Tuesday June 4, 2002
67 Percent Released From Prison Rearrested
The Justice Department yesterday said 67 percent of the inmates released from state prisons in 1994 were arrested in at least one new, serious crime within three years — a rate five percent higher than among prisoners released during 1983.
Maybe it is just the first of the month and all of the cons were checking in, but this morning on the way to work, I drove past a local parole office and people were line up at the door, running out the door.
The Washington Post says, “Convicted car thieves and burglars were more likely to be rearrested than those who had served time for murder or sexual assault, a department study found. Younger people and those with longer criminal records also were more likely to be arrested again.
Overall, more than 67 percent of former inmates released from state prison in 1994 were arrested again within three years, up from more than 62 percent in 1983, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported. Interestingly, the report said felons convicted of homicide and sexual assault were the least likely to be rearrested.
Time to Reconsider the Parole System?
Then, I read the marvelous piece by Jennifer Gonnerman in the New York Times Magazine‘s May 19, 2002 on the parole system. She reports, “People are spending years, sometimes decades, cycling in and out of the parole offices and prisons, seemingly unable to escape the grip of the criminal justice system. A 2001 study gave them a new moniker: “Churners.” The question of what happens to men and women when they leave prison has never been as urgent as it is today. In 2002, America is expected to release a record 630,000 prisoners — a population bigger than that of Milwaukee, Boston or Washington.”
She continues, “Oregon for example supervises virtually everyone exiting its prisons; Florida monitors only about half.”
The Times story said some parole officers carry of caseload of 70 or more people. A parole officer with a 70-person caseload spends about a half hour a week on each parolee, but by the time you subtract the officer’s time spent on paperwork, testifying in court and other duties, there might only be minutes a week to spare for each person the officer is supposed to supervise.
Parole Facts from Bureau of Justice Stats:
– Nearly 4.6 million adult men and women were on probation or parole at the end of 2000, an increase of almost 70,700 during the year.
– From 1999 to 2000 the probation and parole population increased 1.6 percent, less than the 3.6 percent average annual growth rate since 1990.
– On December 31, 2000, approximately 3,839,500 adults were under Federal, State, or local jurisdiction on probation and about 725,500 were on parole.
– Among offenders on probation, slightly more than half (52 percent) had been convicted for committing a felony
– Women made up about 22 percent of the nation’s probationers and 12 percent of the parolees. Approximately 64 percent of the adults on probation were white, and 34 percent were black. Fifty-five percent of parolees were white, 44 percent black. Hispanics, who may be of any race, represented 16 percent of probationers and 21 percent of parolees.
By the end of last year, 15 states had abolished parole board authority for releasing all offenders, and another five states had abolished parole board authority for releasing certain violent offenders.
Trends in Parole — from the Bureau of Justice.
Probation/parole report — federal overview-2000.
Female Juvenile Burglaries Up 17 Percent
The Casey Journalism Center on Children and Families says, “The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has published “Burglary Cases in Juvenile Court, 1989-1998,” a two-page fact sheet based on the forthcoming report, “Juvenile Court Statistics 1998.” The number of burglary cases handled by juvenile courts declined seven percent between 1989 and 1998, to 125,800 cases. That decade showed a nine-percent decrease in burglary cases involving males and a seventeen percent increase for females. As a result, the proportion of burglary cases involving female offenders increased from eight percent in 1989 to ten percent in 1998.
Eagle Scouts and the CIA
My Poynter pal Larry Larsen found this one: It turns out the CIA likes Eagle Scouts — and up until recently, when you completed the Eagle Scout work, you could drop a note to the CIA and they would send you a letter of congratulations. Now the CIA is a little busy.
On the CIA site, we found this at the bottom of the FAQ section:
“We regret we are unable to process and provide certificates of congratulations to the fine young Americans who have become Eagle Scouts. We have curtailed some activities in order for us to concentrate on the War on Terrorism Please be assured we will resume the practice when we are able to do so.”
