Prisons

The program is targeted at individuals whose mental illnesses are seen as instrumental in their offenses, and who are likely to qualify for and benefit from publicly supported treatment in the community. The overall goal is to reduce recidivism. The program is rated Effective for reducing the likelihood of any new felony conviction and conviction of any new offense. 

This program aims to reduce recidivism among Minnesota’s prison population by expanding the accessibility of visitation opportunities through the use of video calls for visitors from any location (using a computer equipped with a camera, microphone, and access to high-speed internet), overcoming barriers to in-person visits, and helping maintain personal connections. The program is rated Promising for reducing reconvictions for any offense and reconvictions for felony offenses. 

This involves prison time for individuals who have committed drunk-driving offenses to reduce their risk of recidivism upon their release. The program is rated Ineffective. There was no statistically significant difference between individuals in the treatment group (who received prison time) and the comparison group (who received a suspended imprisonment sentence) on reoffending with a driving-while-under-the-influence-of-alcohol offense within 6 months’, 24 months’, or 5 years’ time.

This program provides community supervision and services to individuals released early from prison to help them find employment and reduce their recidivism. The program is rated Effective. Program participants were less likely to be reincarcerated and had higher rates of integration into the workforce, compared with individuals who did not participate in the program. These differences were statistically significant.

This is a prison housing unit program for young adults that seeks to change correctional culture and increase safety. The program is rated Promising. Young adults in the treatment group had a statistically significant lower likelihood of violent charges and convictions, compared with the control group. There were no statistically significant differences between treatment and control groups on the number of disciplinary charges or convictions, or serious incidents or events in the facilities.

This is a training and production program for incarcerated individuals, with the overall goal of reducing recidivism. The program is rated Promising. Compared with individuals in the waitlist comparison group, individuals who participated in the program had a statistically significant lower likelihood of being rearrested, reconvicted, or returned to custody during the 3-year follow-up period.

This is an intensive, supervised release program for individuals released from prison in Minnesota who are at high risk for reoffending. The primary goal of the program is to reduce recidivism of released individuals. The program is rated Promising. The program reduced the risk of general, felony, and violent reconvictions and any rearrests, but increased the risk of a technical violation revocation. All of these differences were statistically significant.

This intervention involves the removal of incarcerated individuals from the general prison population. The program is rated Ineffective. Individuals who were placed in restrictive housing in New Jersey prisons had statistically significantly more rearrests, reconvictions, and reincarcerations due to technical violations and recidivated faster, compared with individuals who did not experience restrictive housing.

This intervention involves individuals under any form of supervision after release from incarceration in the state of Florida, with the goal of reducing their risks of recidivism. The program is rated Promising. There were statistically significant decreases in rearrest and reconviction rates for individuals under supervision, compared with those who did not receive supervision, at the 3-year follow-up.

This is a policy reform passed by California voters to downgrade drug and property offenses from felonies to misdemeanors, to focus prison resources on the most-serious violent offenses, reinvest savings toward prevention, and reduce recidivism. The program is rated Promising. In an evaluation of recidivism, the intervention group had statistically significantly fewer rearrests and reconvictions for any crime or revocation, compared with the control group, at the 1-year follow-up.

This is a reentry program designed to assist parolees transition from life in prison to life in the community. The program is rated Promising. The treatment group had statistically significant reductions in rates of reconvictions and parole revocations, increases in numbers of months employed, and a greater likelihood of receiving a high school diploma or GED, compared with the control group. However, there were no statistically significant differences in rate of rearrests or substance use.

Prison visitation allows individuals housed in Minnesota facilities to be visited by family, friends, and other approved persons. The program is rated Promising. Individuals visited at least once during their confinement had statistically significant lower risks of reconvictions and technical violation revocations compared with those who were never visited. Those who were visited specifically by community volunteers also had statistically significantly lower risks of recidivism compared with the

This program is a prison-based therapeutic community for drug-involved individuals. The program is rated Promising. After 3 years, results showed statistically significant increases in remaining drug-free; however, there were no statistically significant effects in being arrest-free.

This is an adult reentry program designed to reduce recidivism among high-risk males who were previously released from a state prison but returned to prison for violating conditions of their supervised release. The program is rated Promising. The program was shown to have a statistically significant effect on reducing revocation and reconviction; however, it did not have a statistically significant effect on reducing rearrests and reincarceration.

This program combines enhanced employment opportunities and wraparound services for incarcerated persons before and after release from prison. The program is rated Promising. There was a statistically significant reduction in likelihood of rearrests for program group participants, compared with the control group. There was also a lower rate of reimprisonment for program participants than nonparticipants; however, this difference was not statistically significant.

Implemented by the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles, this is a cognitive–behavioral program for male parolees that aims to build psychosocial skills in areas such as self-control, interpersonal problem-solving, and critical reasoning. The program is rated Ineffective. The authors found no statistically significant effect of program participation on recidivism and employment measures.

This allows individuals to be released early from a prison in New Jersey and complete the remainder of their sentences under supervision, with the goal of reducing recidivism. The program is rated Promising. The treatment group released early from prison had statistically significantly lower rates of reconviction, number of days until reconviction, re-arrests, and days to re-arrest, compared with those who had completed their entire sentences and were unconditionally released to the community.

This program linked incarcerated persons who had disabilities and were at risk for homelessness to supportive housing upon their release from prison. The goal was to reduce recidivism, homelessness, and multiple systems use. The program is rated Promising. The program was shown to statistically significantly reduce the probability of rearrest (but not re-incarceration) and length of time from release to rearrest; however, treatment group participants were rearrested more frequently.

This program was designed to help individuals make a successful transition from prison to the community through provision of stable housing and support to obtain employment. The program is rated Promising. Program participants had a statistically significant decrease in rearrest, reconviction, and reincarceration rates, and an improvement in employment and number of hours worked. However, participants also had a statistically significant higher likelihood of revocations for technical violations.

Under a 2003 Washington State law, incarcerated individuals who had committed certain nonviolent offenses were able to acquire earlier release time of up to 50 percent of their maximum sentence. The program is rated Promising. Individuals who were released early under the law had a statistically significant lower rate of felony convictions, compared with individuals who were not released early; however, there was no statistically significant difference on violent convictions.

This program was designed to provide an alcohol intervention to incarcerated women with hazardous drinking habits who were being released from prison. The program is rated Ineffective. There were no statistically significant differences between the treatment and comparison groups on the number of days abstinent from alcohol consumption at the 6-month follow up.

This program provides enhanced reentry services to support parolees with successful transition back into the community. The program follows the principles of the risk-needs-responsivity model by targeting services to those with highest risk, addressing dynamic risk factors, and emphasizing cognitive-behavioral strategies throughout the program. The program is rated Promising. The program was found to have a statistically significant effect on reconviction, but no effect on return to prison.

This was a reentry program in which individuals returning from prison were ordered by their parole or probation officers to participate in a 1-hour meeting within 90 days of their release. The meetings were meant to convey an intolerance for violence in the community and to allow the individuals to connect with service providers. The program is rated Ineffective. The program was shown to have no statistically significant effects on the likelihood of rearrest and the time to rearrest.

This program was designed to increase monitoring and control of persons on parole who demonstrated poor parole performance and were at high risk of returning to prison for a parole violation. This program is rated Ineffective There were no statistically significant differences in reconviction, rearrest, and employment rates between groups in both Houston and Dallas. In Houston, program participants were significantly more likely to have technical violations than those in the control group.

This boot camp intervention in Minnesota combines a traditional military institutional program for 6 months with two 6-month phases of intensive, supervised release aftercare. The program is rated Promising. Program participants had statistically significant lower rates of re-arrest, felony reconviction, and return to prison for a new offense than the comparison group, but no statistically significant difference in the rate of return to prison for any offense.

The program, established by Senate Bill 618, aimed to educate and rehabilitate incarcerated individuals who committed nonviolent felony offenses in an effort to reduce recidivism and revocations to prison. The program is rated Ineffective. There was a statistically significant impact on program participants’ rates of rearrest. However, there were no statistically significant differences on reconviction and return to prison rates between program participants and those who were not in the program.

This inpatient program provides group and individual therapy to those who have committed sexual offenses and have recently been released from prison in Ontario, Canada. The program is rated Ineffective. There was no significant difference in sexual recidivism rates between the treatment group and the comparison group.

This program in Sweden involves the use of an ankle bracelet to determine the location of an individual who has been released following a short-term stay in prison. The overall goal is to reduce reoffending rates of participants. The program is rated Promising. Significantly fewer program participants were convicted of a new offense and sentenced to prison at the 3-year follow up, compared with control group participants.

This is a prison-based, cognitive–behavioral skills enhancement program in England. The program is rated Effective. Program participants showed statistically significant reductions in reconviction rates and frequency of reoffending, compared with nonparticipants. However, there was no statistically significant difference between groups in severe offense reconviction rates.

The program provides postsecondary educational classes and programs to prisoners via one-way Internet courses or onsite vocational instruction. The goal of the program is to reduce arrests following release from prison. The program is rated Promising. This program was shown to statistically significantly reduce arrests within the 1-year follow-up period.

This program is designed to improve behavioral and performance job skills, provide services and support, and help find job placements for participants leaving prison. The program is rated Ineffective. The results showed that participation in transitional job services had no statistically significant impact on employment or recidivism over the 2-year follow-up.

This is a transitional employment program that gives those who are newly released from prison the opportunity to work and find housing. RWA seeks to provide clients with work and foundational skills so that they can find a job, secure housing, and become financially independent. The program is rated Ineffective. After 3 years, RWA showed a statistically significant positive impact on jail sentences, but there was no statistically significant impact on arrests, convictions, and prison sentences.

This program is designed to provide a lower cost alternative to emergency medical treatment for chronically ill individuals who have been recently released from prison. The program is rated No Effects. Treatment group participants had statistically significantly lower rates of emergency room use, compared with the control group. However, there was no impact on recidivism and primary care utilization.

This is a prisoner-reentry employment program designed to reduce recidivism by helping participants find and retain employment after release from prison. The program is rated Promising. Participants had statistically significant lower rates of reconviction, rearrest, reincarceration, and revocations, and higher rates of employment and hours worked, compared with nonparticipants. However, there was no statistically significant difference between groups in hourly wage.

The program provides cognitive–behavioral treatment and relapse prevention to people who commit repetitive, compulsive sex offenses. Cognitive–behavioral treatments focus on reconstructing person’s cognitive distortions; relapse prevention focuses on pattern recognition and breaking the cycle of recommitting sex crimes. The program is rated Promising. The intervention participants showed a statistically significant lower likelihood of recidivating, compared with the general prison-population.

This was a case management program implemented in seven different correctional institutions across Minnesota. The program connected caseworkers in prisons with supervision agents in the communities to which participants return upon release from prison. The program is rated Promising. It statistically significantly reduced recidivism as measured by rearrest, reconviction, technical violation revocation, and reincarceration for any reason, but had no impact on new offense reincarceration.

The program engages persons incarcerated in state prison in private sector jobs (which pay minimum wage or higher), in an effort to increase post-release employment and reduce recidivism. The program is rated Promising. Compared with those who worked in traditional prison industries and participated in other activities such as education and drug treatment, treatment group participants showed a statistically significant increase in post-release employment and a decrease in recidivism rates.

Formerly called the Dangerous Mentally Ill Offender Program, this is a reentry-planning and service program aimed at reducing recidivism for dangerously mentally ill people in Washington State. The program is rated Promising. Program participants had statistically significantly lower violent felony and overall felony recidivism rates compared with the matched control group 4 years following release from prison.

Visitation in prison allows incarcerated persons to connect to the outside world by developing social bonds with family members and friends. The overall goal of in-prison visitation is to reduce recidivism and assist in helping incarcerated persons adjust to transitioning back into their community. The program is rated Promising. The recidivism rate was statistically significantly lower for incarcerated persons who received visitation compared with those who did not receive visitation.

This is a prison work crew program designed to increase the availability of affordable low-income housing while training inmates in construction-industry-specific occupational skills. The program is rated Ineffective. The program had a statistically significant effect on participants’ likelihood of gaining employment in the construction field. However, there were no statistically significant effects on rearrests, reconvictions, and reincarceration.

This is a community-based prisoner reentry program that provides substance abuse treatment to medium-to high-risk individuals placed on 24-month community correctional supervision. The program is rated Ineffective. The preponderance of evidence suggests that the program had no statistically significant effect on program participants in measures of rearrest, reincarceration, and relapse.

This is a voluntary, faith-based prisoner reentry program that attempts to prepare inmates for reintegration into the community, employment, family, and other significant relationships through programming. The program is rated Promising. There were statistically significant reductions in rearrest, reconviction, and reincarceration rates for the treatment group, compared with the comparison group. However, there was no statistically significant impact on revocations for a technical violation.

This is a program, provided by the Minnesota Department of Corrections, which offers treatment, therapy, and transitional services to convicted males in prison. The program is rated Promising. Treatment group inmates had a statistically significant lower likelihood of being rearrested for sex offenses, violent offenses, or any offenses, compared with comparison group inmates who did not receive any treatment.

This is a prison-based, methadone maintenance program in Australia, which is designed to reduce recidivism, prevent the spread of blood-borne viral infections (HIV and hepatitis) in prison, and encourage continuation of treatment in the community following release. The program is rated No Effects. There were no statistically significant effects on rates of mortality, recidivism, or hepatitis C infections.

This program involved cooperation between police and prosecutors to increase the likelihood that high-risk individuals would be convicted and incarcerated. The program is rated Promising. The experimental group had a statistically significant greater likelihood of being sentenced to prison and having longer prison sentences, compared with the control group. However, there was no statistically significant difference for conviction rates between the groups.

This is an institution-based transitional services demonstration program, designed to be a short, intensive intervention, which could provide a greater number of individuals with reentry services at a lower cost. The program is rated No Effects. Program participants showed a statistically significant higher rate of parole revocation and rearrests for new offenses, compared with comparison group participants. However, there were no significant differences in felony rearrest rates between groups.

This program serves an alternative to incarceration for technical parole violators or as a special condition of parole on release from prison. The program, which is run at secure residential facilities, provides paroled persons with an environment that is halfway between prison and ordinary parole release. The program is rated Promising. Program parolees showed statistically significant reductions in re-arrest, reconviction, and reincarceration, compared with the comparison group.

This is a prison-based chemical dependency treatment for incarcerated persons who abuse chemicals or are chemically dependent. The main goal is to reduce their recidivism rates once they reenter the community. The program is rated Promising. Those who received treatment showed statistically significant lower rates of rearrest, reconviction, and reincarceration, compared with the control group at the follow-up period.

This program provides intensive treatment in a dedicated housing unit to male incarcerated persons with substance abuse problems during the last 9 to 12 months of their prison terms. The program is rated Promising. Participants had statistically significant lower reincarceration rates at the 24-month and 5-year follow-up periods, compared with the control group. There were no significant differences between the groups in reincarceration rates at the 36-month follow up or in drug use at the 5-year follow up.

This prison-based substance abuse treatment program for women near the end of their incarceration period is designed to reduce substance use and recidivism following release. The program is rated Promising. The intervention group reported statistically significantly fewer arrests and reconvictions and less drug use at follow up compared with the comparison group. However, there was no statistically significant effect on reincarceration and employment.

This program uses a drug treatment continuum of prison-based therapeutic community and residential work release for drug-involved convicted persons. The program is rated Promising. Results showed statistically significant increases in remaining drug-free after 3 years and increases in condom use after 6 months; however, there were no statistically significant effects in being injection-free (after 6 months) or arrest-free (after 3 years).

This is a multidimensional, parole-based reintegration program that aims to reduce parolees’ crime and reincarceration by providing them with services that can facilitate a successful reintegration into society following release from prison. The program is rated Promising. Parolees who participated in the program had a statistically significant lower likelihood of reincarceration, compared with parolees who did not participate.

This program is the first prosecution-led, residential drug treatment diversion program designed to divert people convicted of nonviolent felony drug offenses to community-based residential treatment. This program is rated Promising. Controlling for time spent in the community following release from prison, the intervention showed statistically significant positive effects on recidivism, time to first rearrest, and rearrest for program participants, compared with the control group.