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Pros And Cons Of Incarceration

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In reference to the latest statistics, there are 2.3 million Americans behind bars, representing the highest incarceration rate in the world (Western & Pettit, 2010). Although incarceration rates for males during 2011 is currently down by 1.7% and showed a similar rate of decline from 2010 to 2011, incarceration statistics are still astronomically high. Of the estimated 1,362,028 total adult incarcerations during the period of 2000 to 2010, at least 12.6%, which is 152,898 inmates, were sentenced under state jurisdiction and 3.8%, which is 190,641 inmates, were sentenced under federal jurisdiction (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2011, p. 10). This does not include the local and county incarcerations of each state.
The Bureau of Justice Statistics …show more content…

Subject to realistic limitations then, former inmates should be able to do their time, work hard and create a new law-abiding life with goals and dreams just like the rest of us. This was an encouraging sentimentality behind the passing of the Second Chance Act signed into law by George W. Bush in 2008, “The Second Chance Act Programs are designed to help communities develop and implement comprehensive and collaborative strategies that address the challenges posed by offender reentry and recidivism reduction” (U.S. Department of Justice, 2012, p. 1). Unfortunately, the dark clouds looming over this Act are the realities of incarceration and the forming of long shadows over former inmates. This alone greatly reduces the ability to work their way up. The problems faced once leaving prison compound the wages and skill lost during the period of incarceration. When taking into consideration of newly released inmates’ age, education levels, and region of residence, past incarceration reduced ensuing wages by 11 percent, cut annual employment by 9 weeks, and reduced yearly income by 40 percent (Western & Pettit, 2010, p. 11). When the impact of incarceration on earnings is traced through the

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