NCJ Number
215605
Date Published
September 2006
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This report presents findings for Ohio (primarily the Cleveland area) from the Returning Home study, which examined the experiences of released prisoners who returned to communities in Maryland, Illinois, Ohio, and Texas.
Abstract
Sixty-four percent of the men (n=424) participated in prerelease programming, Men who received general counseling in prison reported drug or alcohol intoxication less often in the first few months after release. Men who were confident that staying out of prison would be easy after release were less likely to report committing a crime, being arrested, or violating a supervision condition in the first few months after release. Family support was identified by the men as the most important factor that prevented them from reoffending. The men who abused drugs and alcohol before incarceration and who were not subject to random drug testing as a supervision condition were more likely to report substance use after release. The men had limited success in finding employment after release, and 59 percent reported having a chronic physical health condition; 23 percent had symptoms of depression, and 14 percent had signs of posttraumatic stress disorder; 84 percent had no health care coverage. A significant proportion of the men returned to a small number of neighborhoods characterized by high levels of social and economic disadvantage. Many men described these neighborhoods as infested with drug trafficking and limited in employment opportunities. This report presents preliminary findings from phase two of the study, which involved interviewing male prisoners returning to the Cleveland area. Interviews were conducted once before their incarceration and three times after their release. In addition, researchers held focus groups with residents of three Cleveland communities with the highest concentrations of returning prisoners. 8 figures, 1 table, 11 notes, and 23 references