Returning Home Illinois Policy Brief: Chicago Communities and Prisoner Reentry

              AUGUST 2005
CHRISTY VISHER
JILL FARRELL
hen men and women leave prison and return
home, they are confronted with an array of chal-lenges,
such as securing stable living arrangements,
finding employment, and avoiding criminal activity.
Perhaps a less obvious factor that may affect their suc-cess
is the nature of the place to which they return, spe-cifically
the local community area or neighborhood and its
distinctive characteristics. Both the availability and cost of housing and the
availability and proximity of jobs in areas where ex-prisoners return may influ-ence
postrelease outcomes. Accessibility of social services, such as health care
and substance abuse treatment, is also likely to affect their reentry experience
and subsequent recidivism. Indeed, for many ex-prisoners, the community plays
an important role in their reintegration.1
KEY FINDINGS
n Over half (54 percent) of former
male prisoners released to
Chicago returned to just 7
of Chicago’s 77 community
areas.
n Forty-five percent of ex-prisoners
said that they did not return to
the neighborhood they lived in
before they were sent to prison,
primarily because they wanted
to avoid problems in their old
neighborhood or because their
family had moved.
n Former prisoners who resided
in neighborhoods that were per-ceived
as unsafe and where
drug selling was a problem
were more likely to use drugs,
were less likely to be
employed, and were more likely
to return to prison.
n Community residents, reentry
policymakers and practitioners,
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CHICAGO COMMUNITIES AND PRISONER REENTRY
2100 M STREET, N.W.
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20037
URBAN
INSTITUTE
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PROFILE OF FORMER PRISONERS RETURNING TO CHICAGO
n Initial sample consisted of 400 men, with a median age of 34 years.
n Eighty-three percent of respondents were black, 5 percent were white, and
the remaining 12 percent identified with other racial groups. Ten percent of
respondents were Hispanic.
n Nearly half (46 percent) had a drug offense as their most serious charge for
their current prison term, while one-fifth (21 percent) were serving time for
violent offenses, such as assault and robbery, and one-third (30 percent)
were in prison for property offenses such as burglary and theft. The median
time served was 18 months.
n Most respondents (87 percent) had at least one prior conviction, with 35 per-cent
reporting four or more prior convictions. Three-quarters (74 percent) had
served time in prison before, and one-third (34 percent) had spent time in a
juvenile correctional facility.
n The majority (66 percent) reported some drug use prior to prison, with mari-juana,
heroin, and cocaine the most common drugs.
n Less than half (49 percent) had high school diplomas before entering prison
and one-third (34 percent) had been fired from a job at least once.
n Just over half (51 percent) were single and had never been married, and
60 percent had children under the age of 18.