Pros And Cons Of The US Parole System

Being Tough on Crime is too Tough on Criminals Seven hundred thousand convicts are expected to integrate back into society each year in the United States (Martin 1). However, the limitations placed on parolees by the parole system make this is a ludicrous expectation. The United States parole system must be reformed due to the economic, social and psychological harm it inflicts upon parolees and its hinderance to the national economy. In this country the policy is: If a criminal is convicted of a crime, the offender is undeserving of the opportunities needed to properly rejoin society. In order to avoid further crime from the same convict, restrictions are placed upon parolees such as an inability to find a steady job or ineligibility for

Fear has clouded the judgement of the American lawmakers, causing parole to turn into a euphemism for prolonged incarceration. Parolees may not be locked behind metal bars and separated from society by stone walls topped with barbed wire, but they are permanently exiled from their communities by federal laws. Laws that ensure that reformed convicts are considered inferior citizens. The video “Mass incarceration in the US,” states that once condemned, a person is ineligible for welfare, student loans, public housing, and food stamps (Green). These restrictions are all the more significant when a parolee is unable to find a job due to the scarlet letter of a conviction. These paradoxical regulations cause higher rates of homelessness and suicide among parolees. This poses the question: Is the nonsensical belief that punishment leads to safety worth the suffering of rehabilitated

The economy is negatively affected nationwide. Although parolees lack the conventional education that most working Americans possess, they are creative, diverse thinkers that can be a valuable asset to the work force. “...the world had been duped into discarding them-me-when in fact, prison was a warehouse of human potential” (Martin 1). Not only does this injustice create a loss of opportunity, but it undermines the already fragile economy. The incarceration rate is directly related to the unemployment rate (Yeager 3). Because most employers are unwilling to hire anyone with a criminal record, a parolee may return to crime in an attempt to avoid financial ruin. The parole system has created a vicious cycle where crime only leads to more crime. From 1960 to 1969 the average number of robberies per year in Ohio was 6,364. From 1970 to 1979 the average amount of robberies jumped up to 19,066 per year and continues to escalate. This sudden increase in crime was simultaneous to incarceration rate’s exponential growth (Disaster Center; Prison Policy Initiative). The more society tries to push felons away with prejudices and mismanagement, the greater the negative impact on the entire country. This cruel irony must not be taken