Stop the downward spiral of criminal recidivism

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Stop the downward spiral of criminal recidivism

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More than 1,700 people convicted of crimes are released from state and federal prisons every day. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, three out of five will be charged with new crimes within three years; two out of five will be re-incarcerated.

Those who participate in prison education, vocation and work programs have better odds of staying out of jail, but a critical and often difficult first step is getting a job.

Every day, in cities across America, Goodwill Industries works with convicted criminals who have paid their debt to society and are struggling to rejoin the community. In 2006, nearly 100 local Goodwill agencies across the United States helped more than 54,000 current and former inmates, an increase of 20 percent over 2005.

Here in Frederick alone, Goodwill Industries of Monocacy Valley recently started a computer training program at the Frederick County Work Release Center, a program that is growing enormously in popularity among inmates and is helping them to become productive members of society.

At Goodwill, we know first hand that it takes much more than a strong work ethic to be relevant in today's workplace. It takes long-term and ongoing employment solutions and a criminal justice system that helps people find a path to self-sufficiency and financial independence through work.

At Goodwill, we know it takes more than a helping hand for people leaving prison to move into lives as productive citizens.

We do that by selling your donations of clothing and household items and using the proceeds to fund job training programs that benefit hundreds of thousands of people each year.

These programs and others nationwide are helping people become productive taxpaying citizens. They are not a drain on our nation’s limited resources, nor an ongoing threat to public safety.

While the costs to taxpayers of our nation’s correction system soared from $9 billion per year in 1982 to $60 billion two decades later, recidivism has not improved over the last 30 years. Given the current amount spent on corrections, even a modest reduction in the rate of recidivism would yield substantial economic benefits.

It’s time for Congress to stop ignoring the downward spiral of criminal recidivism, and fund the integration of drug treatment and mental health services, job training and family strengthening.

Dan Kurtenbach, Frederick

Dan Kurtenbach is president and CEO of Goodwill Industries of Monocacy Valley.