|
|
|
Stories of those Affected |
 Print
The following comments are from testimony before the Committe on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Corrections and Rehabilitation, United States Senate on September 21, 2006:
Mr. Mason Bishop
There is a great need in this country for programs to assist prisoners returning home to their communities. Each year more than 650,000 inmates are released from Federal and State prisons and return to their communities and families. The return of these ex-prisoners challenges many of the most troubled neighborhoods in America. Without help, a majority of ex-prisoners do in fact return to criminal activity. For example, according to the U.S. Department of Justice, almost three out of five inmates returning to society will be charged with crimes within three years of their release from prison and two out of five will be re-incarcerated.
Released prisoners face myriad challenges that contribute to a return to criminal activity, re-arrest, and re-incarceration. Joblessness among ex-prisoners has been broadly linked to recidivism rates. Statistics demonstrate that even before incarceration, adult prisoners demonstrate weak or non-existent ties to the workforce. Data show that nearly one-third of adult prisoners were unemployed in the month before their arrest.1 Post-incarceration, unemployment among ex-prisoners has been estimated at between 25 and 40 percent
|
|
