CHAPTER TEN:Reentry into the Community

Learning Objectives

1. Understand the nature of parole and how it operates today.2. Be familiar with the origins of parole. 3. Understand how the release decision is made. 4. Explain the steps taken to ease the offender’s reentry into the community.5. Identify the major problems confronting parolees.6. Understand why some parolees are viewed as dangerous and how society handles this

problem.

Brief Chapter Outline

I. Release from One Part of the System to Another

II. The Origins of Parole

III. Release Mechanisms a. Discretionary Release b. Mandatory Release c. Probation Release d. Reinstatement Releasee. Other Conditional Releasesf. Expiration Release

IV. The Decision to Release a. Procedure

b. Release Criteriac. Structuring Parole Decisionsd. The Impact of Release Mechanisms

V. Release to the Community a. Community Supervision b. Revocation

VI. Agents of Community Supervision

VII. The Offender’s Experience of Postrelease Lifea. The Strangeness of Reentryb. Supervision and Surveillancec. The Problem of Unmet Personal Needs

d. Barriers to Success

VIII. The Parolee as “Dangerous”

IX. The Elements of Successful Reentry

X. What Are Parole’s Prospects?

Media Tools

http://www.wpaonline.org/pdf/WPA_FightingChance.pdfThis article discusses the difficulties associated with women released on parole including the public assistance system, the child welfare system, housing assistance, health care and substance abuse treatment, and immigration.

http://www.lac.org/roadblocks-to-reentry/upload/lacreport/LAC_PrintReport.pdfThis PDF article discusses the difficulties that people with criminal records face upon reentry to society. It discusses the specific restrictions on employment, public assistance, voting, public housing, driver’s licenses, student loans, etc…

http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=tp&tid=15This website provides students access about statistical information and publications about community corrections in the United States.

The Farm: Angola, USAThis documentary depicts the day to day life in Angola Prison, a prison farm in Louisiana. It also goes into detail about one inmate who is facing the parole board. Students will see the types of questions that inmates are asked when facing the parole board in addition to the mindset of the parole board in the decision making process to grant parole or not.

What If…You are on the parole board in your state. In front of you is an inmate who is eligible for parole after serving 10 years of a sentence that ranges from 10 to 20 years. What information would you need about this inmate to make a decision? What factors are important to you in considering the inmate for parole? Are there any crimes that you believe should never be parole eligible?