NCJ Number
204037
Journal
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology Volume: 48 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2004 Pages: 65-84
Date Published
February 2004
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the odds of regaining steady employment following criminal justice contact by offender type.
Abstract
There are almost no studies comparing the effects of criminal justice contact for street-level versus white-collar offenders using the same dataset. It is unclear whether white-collar offenders experience the same negative consequences of criminal justice contact as those faced by their street-level counterparts. This study used data on Federal offenders derived from Sentencing in Eight United States Districts Courts, 1973-1978. This dataset includes a large sample of white-collar and street-level offenders and has measures of criminal justice contact and adult outcomes. All male offenders were selected that had at least one arrest prior to the selection offense. The dependent variable for the study was employment stability. Independent variables included measures of individual background and demographics, offender type, and criminal justice contact. Results show that race, criminal family, offender type, age of onset, number of prior arrests, total time sentenced, arrest before age 24, and incarceration before 24 significantly affect the odds of stable employment. Individuals that are older and have higher levels of education are more likely to have stable employment than younger, less educated individuals. When looking at all offenders in the sample as a whole, there is a substantial economic penalty to be paid for being embedded in the criminal justice system. The stigmatization and labeling that accompanies criminal justice contact appears to harm the chances of keeping or regaining full-time employment. Offender type has a stronger effect on the odds of stable employment than any other variable in the model. White-collar offenders have better odds of regaining stable employment after criminal justice contact than street-level offenders. White-collar offenders are better able to rebound following contact with the criminal justice system. But when they accrue multiple arrests and when they are arrested or incarcerated before age 24, they face the same obstacles to employment stability as their street-level counterparts. 3 tables, 39 references