The Issue

In the United States, nearly 700,000 people are released from prison each year—and an estimated 9 million individuals are released from jail.¹ These men and women often return to high-crime communities that are ill-equipped to receive and support them. In fact, nearly two-thirds of the people released from U.S. prisons will be re-arrested within three years.² Policymakers across the country are exploring innovative responses to this pressing problem, including turning to law enforcement to encourage individuals' successful reentry from prison to the community and to ensure public safety.

The Response

The Council of State Governments Justice Center has partnered with the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) to develop resources that promote law enforcement involvement in reentry initiatives. Project staff have developed a user-friendly toolkit to help law enforcement leaders and their partners analyze which aspects of their practices and policies are effective in addressing prisoner reentry and how they can improve upon their efforts. This toolkit includes a policy guide and corresponding assessment questions and related resources, and project staff are currently developing an interactive, web-based version.

In an effort to expand the knowledge base for law enforcement agencies interested in starting or enhancing a reentry effort, the Justice Center/PERF team will select four agencies to serve as "learning sites." These agencies will receive on-site and off-site assistance in implementing selected core strategies the toolkit discussed above. The lessons learned from the technical assistance work and other information-gathering efforts will provide valuable information to the field about specific aspects of difficult-to-execute law enforcement reentry activities.

To learn more about the Justice Center's law enforcement reentry initative, click here.

Contact

Laura Draper
Research Associate
Council of State Governments Justice Center
ldraper@csg.org
tel: (646) 383-5722
fax: (212) 482-2344

¹ W.J. Sabol, T.D. Minton and P.M. Harrison, Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2006, U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics (Washington, D.C.: 2007), available at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/pjim06.pdf; Allen J. Beck, "The Importance of Successful Reentry to Jail Population Growth," presented at the Urban Institute Reentry Roundtable, June 27, 2006, Washington, D.C.

² Patrick A. Langan and David J. Levin, Recidivism of Prisoners Released in 1994, U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics (Washington, D.C.: 2002), NCJ 193427.