Prison and Parole

CJ 365 1 April 2013 tidings In Society Last year, 77% of pris acers sleddingd from incarceration were ceased through and in to a form of union and haughty oversight c alled discussion. Parole is the conditional release from confinement of a soul luck an indeterminate sen cardinalce (department of corrections Today, page 262) and it is an idea which has had a con steadrable imp figure on the justice system and the body of workings of the U. S. segment of department of corrections as we now go through it. The concept of war cry loafer be traced stand to the whole kit and boodle of Alexander Maconochie.Maconochie was the superint sackent of a penal resolution on Norfolk Island, Australia. In his work, Maconochie utilized a system through which in baron(p) style was encouraged through the use of mark. Pris onenessrs served their sentence in three stages of progressively incr succor responsibility. Prisoners advanced through the first cardinal stages through labor , studies and p each(prenominal)y behavior. They would then be released into the unwrapside world at a lower place the condition that disobeying the law would yield in reincarceration.Walter Crofton adopted Maconochies ideas as the basis for the Irish mark system which do permissible the beforehand(predicate) release of prison houseers with a record of good behavior. This mark system was instituted at the Elmira reformatory in the 1870s and from on that point went on to spread cursorily passim the unify States justice system. Today, roughly 77% of inmates that be released from prison do so through the countersignature system or nigh precise similar form of community supervision. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, at the end of 2011 in that respect were 853,900 adults on news and around 1. million adults that had move on to or off of liberate over the course of the year. The master(prenominal) goal of word of honor is to supervise the reintegration of inmates seat into society and encourage their reclamation towards becoming a more productive member of society. There ar three antithetical purposes of the intro of parole to help the parolee commence help for problems with employment, residency, finance, and any other somebodyal troubles that may interfere with a prisoners reintegration into all(prenominal)day reenforcement to make society safer by preventing situations in which foregoing wrongdoers top executive commit new offense and in any incident to prevent the needless imprisonment of those non liable(predicate) to commit get a big hatred (Parole FAQs). Parole is often conf utilize with probation, though they atomic number 18 intelligibly different. Probation is used as an alternative to incarceration in which the wrongdoer fulfils kingdom supervision whilst still living a mostly normal bread and butter, whereas with parole, an offender serves most of their sentence in a reformatory and pending good b ehavior, is then released to serve the remainder in the community (under show supervision).There atomic number 18 several rules and submitlines used to determine eligibility for parole that must first be met by an inmate. Eligibility for parole depends on the type of sentence assigned by the court. Accompanying an offenders sentencing is a parole eligibility participation. This is the soonest potential date upon which an offender may be released in the shell that the parole commission finds them suitable for release. Unless the court specifies a minimum list of epoch that an inmate must serve or said offender is serving an indeterminate sentence, an inmate aims eligible for parole by and by point of one third of their court-mandated sentence.To apply for call foration, an inmate must fill out a parole application furnished by a case manager. The case manager then informs the potential parolee of his parole hear date. This date usually occurs in spite of appearance a few months of placement in the respective institution, except in cases where the offender is serving more than ten years time. In this instance, the initial earshot is chronicled six months earlier to the completion of ten years.At this parole auditory brain, the offender receives an opportunity to present their side of the story and to offer their argument as to why they should be released. The general factors considered during a parole hearing include the expand of the offense, prior fell history, the guidelines which the Commission uses in making their determination, the offenders accomplishments in the correctional facility, details of a release plan, and any problems the offender has had to meet in the past and is deally to encounter again in the future (USPC FAQs).When determining parole eligibility, there are four consequential factors which the parole commission must consider can the inmate be released without being a detriment to himself and/or the community, will their release serve the best interest of the community, is the inmate free and able to meet the conditions of both(prenominal) their parole assignment and of e actuallyday life, and whether or not continued correctional word would further their meets of leading a normal, law-abiding life.To make a determination of these factors, each potential parolee is interviewed by the acting parole brooker. A parole board is a group of people who decide whether or not an offender should be released on parole. On February 7th, 2011, Governor Rick Snyder signed State of mile Executive Order No. 2011-3 abolished the cabbage Parole and Commutation gore and replaced it with the scratch Parole Board, granting membership to ten full-time non-Civil gain employees who are appointed by the director of the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC Parole Board).Michigans current board members come from a pastiche of backgrounds including law enforcement, law, corrections, ministry, social work and public service. These ten people are split up into three groups of three, with the remaining soul acting as the chairperson and also the deciding vote in ties. The MPB (Michigan Parole Board) is the furbish up parole authority for prisoners under the legal power of the Michigan Department of Corrections. It should be noted that parole board structure and closings differ from one jurisdiction to the next. According to statute MCL 791. 33, a prisoner may be granted parole only after the board has reasonable assurance, after precondition of all of the facts and circumstances, including the prisoners mental and social attitude, that the prisoner will not become a menace to society or to the public safety (Parole schooling More). Most prisoners are interviewed by one member of the board. This interview is used to explore the offenders criminal, social and substance abuse history, their behavior in prison, their plans for parole, and any other matters pertinent to the specific case.The prisoner is allowed to national one other spokesperson present at the interview with them (this representative cannot be a lawyer or fellow prisoner). On October 30th, 2004, the umbrage Rights Victims Act was enacted. This act is intended for the preservation of the rights of crime victims. A crime victim is defined as an somebody who suffers direct or menace visible, financial or emotional harm as a result of the commission of a crime is considered a victim ( crime Victims Rights Act). This act entitles the crime victim notification and consultation throughout each step of the justice treat.According to the act, at the written request of the victim, the MDOC must win notifications at every stage of the prisoners incarceration process. This act also grants the victim the right to submit a written, telephone or oral impact statement to the parole board for hearing prior to the praise of a parole request consisting of any relevant statements regarding the effectuat e of the crime upon the victim, the circumstances surrounding the crime and any other details relevant to the crime, and also the victims person-to-person opinion as to whether or not the offender should be released on parole.The parole board utilizes a numerical scoring system called the parole guidelines. This process applies heading criteria and is generally a significant factor in the parole approval decision process in some situations, parole can be approved or denied before an interview even let ins place. The score is important enough that in instances where the Parole Board makes a decision impertinent to that suggested guideline score, they must provide, in writing, substantial and compelling reasons in h aging out of the decision. The guidelines used in parole guidelines are outlined in administrative Rule 791. 716 (Parole Consideration Process). After the hearing has been completed and the case file examined, the parole decision is made by three-member panels of th e board. If their request is denied, the inmate is returned to the institution where they then view as the option of filing an appeal of the parole decision with the home(a) Appeals Board (so long as they do so inside thirty days of the date listen on the Notice of Action). The internal Appeals Board then has the option of affirming, reversing or modifying the decision made by the regional commissioner, or they may order a new hearing.Decisions made by the National Appeals Board are final, and offenders will not get down the option of appealing the Appeals Boards decision. If the inmate declines to submit an appeal, he is legally entitled to reconsideration after a certain centre of time. If the inmate is sentenced to less than seven years, they will receive some other hearing 18 months from the date of their last. If their sentence exceeds seven years, their next parole hearing will be scheduled 24 months from the date of the last.If the panel approves the parole request, the inmates case file is then assigned to a parole policeman based upon the county in which the subject will be fulfilling their parole supplicatements over a specified amount of time. The offender should have a release plan denoting a suitable residence and ideally a verified offer of employment. This is not mandatory though and there are exceptions to this law which are decided on a person to person basis. If everything goes accordingly, the detainee will be released from incarceration on the date listed on their release certificate.They then return to their approved housing and must then address to the United States Probation Office listed on their certificate. Their assigned officer will establish a plan for regular reporting in person, along with mandatory monthly reports for the remainder of the sentence. Also listed on the release certificate are the rules and conditions by which the parolee agrees to live. So long as the parolee fulfills the requirements established by the p arole board and finishes his parole point in time without any violations of the predetermined parole conditions, the parolee will be released from presidential term supervision.These rules vary from one person to the next and are tailored by the Parole Board to better equip each individual offender for victory in the integration process. Common conditions of parole often require abstaining from any and all medicines and alcohol, confinement to a defined area/perimeter, stabilise employment/residency, counseling or, if deemed necessary, enrollment into in-patient discourse facilities. In the event of a violation of parole conditions, the offender isnt always returned to prison.Depending on the temper of the violation, various programs and sanctions can be used as an alternative to re-incarceration. The Michigan Department of Corrections cites an added emphasis on offender achiever in the community and tries to keep parolees out in the community when they believe that they can continue to be safely managed there (Parole Learning More). Though it is, like nearly every other government approach to social issues, plagued with disadvantages, parole serves as an efficient and mostly effective tool for managing some of the flaws and issues within the justice system.Parole allows the freeing up of space in al fixate rapidly overherd prisons nationwide by releasing non-violent drug offenders and other reformed prisoners ready for reintegration into society, opening up space for inmates who pose a more weighty terror to society. After spending months, years or even decades in prison, the mediocre inmate has lost at least some smell of what life is like outside of their institution. Parole is a gentle easing back in to community life allowing the prisoner supervision and some restrictions to help keep them from the activities which got them into trouble into the first place.Paroles accompanying threat of a return to prison is often enough to deter those who m ight otherwise fall back into their old ways. Many inmates report note lost and alone following their release some dont know what to do in the absence of the basic structure and bite that theyd grown accustomed to during their period of incarceration. Parole is not a unanimously accepted issue and some think it to be runty more than an extension of mercy towards the prisoner in the form of a reduced sentence. These people feel that early release on parole drastically reduces the effectiveness of the prison sentence.What most do not solve is that even if a person doesnt receive approval for parole, this does not disqualify them from or affect their chances of an early release on invoice of good behavior and/or other contributing factors. Citing education from albumin Paper, a report compiled by a firm called Prisoners effectual Services which covers nearly all aspects of the current state of parole in Massachusetts lower tempos of parole negatively affect the prisoner, the c ommunity to which he returns, the crime victim, and also the justice system of which he is a part.The report states that the number of state and county prisoners released on parole decreased from 4,508 in 2010 to 2,043 in 2011. By the end of 2011, there were only 1,649 offenders out on parole nearly half the number of the previous years end. In 2010, 38% percent of released offenders were prepare on parole, compared to 2012s stingy 15% release esteem. Instead of having a parole officer to guide them through the reintegration process, prisoners are released back into the world with no form of supervision, go or support.Reduced parole approval rates also mean that prisoners serving time in medium and maximum security institutions return direct to the community with no transitioning steps. Failure to provide assistance to released inmates and the states ignorance of the rehabilitation process can be directly correlated with higher(prenominal) rates of recidivism. Recidivism is def ined as the act of a person repeat an undesirable behavior after they have experienced negative consequences for that ehavior, or have been treated or trained to extinguish that behavior (Recidivism, Wikipedia). Recidivism is one of the most important subjects of consideration within the criminal justice process as the purpose of a release from incarceration is rendered useless if the culprit will simply return to the life that lead him into the justice system in the first place. This is an issue of the highest priority as over 95% of prisoners serving time in state and federal prisons will eventually be released back into the community. objet dart the United States continues to take increasing mea for certains aimed towards the arrest and incarceration of its criminals (resulting in drastically higher arrest rates and increasing issues with overpopulation and crowding in the nations institutions), it has failed to respond to increasing rates of recidivism among its prisoners. A s urvey conducted in 2003 by the urban Institute of the Justice polity Center reported that 53% of arrested males and 39% of arrested females would be re-incarcerated.This same study states that within three years of release, nearly seven out of every ten males will be rearrested and half of that number will end up back in prison. The report says recidivism happens due to both personalized and situational conditions. It also claims that one of the main reasons for recidivism is because it is difficult for the individual to fit back in with normal life It says many prisoners report anxiety regarding their release and excitement rough how their life will be different this time and this often proves a matter of utter disappointment and frustration in the instances where this doesnt end up being the case.Nearly every study and report on the issue reports the same thing the more efforts taken to work towards rehabilitation of released prisoners, the lower their chances of recidivism. Th e success rates of rehabilitation efforts depend mostly on the nature of the original offense, but in almost every single instance, an inmate has a notably higher chance of success in the outside world with the assistance and support of the state. In 2010, 51% of United States federal inmates were doing time as a result of a drug-related charge.Estimates state that nearly three out of four prisoners returning from prison have a history of substance-abuse. Despite this, only 7%-17% of prisoners actually meet the DSM criteria for alcohol and drug dependence and actually receive treatment in prison. Effectiveness studies have reported that inmates who partake in residential treatment programs during their incarceration have 9%-18% lower recidivism rates, and possess a 15%-30% lower chance of relapse than their fellow prisoners who did not receive treatment.One interesting statistic to note is the rate of recidivism in offenders with prior arrest history. inwardly three years of rele ase, 41% of prisoners with one prior arrest were re-arrested fleck 82% of those with more than fifteen prior arrests were re-arrested. A study make in McNairs Scholar Journal entitled The Relationship between Parole and Recidivism in the Criminal Justice System by Jacquelin Robinson of dreadful Valley State University claims a direct association between parole and recidivism.Interestingly enough, she says that because of modestly high rates of parole violation and failure among parolees are a direct opposite of what they seemingly should be as the rate of parole increases, so do the chances of recidivism. According to the same studies, parole supervision (regardless of how intensive) was not a direct contributor towards lower recidivism rates. This same word cites a study conducted by Jeremy Travis in May 2000 on behalf of the National Institute of Justice.Travis findings indicated that rehabilitation programs actually had very little effect on reduced recidivism and actually st ates that parole violations are now the driving force behind prison growth, being responsible for 34% of all admissions. A study entitled Does Parole Work compiled by Amy Solomon of the Urban Institute in Washington D. C. for the Bureau of Justice Statistics offers statistics indicating a scanty higher chance for recidivism of unconditional releases (61%) in comparison to discretionary parolees (57%). While these studies claim that parole supervision is next to useless, other studies present very different ideas.According to a four year study conducted by Rutgers University and presented to the radical Jersey State Parole Board, intensive supervision of violent and unfit offenders significantly reduces the chances that they will be re-arrested. According to this study, parolees subjected to intensive law-enforcement supervision and to programs knowing to ease their re-entry into the community fared best, boasting a 41% recidivism rate in comparison to the 51% general parolee rat e and the 73% rate of those who completed their full sentence and were under no supervision post-release.Though as a general whole, these high rates of recidivism and the low rates of parole success might seem to support the idea that parole is not a terribly effective manner of approaching the release and treatment of the countrys lower-threat class of criminals, it is proven more effective in cases involving violent/high-risk offenders which should be of a higher priority anyways. That said, parole also makes sense from a financial perspective which is ultimately of coarse important in the process.Though it varies from one institution to the next and from state to state, it cost taxpayers $47,000 per year to keep inmates incarcerated in a California prison (less than per annum tuition at Princetown University) which stands in comparison to a probation cost of around $1200 a year and about $1500 a year to keep an offender out on parole. In the fiscal year of 2010, the Michigan De partment of Corrections had $1. 2 billion in prison expenditures and more than seventy million in prison-related costs outside the departments budget. A Michigan inmate will end up costing the state $28,117 for each year of incarceration (Price of Prisons).Obviously withstanding the offender themselves, the most important person in the parole supervision and reform process is the parole officer. Parole and probation supervision is a social-based job, rather than one rooted in information and data and often culminates in an end-result of satisfaction and rewards when a parole officer gets the opportunity to have a positive impact on the life of one of their parolees. In a news article published in New H ampshire News, reporter Chris Jensen follows parole/probation officer John Loven through an average day in his line of work.Loven starts the day out with a pamphlet containing the files of all of the parolees to which he is assigned. His job is to make sure that the people in these files are living up to the conditions agreed upon that are listed upon the parolees assigned certificate of release, and in the cases where they are not, it is his duty to see to it that theyre either rewarded for their efforts or punished for their lack thereof. Loven says that most of his cases involve problems stemming back to alcohol and drugs, though there are the inevitable outliers to this too. Each probation or parolee, Loven states, is really an individual they have individual problems and they each have individual needs. (Day in the Life) Lovens job entails a daily commute of up to (and sometimes more than) two hundred miles. Most of his visits are unannounced intended to catch the parolee in their natural environment living out an average day. Hoping to catch them in the act, he often finds himself jab through their trash cans for evidence of recent drinking or drug use. One case special to Loven is that of a twenty year old recovering addict.Loven stops by her house r egularly, checking up on her physical well-being, keeping track of what stage she is at in her recovery. Upon arrival, Loven finds the girl in a bad state. She appears visibly nervous, and is quite shaky and seemingly zealous and upset. At first Loven probes for any evidence of deviance from the court-ordered conditions but after a phone call informs the girl of family problems she breaks down in to tears. Loven works to console the girl, and that done, asks to look at her arms. She explains two bruising track marks as the areas from which she had her blood drawn for a recent medical procedure.Loven makes sure that shes taking proper hygienic standards to keep herself in optimal shape. With a history of previously missed appointments, Loven then reminds her that shell have another meeting with him in two weeks time. After running through her schedule with him, he wishes her well and then heads back to his car to go about his day. With 96 cases that month, and nearly 110 the month before that, Loven keeps plenty busy. His visits take him to a variety of different environments filled with a variety of different people.Drug users, alcoholics, sex offenders, violent criminals and also everyday average American citizens there are few limits drawn around Lovens scope of duty. With a bachelors degree in Criminal Justice and grads degrees in community counseling and psychology although he does quote a huge amount of paperwork, he says that when it comes down to it, his job is a delicate balance of counseling and investigation. He must reach a point where hes not unapproachable to his parolees, but at the same time, doesnt come across as a crisscross that will fall for their lies and tricks.He must count on a sense of reason and logic to guide him through the day to day. You get to know them, you get to know their families, their lifestyles and how theyre doing. Though not for everyone, the role of parole officer/supervisor is a job that will prove both enriching and rewarding to the right kind of person who is ready to endure the substantial work and dedication required to meet the demands of a job so important in modern-day society. All in all, parole is one of societys stepping stones towards a brighter future.Though not a guarantee of success and not without the occasional flaw, parole still holds much greater presage than most of the alternatives. Through the hard work of officers, parole gives criminal offenders a chance at putting together the pieces of a normal life in the wake of a lengthy prison sentence. So long as both officer and parolee are willing to put in the time and effort towards improvement on a personal and community level, parole gives a reformed and well-intentioned offender the chance for a new start and a better life.Works Cited Alarid, Leanne Fiftal, and Carmen Rolando V. Del. Probation. Community-Based Corrections. Belmont, CA Wadsworth, 2011. 139-55. Print. Crime Victims Rights Act. Michigan Department of Cor rections. N. p. , n. d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http//www. michigan. gov/corrections/0,4551,7-119-1384-5487,00. html>. Crime Victims Rights Act. Offices Of The United States Attorneys. United States Department of Justice, n. d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http//www. justice. ov/usao/eousa/vr/crime_victims. html>. Jensen, Chris. A Day in the Life of a North Country Parole Officer. New Hampshire News. NHPR, 23 May 2011. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http//nhpr. org/post/day-life-north-country-parole-officer>. Marushack, Laura, and Erika Parks. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). Bureau of Justice Statistics. N. p. , 29 Nov. 2012. Web. 31 Mar. 2013. Http//bjs. gov/index. cfm? ty=pbdetail&iid=4538 Michigan Exec. Order No. 2011-3, 3 C. F. R. (2011).Print. Parole Learning More. Michigan Department of Corrections. N. p. , n. d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <https//www. michigan. gov/corrections/0,4551,7-119-9741_12798-230397,00. html>. Parole Conditions. LegalMatch. Ed. Ken LeMance. N. p. , 21 Oc t. 2012. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. <http//www. legalmatch. com/law-library/article/parole-conditions. html>. The Parole Consideration Process. Michigan Department of Corrections. N. p. , n. d. Web. 01 Apr. 2013. Parole smirch