can undergo the rigors of the free world and persevere, and there are those who cannot (or will not) patiently persevere. Some are too proud to take advantage of assistance afforded to them through government aid, others are never made aware of these programs to begin with. Ultimately it still is dependant on the individual whether or not he (or she) will get public assistance, and try to secure legitimate income through perseverance or grow impatient with the whole affair and take income illegitimately. Drugs can bring the catalyst for this decision in a shorter period of time.
about 1 year ago
Here we are again debating the basis of Nature vs. nurture. Are we disposed to crime biologically, or are we placed in situations in which crime is seen as the only way out? the cause of recidivism is a bit of temperament and a lot of environment. Even the best person, if they are continuously rejected for jobs and housing, will be forced to turn to crime to survive. Even with recent bill being put through in the State of VA, drug offenders cannot receive most welfare, and as such have to find some other kind of income. Consider a man who gets out of jail for a drug offense, in an economy such as ours, in a rural area. There are few jobs available, if any. How is he to survive once his time at a halfway house is done? If he even was able to get into a halfway house. Ex-cons need opportunities, same as the rest of us. If they screw up, they go back. But without the chance of success, failure is all that remains.