NCJ Number
227872
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 49 Issue: 4 Dated: July 2009 Pages: 532-551
Date Published
July 2009
Length
20 pages
Annotation
Using national data on federally sentenced female offenders in Canada, this study extends the theoretical discussion of women prisoners' reintegration into the community by focusing on parole conditions as a form of "targeted governance."
Abstract
The study shows how parole boards view the female parolee as a high-risk individual with various "risk/need factors" that must be addressed by parole conditions. Parole conditions are also framed as techniques of targeted governance, in that they exemplify an integrated exercise of penal power designed to both rehabilitate and repress the parolee. Parole conditions help prepare women for living responsibly in the community while applying modes of surveillance designed to limit opportunities and factors linked to criminal behaviors. Parole and its associated conditions imply that the released offender is not yet capable of self-governance due to personal criminogenic needs and characteristics. As this paper shows, women eligible for and granted parole are required to demonstrate responsibility and a general capacity for self-governance by responding appropriately to parole conditions designed to reintegrate them into the community and reform their criminal behaviors. This analysis drew on national data for the total population of federally sentenced female prisoners in Canada who were eligible for parole in 2000-01. Data extracted from the National Parole Board's decision registry were used to determine the number, type, and rationale for parole conditions. This registry provides detailed justifications of the National Parole Board's initial prerelease decisions and all subsequent postrelease decisions and conduct (e.g., breaches, suspensions, revocations, requests for changes in release conditions, and response to new offenses). 56 references