Overcriminalization significantly undermines human flourishing and social well-being by harming the family, social networks, and social citizenship. Additionally, it prevents capable men and women from utilizing their creative capacities in the marketplace. This creates vast issues involving relations with family while incarcerated and reintegration into society after release. On the economic side, draconian cash bail systems undermine justice through basing someone's ability to attain pre-trial release upon their wealth, not their actual threat to society.
“Completing a postsecondary degree or credential while incarcerated can have a major impact on a person’s trajectory post-release. Research has already shown those who participate in postsecondary programs have a lower rate of recidivism. Other studies have found that correctional education improved the chances of finding employment by 13%.“
Forbes
November 8, 2019
Read More“Across the country, more than 10,000 regulations restrict people with criminal records from obtaining occupational licenses, according to a database developed by the American Bar Association. The restrictions are defended as a way to protect the public. But Lincoln and others point out that the rules are often arbitrary and ambiguous.“
Washington Post
September 3, 2019
Read More“Wages and her team have just finished interviewing formerly incarcerated individuals who are now seeking job training and placement through the team's startup, Surge Employment Solutions, which aims to place people in well-paid, high-skilled trade jobs after they have served time in prison. Today Wages and Ram are planning out the next few months of their pilot program, during which they will start training their selected candidates for their future jobs. By November, the selected candidates will be working their new positions.“
Science X
August 5, 2019
Read More“Arizona’s current inmate wildfire program began with two crews in 1984. Over the last three decades, approximately 2,000 prisoners have gone through the program. At its height, following the devastating 2002 Rodeo-Chediski Fire, which burned more than 426,000 acres in northeastern Arizona, the program had 15 crews; today, it has 12, including one from Arizona’s women’s prison, working year-round for far below minimum wage.“
High Country News
August 5, 2019
Read More“One of the most daunting challenges for former offenders reentering society is finding a job. The unemployment rate the first year after release among ex-convicts is around 60 percent, much higher than for the rest of society. The difficulty of finding stable, legal employment after release exacerbates the consequences of the initial crime.“
Catalyst
July 25, 2019
Read More“For example, the U.S. Department of Labor is increasing access to fidelity bonds for companies that hire returning citizens. The U.S. Department of Justice launched a “Ready to Work” initiative at the Bureau of Prisons to allow employers to connect with potential job candidates as they prepare to be released. And even the U.S. Department of Energy is working to fill jobs in this growing field. Governors across the country have also streamlined state services in order to reduce barrier to gainful employment.“
Fox News
June 22, 2019
Read More“Yet today, as Conarck reported, unpaid labor is still an integral part of the Florida prison system. About 3,500 unpaid prisoners make up work crews used around the state by cities, counties, educational institutions and the Florida Department of Transportation. Inmates work long hours in the heat in exchange for some time off their sentences. They get limited rest breaks and food, risk injuries and face punishment if they refuse to work.“
Gainesville Sun
June 4, 2019
Read More“It was a far different philosophy from that expressed by many politicians at similar meetings in previous decades, when the emphasis was on putting more people behind bars—and not on training them for productive work when they were released.“
The Crime Report
February 25, 2019
Read More“‘I came across this article in a Prison Legal News – a magazine that tells you about cases, mostly civil [cases],’ Blackmon said. ‘Back in those years, you may have a sprinkling of a criminal case or two. I read across this little page, it was an ad, that said if you want to learn the law apply here. It was only like $59 a month. I thought, ‘I really do need to learn the law.’ So, I signed up and for $59 a month in 14 easy payments, I got a paralegal certificate’.“
Hyde Park Herald
February 22, 2019
Read More“The burden of mass incarceration has a negative effect on state budgets and an even bigger negative effect on society, where people with felony records struggle to get out of low-wage jobs. Breaking laws must have consequences, but our criminal justice system needs to provide a pathway to individual justice through the opportunity to earn a second chance in our economy.“
The Hill
February 22, 2019
Read More“‘I think that it is our moral duty as people and as leaders to take a stand against what is wrong, even if it is supposedly legal,’ she told the Phoenix. ‘Because we understand that just because it’s legal doesn’t mean that it’s right. And it’s not right for us to profit off the labor of incarcerated people’.“
The Florida Phoenix
February 1, 2019
Read More“‘We really see this as a bill that’s going to help a lot of people become employed and hopefully lift people out of poverty,’ she said. ‘It’s a huge piece of the puzzle to help people access opportunities’ by opening doors for people who would otherwise be denied for employment, housing and government loans because of a criminal record, which is readily available online.“
Generocity
January 14, 2019
Read More“Break their shackles and let us hand them a hammer.. That is the message the National Association of Homebuilders, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent Congress in a letter urging their support of prison reform. The sooner the Senate sends the so-called FIRST STEP Act to President Trump, the sooner they promise to start hiring.“
The Washington Examiner
December 5, 2018
Read More“Preparing inmates for employment is a priority of many states because it helps reduce recidivism, a particularly tough problem in Minnesota, which has one of the highest rates in the country. Solar could be a small part of an answer to the problem of finding employment for the formerly incarcerated, Stadheim said.“
Energy News
December 3, 2018
Read More“A joint study by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Anne E. Casey Foundation and Justice Center, found that employment strongly contributes to recidivism-reduction efforts because ‘it refocuses individuals’ time and efforts on prosocial activities, making them less likely to engage in riskier behaviors and to associate with people who do.’ Another critical aspect of obtaining employment that the study cites is employment allows individuals to financially support their families which generates stronger support networks, more positive relationships, enhances self-esteem, and improves mental health.“
Right on Crime
September 25, 2018
Read More“The way this works varies. In some states, formerly incarcerated people are sent bills, and in others they are charged fines (sometimes called legal financial obligations, or LFOs). Some states collect the cost of incarcerating someone through windfall statutes, grabbing any inheritances, lottery winnings or proceeds from litigation. “
Huffington Post
September 16, 2018
Read More“Obtaining employment after release is a primary driver in lowering incidences of future criminal activity, which translates to lower crime in our communities. Criminal justice reforms have allowed Louisiana to move away from the “lock em’ up and throw away the key” mindset to an evidence-based, data-driven rehabilitative model that ensures public safety, saves taxpayer dollars and restores lives for individuals and families impacted by the criminal justice system.“
Right on Crime
September 12, 2018
Read More"To put the ex-prisoner unemployment rate in context, it is 'higher than the total U.S. unemployment rate during any historical period, including the Great Depression' the PPI report explains. And it’s not a matter of being voluntarily unemployed or laziness, as critics often claim of those who lack a job."
Prison Legal News
September 4, 2018
Read More"Instead of warehousing America’s young people – who could provide the labor construction, manufacturing, and trucking firms need – policymakers should try to reduce prison populations. They should create programs that keep offenders from landing back in prison and they should keep more nonviolent offenders from ever ending up behind bars in the first place."
The Hill
September 1, 2018
Read More"The reasons to proactively include people with criminal records in a jobs guarantee program are both moral — everyone who wants to enter the workforce should be given a chance to work — and practical: Employing people with criminal records would also empower the rest of the workforce. "
Daily Intelligencer
August 30, 2018
Read More