Case Study: No Longer Practices That Work

Shrum, H. (2004, September). No Longer Theory: Correctional Practices That Work. The Journal of Correctional Education, 55(3), pp. 225-235.

Harvey Shrum is a Re-Entry teacher at Folsom State Prison and is nearing completion of a self-help book titled Seeking Meaning in a Cell. Shrum disproves Robert Martinson’s theory of “nothing” works by describing correctional practices that do work. He begins by saying that life is unfair and as a result, people tend to resort to self-medication to fill the void. Laws become implemented and passed in order to punish these type of offenders rather than rehabilitate them. With all the money going towards prisons, and valuable funding being taken away from what matters most such as public schools, it is no

Roberts, Michael W. Contois, James C. Willis Sr., and Mary Rose Worthington work for CiviGenics, Inc, an organization that provides correctional treatment programs in the U.S. Kevin Knight has PhD in experimental psychology and is the deputy director of the Department of Psychology at Texas Christian University. In the article, they stress the importance of identifying and assessing offenders’ risk and needs in order for treatment to be effective (on an individual level, not on a one size fits all way). In the past two decades, we have seen great changes and improvements regarding the approaches to treatment planning and correctional programs. The first step was to develop a model program; it should be noted that most treatment services target drug offenders. The selection of participants for this study followed a certain criteria, for instance, documented history of substance abuse, not having been classified as a sex offender, etc. Civigenics, Inc was given a contract to administer therapeutic community (TC) programs at the Indian Creek Correctional Center (ICCC). The purpose of this was to enhance treatment programs and its components, on a national scale. The results of their effort, was a research-based treatment strategy created to give inmates some life skills such as cognitive-behavioral skills for when they are released back into society. The 9-24 month program focuses on healthy ways like what would be considered “right living.” After study of the program

Visher is the Principal Research Associate at The Urban Institute, a Washington DC-based think tank that conducts policy research and offers solutions. In the article, Visher begins by asserting that the United States’ criminal justice policies swing from “tough on crime” to “rehabilitation.” The problem of prisoner reentry no longer focuses on just the offender and his/her circumstances, but the broader approach to find new evidence-based solutions. Policy makers are now extremely aware of the prison situation and is now a topic of interest. Although a larger number of prisoners have been released since the 1980s and 1990s, most of them come back. The admission rate of prisoners is higher than that of releasing them. Prisoner reentry is a main policy concern at the state, local and federal level for several reasons. First and foremost is the public safety problem. The recidivism rate has not changed in the past decade or two. One-third of all prison admissions nationwide, are offenders who are being returned to prison for new crimes or technical violations. The second reason is the fiscal implications the prisoner reentry phenomenon has on society. Expenditures on the correctional system has increased six fold in just 25 years. As a result, policy and political attention in the United States has grown, that councils have passed resolutions to deal with the crisis. Some examples of new legislation include the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI)