Calif. Prison System Called Costly FailureNovember 17, 2003
Research Summary
A California watchdog panel issued a report that concludes that California's correctional system fails to educate and train inmates for employment upon their release, the Los Angeles Times reported Nov. 14.According to the report, two out of three inmates released from prison return before they complete parole. "A singular focus on punishment guarantees that upon release most offenders will be as ill-equipped to be productive, law-abiding citizens as the day they entered prison," the Little Hoover Commission said.
According to the report, more than 75 percent of inmates who are released on parole have alcohol or other drug problems, while 50 percent are illiterate, nearly 80 percent have no job, and 10 percent are homeless.
"Sadly, and not surprisingly, the vast majority of parolees fail within 18 months of their release," said Stanley Zimmerman, a commissioner from Los Angeles. "So we send them back to prison, they sit there a few months, and then they're released again -- still no better equipped for success than before. This cycle is repeated thousands of times every year, at staggering fiscal and staggering human costs."
In the past, California lawmakers have viewed prison and parole reforms as being soft on criminals.
The findings of the report, which called the nation's largest correctional system a $5.2-billion-a-year failure, received little opposition from the Department of Corrections. Officials there said they recognize that current approaches are not effective in reducing recidivism.
Prison officials said an overhaul of the parole system is scheduled to take place Jan. 1. The plan includes many of the report's recommendations to enhance education, job training, and counseling.
"We're going to be smarter about sanctions for parole violators and we're going to make sure that when an inmate leaves prison, he will know where he'll be living and what resources are available to him," said Rick Rimmer, who oversees parole and community services for the department. "It's a new direction, and we expect it to lead to a safer California."
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