After Prison Then What?
Once an inmate has served his time the time to re-enter society comes. Depending on how long the individual have been incarcerated, this transition can be very difficult. A large number of inmates that are released from prison will re-offend and consequently return to prison. This is called recidivism and is one of the measurements commonly used to gauge how well a prison system is functioning.
In Nebraska, individuals are most often released from prison with a small amount of money, called Gate Pay. Often this is $100 or less. With this money the newly released inmate needs to find a place to stay, food, transportation, and other expenses that comes with finding a job. Not an easy task. Could you imagine being plopped down in a town where you don't know anyone or have any friends with only $100 in your pocket and no other assets? With this money you would need to find roof over your head, food, and a job. Does it sound daunting? This is the reality facing inmates being released from prisons all across the United States.
Returning to society after being incarcerated for a number of years is not easy. The most efficient way to assist individuals in staying out of prison once they are released, is to properly prepare them before they are released. Many studies show that individuals that are released in a prepared manner run a far less risk of re-offending. Some examples of what this preparation can include are:
- Finding a place to stay before release date. This can be a half-way house.
- Having the information on where to turn for items and assistance for things like social security card, drivers license.
- Knowing where to find job listings, how to apply for a job, how to be a good tenant, having basic job and life skills.
Much of the work of Released and Restored is about preparing inmates to become contributing members of society after release. So they can live moral, ethical and legal lives once released from prison.
Everybody wins when a released inmate stays away from crime and re-incarceration. The savings to taxpayers are potentially huge. The monetary gains for society are huge when an individual works and pays their taxes, sale tax, purchase locally, etc instead of being incarcerated and not contributing at all financially. The impact for the inmate's family are enormous. Children especially are effected very negatively by having one parent incarcerated.
Preparing inmates for moral, legal and and ethical lives after they serve their time is a great investment for everyone.
Once an inmate has served his time the time to re-enter society comes. Depending on how long the individual have been incarcerated, this transition can be very difficult. A large number of inmates that are released from prison will re-offend and consequently return to prison. This is called recidivism and is one of the measurements commonly used to gauge how well a prison system is functioning.
In Nebraska, individuals are most often released from prison with a small amount of money, called Gate Pay. Often this is $100 or less. With this money the newly released inmate needs to find a place to stay, food, transportation, and other expenses that comes with finding a job. Not an easy task. Could you imagine being plopped down in a town where you don't know anyone or have any friends with only $100 in your pocket and no other assets? With this money you would need to find roof over your head, food, and a job. Does it sound daunting? This is the reality facing inmates being released from prisons all across the United States.
Returning to society after being incarcerated for a number of years is not easy. The most efficient way to assist individuals in staying out of prison once they are released, is to properly prepare them before they are released. Many studies show that individuals that are released in a prepared manner run a far less risk of re-offending. Some examples of what this preparation can include are:
- Finding a place to stay before release date. This can be a half-way house.
- Having the information on where to turn for items and assistance for things like social security card, drivers license.
- Knowing where to find job listings, how to apply for a job, how to be a good tenant, having basic job and life skills.
Much of the work of Released and Restored is about preparing inmates to become contributing members of society after release. So they can live moral, ethical and legal lives once released from prison.
Everybody wins when a released inmate stays away from crime and re-incarceration. The savings to taxpayers are potentially huge. The monetary gains for society are huge when an individual works and pays their taxes, sale tax, purchase locally, etc instead of being incarcerated and not contributing at all financially. The impact for the inmate's family are enormous. Children especially are effected very negatively by having one parent incarcerated.
Preparing inmates for moral, legal and and ethical lives after they serve their time is a great investment for everyone.