3) Ex-Convicts Returning to Prison

3) Ex-Convicts Returning to Prison

"Recidivism... refers to a person's relapse into criminal behavior, often after receiving sanctions or undergoing intervention for a previous crime" (Recidivism).

Recidivism rates in the United States are high, around 40 percent of ex-felons will be re-incarcerated after being released (Percent of Released Prisoners Returning to Incarceration). "Currently 60% of prisoners have been in prison before" (Gorski).

"At the end of 2011, 4,814,200 adults - one in fifty U.S. adults - were on probation, parole, or other post-prison supervision. Approximately 853,900 were on parole.
In a study that looked at recidivism in over 40 states, more than four in 10 offenders returned to state prison within three years of their release.
In 2011, parole violators accounted for 30.8 percent of all prison admissions, 33 percent of state admissions, and 7.9 percent of federal admissions.
During 2011, approximately 12% of parolees were re-incarcerated. Eight percent of parolees were re-incarcerated due to parole violations and revocations, and 3% of parolees were re-incarcerated for new offenses." (Reentry Facts).