Recidivism

Recidivism is the tendency of a convicted offender to commit another crime after release. Reducing recidivism has been the focus of bipartisan criminal justice reform efforts since the 2010s.

Recidivism is measured in different ways, but the basic finding has held steady for decades. Roughly two-thirds of state prisoners released in the United States are rearrested within three years, and roughly half return to prison within five years. The numbers vary by offense, age at release, prior criminal history, and the conditions of supervision, but the overall pattern is consistent. A large share of American crime is committed by a relatively small number of repeat offenders. This finding shapes most of the modern criminal justice reform debate. If incarceration's purpose is to deter and incapacitate, recidivism rates are a measure of how well it succeeds. If its purpose includes rehabilitation, they are a measure of how well it prepares people to return to ordinary life. The evidence has driven a broad shift in policy thinking. Education and vocational training programs in prison reduce recidivism. So do treatment for mental illness and addiction, stable housing after release, and steady employment. The First Step Act of 2018, signed by President Trump with strong bipartisan support, expanded such programming in federal prisons and tied early release to participation. Many states have adopted similar measures. Critics from the right argue that the focus on rehabilitation can downplay the moral and practical case for punishment, especially for violent offenders. Critics from the left argue that real reduction in recidivism requires changes in the surrounding economic and social conditions, not just programs inside the prison walls. The shared starting point, increasingly accepted across the political spectrum, is that a system in which most released offenders return to prison is not succeeding by anyone's definition.