NCJ Number
223483
Journal
The Prison Journal Volume: 88 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2008 Pages: 234-251
Date Published
June 2008
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This study examined whether there were demographic differences between offenders on parole compared with offenders released from prison without supervision, assessed whether offenders released to parole presented with lower rates of recidivism compared with those released from prison to the community at the expiration of sentence and evaluated the effect of time at risk on the outcome.
Abstract
The findings suggest that discretionary parole releases in New Jersey are rearrested, reconvicted, and reincarcerated less often than offenders who max out. Several characteristic differences were indicated between the max out and parolee subgroups, including age, total number of arrests ever, the number of times an offender was incarcerated prior to the instant offense, the number of times an offender was paroled prior to the instant offense, and the times an offender was paroled prior to the instant offense, and the instant offense for which the offender was most recently incarcerated. Recent research evaluating differences in the method of release and outcome suggest that offenders who leave prison at the expiration of sentence reoffend at rates similar to offenders who are released from prison via discretionary or mandatory release. Utilizing a random sample of 500 offenders released from prison in New Jersey in the calendar year 2001, this research study assessed offenders released from prison at the completion of sentence compared with those released from prison to discretionary parole. Tables, figures, and references