“Beyond The Prison Bubble.”

Source:
Petersilia, Joan. “Beyond The Prison Bubble.” National Institute of Justice. NIJ, 03 November 2011.

Web. 17 March 2015.http://www.nij.gov/journals/268/pages/prison-bubble.aspx

Summary:
This source is an article published by the National Institute of Justice. The author examines the effectiveness of different rehabilitation programs using statistics such as rearrest and recidivism rates.

Quality:  
The National Institute of Justice is a reliable source for research and information on rehabilitation and recidivism. The NIJ is the research, development and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice, and they have a large database of information on crime prevention and control. Joan Petersilia, the author of the article, has over 30 years of experience studying the performance of U.S. criminal justice agencies, and she is also the Adelbert H. Sweet Professor of Law at Stanford University and co-director of the Stanford Criminal Justice Center. She was recently awarded the Stockholm Prize for her work on prisoner reentry and supporting ex-offenders after their release from prison ("Joan Petersilia"). The information presented in the article is from a variety of reputable sources such as the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Petersilia also cites studies from reputable criminologists such as Edward J Latessa, who has "directed over 150 funded research projects including studies of day reporting centers, juvenile justice programs, drug courts, prison programs, intensive supervision programs, halfway houses, and drug programs" ("Edward J Latessa"), and Todd Clear, whose "work has been recognized through several awards, including those of the American Society of Criminology, the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, The Rockefeller School of Public Policy, the American Probation and Parole Association, the American Correctional Association, and the International Community Corrections Association"("Dr. Todd Clear").

Issues:  
Although this article considers the arguments against rehabilitation programs and gives readers a fair insight into the counterarguments, most of the information provided was in support of rehabilitation programs.

Key Words and Phrases:  
Prison, Incarceration Rate, Mass Incarceration, Repeat Offenders, Probation, Mandatory Minimum Sentences, Truth-in-sentencing, Measures, Prison, Recidivism Rate, Confinement, Criminal Records, Corrections System, Education, Drug Treatment, Rehabilitation Programs, Recidivism, ISP (Intense Supervision Program), RNR (Risk-Need-Responsivity), BRI (Boston Reentry Initiative)  

Quotes:  
“[W]e are beginning to recognize that our overreliance on locking people up has an especially malign effect on poor urban neighborhoods, where up to 20 percent of the adult male population may be behind bars at any given time.”

“It is no longer justifiable to say that nothing works. There is scientific evidence that prison and parole programs can reduce recidivism.”

“Effective rehabilitation and reentry programs that help offenders go home to stay are good for them, and good for the rest of us, too.”

Source Link:

http://www.nij.gov/journals/268/pages/prison-bubble.aspx

Works Cited:                                                                              

"Dr. Todd Clear." Rutgers School of Criminal Justice. Rutgers School of Criminal Justice, n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.

"Edward J Latessa." University of Cincinnati. University of Cincinnati, n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.

"Joan Petersilia Adelbert H. Sweet Professor of Law." Stanford Law School. Stanford Univrsity, n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2015.