Prisoner Reentry as Secondary Crime Prevention

Abstract

When thinking about crime deterrence, most people think of primary crime prevention or addressing criminogenic factors early in life to prevent the onset of criminal behavior (Sutton et al. in Crime prevention: principles, perspectives, and practices. Cambridge University Press, New York, 2013). What is equally important to public safety, however, is secondary crime prevention, or our ability to deter the continuation or escalation of criminal behavior. Prisoner reentry programs are but one form of secondary crime prevention currently endorsed by correctional administrators, criminologists, and parole agents (Travis and Petersilia in Crime and Delinquency 47(3):291, 2001). “[Prisoner] Reentry is the process by which individuals return to communities from prison or jail custody” (Thompson in Releasing prisoners, redeeming communities: reentry, race, and politics. New York City Press, New York, 2008, 1), and programs are intended to provide a seamless transition back into society by working with inmates while still institutionalized to prepare them for obtaining housing and employment, reunite with family, and address their addictions within the community (Draine and Herman in J Community Correct 20(1):11–18, 2010). The topic of this chapter focuses on effective reentry and addresses the components of the reentry process, what makes reentry programs “effective, what are the barriers in the reentry process, and how can reentry programs become more “effective” at deterring reoffending.