Recidivism: Going Back to Prison

Submitted by ms zola on July 1, 2006 - 5:00am.

Recidivism means going back to jail. Every time an offender who has served time is released, the prospects of him/her returning to prison is statistically favorable.

There are several reasons people who get in trouble stay in trouble. According to the Bureau of Justice the offenders who are MORE likely to repeat a crime are as follows:

Of the 272,111 persons released from prisons in 15 States in 1994, an estimated 67.5% were rearrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within 3 years, 46.9% were reconvicted, and 25.4% resentenced to prison for a new crime.
The 272,111 offenders discharged in 1994 accounted for nearly 4,877,000 arrest charges over their recorded careers.
Within 3 years of release, 2.5% of released rapists were rearrested for another rape, and 1.2% of those who had served time for homicide were arrested for a new homicide.
Released prisoners with the highest rearrest rates were robbers (70.2%), burglars (74.0%), larcenists (74.6%), motor vehicle thieves (78.8%), those in prison for possessing or selling stolen property (77.4%), and those in prison for possessing, using, or selling illegal weapons (70.2%).