Secretary of Corrections John Wetzel on Thursday morning released what he’s calling a “landmark study” into recidivism rates at Pennsylvania’s state prisons, and the study is noted not for the progress shown, but rather for the lack of change demonstrated.
For more than a decade, a consistent six in ten people released from Pennsylvania state prisons were either re-arrested or put back in prison within three years.
What’s “landmark” about the study is in part its scope – more than 12 years – but largely the fact is sets a “baseline” for going forward.
Wetzel said it marks the first step toward measuring progress.
“Citizens of the Commonwealth should have every expectation of a corrections system that actually helps people correct themselves; one that is based on research, not on anecdotal stories and innuendo,” said Wetzel.
While population and cost “remain essential measurements” in Gov. Tom Corbett’s Corrections Reform initiative, he said, “The ‘new normal’ is to expect and require quantifiable results.”
The study, which Wetzel called “the keystone of the Corbett Corrections Reform initiative,” also helps the Department of Corrections and the Board of Probation and Parole understand who is most likely to re-offend and how.
“To get a true picture of whether our state prison system is meeting its goal of reducing future crime, we need to look at more than just the reincarceration of an individual,” Wetzel said. “We need to look at re-arrests as well to see the whole picture of how and when individuals come into contact again with the criminal justice system.”
For example, the study found that more than half of those who will return to prison within three years after release will do so within the first years, which is by far the most risky period for recidivism. Younger offenders are more likely to recidivate than older offenders. Individuals most likely to reoffend appear to be property offenders. Individuals least likely to reoffend are those incarcerated for driving under the influence of intoxicants, rape and arson.
The study looked prisoners’ background as well and found a released inmate who has 10 or more prior arrests is greater than 6 times more likely to recidivate than a released inmate with no prior arrest history other than the arrest for the current stay in prison.
According to the study, nearly two-thirds of all reincarcerations within three years of release from prison are for technical parole violations. Nearly three-fourths of rearrests within three years of release from prison are for less serious offenses.
The study also confirmed the damning portrait of Community Corrections Centers outlined in an earlier study performed by Dr. Edward Latessa of the University of Cincinnati.
From 2005 through 2011, inmates paroled to a Community Corrections Center were actually more likely to be back in prison within a year as inmates paroled directly home.
“We know from this updated analysis that we have a lot of work to do to improve outcomes in our Community Corrections system,” Wetzel said. “Fortunately, many of the legislative changes accomplished through the Justice Reinvestment Initiative are specifically targeted toward improving this system. Again, this report sets the baseline for going forward, as we focus the Community Corrections system around performance-based recidivism reduction outcomes.”
Wetzel said the Department of Corrections can save taxpayers $44.7 million annually by reducing the one-year reincarceration rate by 10 percentage points.