View Research by Author - Rhiana Kohl

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

The Massachusetts Recidivism Study aims to better understand the experiences of recidivists and how their previous incarceration and time in the community relate to their returns to prison. The study consists of three interrelated components: an analysis of DOC administrative data, interviews with recidivists as they return to prison, and parole officer focus groups. This report provides findings from the analysis of administrative data on the 2002 release cohort comparing recidivists with nonrecidivists. The report compares the two groups across demographics, criminal history, offense type, time served, release type, and in-prison reentry preparation.

The Massachusetts Recidivism Study aims to better understand the experiences of recidivists and how their previous incarceration and time in the community relate to their returns to prison. This report presents findings from interviews with male prisoners returned to the DOC within three years of release. The report describes respondents' incarceration experiences, preparation for reentry, and life in the community, as well as criminal offending and the circumstances leading up to their reincarceration. We also examine the role of parole supervision in prisoner reentry and the connection between technical parole violations and underlying criminal behavior.

This report describes the process of prisoner reentry in Massachusetts by examining the trends in prison admissions and releases in the state, the characteristics of the state's released prisoners, the geographic distribution of prisoners returning to communities in Massachusetts, and the social and economic climates of the communities that are home to the highest numbers of returning prisoners. In addition to state prisoners, the report examines characteristics and release trends among Suffolk County inmates and juveniles in the custody of the Department of Youth Services. Conducted in conjunction with the National Governors Association's Prisoner Reentry State Policy Academy, the report consolidates existing data on incarceration and release trends and presents a new analysis of data on Massachusetts prisoners released in 2002. The data used in this report were derived from several sources, including the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office, the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, and the U.S. Census Bureau.

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