Highlighting the need for, and the support for, reforming mass community supervision

Jessica Jackson's new USA Today piece, headlined "The expensive burden of parole, probation unjustly places people in a second prison," highlights why community supervision is another form of mass punishment that needs reform attention.  Here are excerpts:

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, nearly 4.4 million Americans were on probation or parole in 2018, approximately twice the number of people incarcerated in the United States.  [And] more than 75% were under supervision for nonviolent offenses, according to The Pew Charitable Trusts.  Since 1990, the number of women on parole or probation has almost doubled to more than 1 million in 2016. And though African Americans make up just 13% of the U.S. adult population, they account for 30% of those on community supervision.

Sadly, almost 350,000 of people who exit probation or parole each year return to jail or prison, often for technical violations rather than for committing new crimes.  In fact, probation and parole failures account for 45% of state prison admissions nationwide.

Collectively, states spend $2.8 billion annually to incarcerate people for noncriminal rule violations.  This is money that could be better used to help people gain the skills and treatment they need to successfully reenter their communities after incarceration, something that has strong public support.   A new Morning Consult survey conducted in eight states on behalf of my organization, the REFORM Alliance [reported here], found:

► A majority of voters in six of the eight states think it is important to reduce the number of people on probation or parole supervision.

► A plurality of voters in all eight states think the United States spends too much incarcerating people for violating the conditions of their probation or parole.

► At least half of voters in seven of the eight states would be more likely to support a public official who wants to reform the probation and parole system.

Perhaps most important, a majority of voters in all eight states support commonsense probation and parole reforms, such as: decreasing caseloads for probation officers; providing mentorship programs for those on parole or probation; allowing people on probation to report to their supervisors remotely; incentivizing and encouraging supervised people to participate in rehabilitative programs; and investing savings from a smaller supervised population into reentry programs.

Simply put, people want a smarter system that balances accountability and public safety with rehabilitation and redemption. We know it's possible.  Crime and incarceration dropped at the same time in 37 states over a nine-year period, according to data from the Pew Charitable Trusts.  Red and blue states, alike, are continuing that progress, with legislatures in Mississippi, California and Louisiana passing parole and probation reform legislation this year.