View Research by Author - Michelle Waul

Citation URL: http://www.urban.org/MichelleWaul

Outside the Walls provides descriptions of a broad array of prisoner reentry activity across the country, as well as briefing papers that discuss what is known about reentry as it pertains to employment, health, housing, family, faith, and public safety. The Urban Institute produced this report in collaboration with Outreach Extensions as part of the National Media Outreach Campaign, a new effort to encourage discussion and decision-making about solution-based prisoner reentry programs among local community and faith-based organizations. The Urban Institute conducted a national scan of reentry programs that are addressing the needs and risks facing returning prisoners, their families, and communities. The report benefited significantly from the input of national experts who nominated programs that are implementing innovative approaches to easing the reentry process in their local communities.

Imprisonment casts a long shadow in the United States. Currently, 1.4 million individuals are behind bars in America's state and federal prisons. For every person who goes to prison, there is a family and community left behind. Despite the huge number of affected families and children, there is little research on the impact of incarceration on American family life. In Prisoners Once Removed, the authors explore this important issue-from the psychological impact of imprisonment on prisoners and the difficulty of reentering free society to the challenges faced by communities who must integrate the prisoners once they return. They look at family functioning during a period of imprisonment, and how families are affected by the return of an incarcerated parent. Finally, they evaluate the current system and suggest ways to improve interaction between the corrections and health and human services to better serve the growing population of children, families, and communities. This book is vital reading for anyone who is concerned about foster care, child development, strengthening families, and post-prison adjustment.

By the end of the 20th century, crime rates had fallen to their lowest levels in a generation. Yet, there is reason to believe that the dramatic declines of the late 1990s are over, and a new chapter is unfolding as crime rises in some cities, declines in others, and stabilizes in the nation as a whole. The Urban Institute convened a panel of leading crime researchers and national experts to explore the lessons to be learned from the remarkable crime decline of the 1990s and shed light on the next generation of crime policy discussions. "Reflections on the Crime Decline" presents a summary of those discussions. The report begins with an overview of long-term crime trends, examining separately the trends in violent and property crime. The final sections of the report summarize the insights and reflections of the panel on the explanations for the crime decline and implications for future research, practice and policy development.

The From Prisons to Home Conference, held on January 30-31, 2002 at the National Institutes of Health, was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The purpose of the conference was to bring together the research, policy, and practice communities to share promising strategies, identify research needs, and inform federal program and policy development for children and families affected by the incarceration of a parent. Eleven papers were commissioned by leading experts to survey the state of knowledge on the dynamics of incarceration and reentry as seen from the perspectives of child, parent and community. This background paper provides the context for the "From Prison to Home" conference papers. It gives an overview of the issues discussed and includes abstracts of the 10 papers.

The falling rate of violent crime in the United States is not likely to reduce the need for effective policies and programs to address youth gun violence. The rate of firearm deaths among American youth is still one of the highest in the world. In the coming years, all levels of government, the private sector, and communities will require sound information and practical guidance as they try to reduce gun violence among young people. Funded by the Joyce Foundation, this report reviews recent trends in youth gun violence, policy responses to gun violence, and the growing variety of data resources for research on the effects of gun laws. The report is designed to inform discussions about these issues and to aid in the development of future research efforts.

In October 2001, the Urban Institute and the Alliance of Concerned Men conducted a focus group with individuals who had successfully made the transition from prison to the community. The goal of the focus group was to explore "ingredients for success" as perceived by the focus group participants, and to seek their advice as to ways that the District of Columbia government and non-profit agencies could better support reentry and reintegration for prisoners returning to the District.

About 600,000 individuals - roughly 1,600 a day - will be released from state and federal prisons this year to return to their communities. On one level, this transition from prison to community might be viewed as unremarkable. Ever since prisons were built, individuals have faced the challenges of moving from confinement in correctional institutions to liberty on the street.

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