Pros And Cons Of The Second Chance Act

Submission 3

Should the U.S Congress Repeal the Second Chance Act?

Argument 1 - Privilege: that privilege was abundant and as such defeat the purpose of serving one’s actual sentence for the ills committed Analysis of Argumentation

The question here is that what is the type of prisoner you want to return on the streets? Should he be the same person who came in and continue to do the crimes or should he be the person who would have been changed for good? The underlying difference here is that the person who is good is a subjective question.

Before custody: From a research conducted, we know that 52% of male offenders and 71% of female offenders have no qualifications whatsoever. This is a very sad state as this will not only harm the individuals

A recent PET survey showed that only 18% of offenders felt supported by prison officers in their learning. One third of prison courses are not completed, half of which are a direct result of the release or transfer of prisoners, wasting an estimated £30m annually. Around two thirds of those who do have a job lose it whilst in custody. 1 in 14 prisoners participate in an activity to help other prisoners, eg. the Samaritan

First, New York taxpayers were spared a program that would not have produced its intended results. The low recidivism rates of participating prisoners conceal the fact that such prisoners are less inclined, even without completing college coursework, to return to crime. Many possess some baseline education and are highly motivated to increase their human capital while incarcerated. Furthermore, participation is voluntary and graduation is not mandatory. With the state socializing the costs of prison education, New York’s average per-prisoner expenses would increase. Some prisoners who wouldn’t otherwise enter a program (or who might have been declined by a private program seeking to minimize waste) would sign up for courses and then drop out. The second reason Cuomo’s shift should be viewed positively is that it places a spotlight on private charity.It’s time to look at serious alternatives to publicly funded prisoner education. The recent history of post-secondary prison education reveals a mix of public and private support. From 1972-1994, prisoners were eligible for federal Pell grants. The flow of federal funding expanded the supply of post-secondary prison programs. At one point there were 350 programs in 37 states. But the mid-1990s brought significant “tough on crime”-based legislative changes. Congress and the Clinton administration ended prisoners’ Pell grant eligibility, and states like New