Just the Facts: Re-Entry

 

Only 66% of prisoners were employed (full or part time) in the month before their current arrest.[2]

 

50% (of people leaving prison) had earned less than $600 a month before imprisonment. [3]

 

Of convicted jail inmates, 2/3 were actively involved with drugs before admission and slightly more than 1/3 were using drugs or alcohol at the time of the offense.[4]

 

 

 

 

 

In 2003, American taxpayers spent $63 billion on corrections, compared with $9 billion in 1982.[5]

 

46% of men in prison ages 18 – 34 have a high school diploma or equivalent vs. 82% in the general population.[6]

 

The incidence of serious mental illness (schizophrenia, major depression, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder) is two to four times higher among prisoners than the general population.[7]

 

 

Approximately 2/3 of all people released from U.S. prisons are projected to be re-arrested within three years of release.[8]

 

Recidivism rates are 20 to 60% lower for prisoners who have participated in a range of prison programs such as education, vocation and work programs.[9]

 

50% of prisoners who had no visits their final year in prison were re-arrested their first year on parole, but only 30% of prisoners who had three visits their final year in prison were re-arrested the first year on parole.[10]