Carrie Pettus-Davis
The Economic Burden of Incarceration in the U.S.
Published:
| Author: Michael McLaughlin, Carrie Pettus-Davis, Derek Brown, Christopher Veeh, Tanya Renn
This study estimates the annual economic burden of incarceration in the United States. While prior research has estimated the cost of crime, no study has calculated the cost of incarceration. The $80 billion spent annually on corrections is frequently cited as the cost of incarceration, but this figure considerably underestimates the true cost of incarceration by ignoring important social costs. These include costs to incarcerated persons, families, children, and communities. This study draws on a burgeoning area of scholarship to assign monetary values to twenty-three different costs, whic
Category: Mass Incarceration, Cost of Incarceration
What Trauma Looks Like for Incarcerated Men: A Study of Men’s Lifetime Trauma Exposure in Two State Prisons
Published:
| Author: Maria Morrison, Carrie Pettus-Davis, Tanya Renn, Christopher Veeh, Christopher Weatherly
While it is understood that high rates of trauma exposure are common among incarcerated male populations, there is limited data on the nature of the trauma exposure. This study examined the trauma histories of a randomly selected sample of 67 men incarcerated in the Missouri Department of Corrections. The analyses revealed several patterns among study participants, including near universal trauma exposure in adolescence with the most frequent exposures involving witnessing or being proximate to violent deaths of family and friends.
Category: Trauma
Researching and Responding to Barriers to Prisoner Reentry: Early Findings from a Multi-state Trial
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus-Davis, Stephanie Kennedy
This report describes the inner workings and early discoveries of participants and researchers in a groundbreaking longitudinal study currently occurring in four states, 50 prisons, 12 urban and rural counties with more than 1800 people enrolled since May 2018. The study, officially titled A Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial of the 5 Key Model for Reentry, is research that is occurring as a part of a larger initiative referred to as the Safe Streets and Second Chances initiative.
Category: Reentry, Well-Being, 5-Key Model for Reentry
Intervention Development Study of the 5 Key Model for Reentry: An Evidence Driven Prisoner Reentry Intervention
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus-Davis, Tanya Renn, Christopher Veeh
Over the past decade and a half, substantial resources were poured into the development of prisoner reentry programs. However, the excitement that surrounded the initial roll out of reentry programs has begun to wane from a lack of substantive change to the number of individuals who return to prison. Therefore, this paper details the development of an intervention that can provide a new path forward for prisoner reentry programs.
Category: Reentry, Well-Being, 5-Key Model for Reentry
From Mass Incarceration to Smart Decarceration
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus-Davis, Matthew Epperson
Through decarceration, the lives of millions of people can be vastly improved, and the nation as a whole can leave behind this short-sighted and shameful period of mass incarceration. But how will this be accomplished, and by whom? Seldom before in the nation’s history has the need for applied social innovation been more urgent.
Category: Mass Incarceration, Smart Decarceration
Smart Decarceration: Guiding Concepts for an Era of Criminal Justice Transformation
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus-Davis, Matthew Epperson
The era of mass incarceration, which made the United States the world’s leading jailer, appears to be coming to an end. What is likely to follow is an era of decarceration, aimed at reducing the incarcerated population. In this working paper, we discuss the problems associated with mass incarceration and the current climate that is likely to make decarceration a reality. We discuss the importance of developing a “smart decarceration” approach—one that is effective, sustainable, and socially just.
Category: Mass Incarceration, Smart Decarceration
Policy Brief: Policy Recommendations for Meeting the Grand Challenge to Promote Smart Decarceration
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus-Davis, Matthew Epperson
What lies before us is a historic opportunity to promote smart decarceration by building social capacity to reduce
incarceration rates in ways that are effective, sustainable, and socially just. To succeed, smart decarceration requires policy innovations that substantially reduce the use of incarceration, redress existing disparities in the criminal justice system, and maximize public safety and well-being.
Category: Mass Incarceration, Smart Decarceration
Reverse Civic and Legal Exclusions for Persons with Criminal Charges and Convictions
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus-Davis, Matthew Epperson
Civil disability policies entangle persons with criminal convictions in a web of civic and legal exclusions
that revoke or restrict their rights and limit access to services needed for an individual’s successful
community reintegration. These policies—also known as collateral consequences—extend the reach of
criminal justice punishment long after contact with the formal system has ended. There are now an
estimated 40,000 civil disability policies nationwide—policies which affect the daily lives of individuals,
Category: Collateral Consequences of Incarceration, Mass Incarceration, Smart Decarceration
Promoting Reentry Well-Being: A Novel Assessment Tool for Individualized Service Assignment in Prisoner Reentry Programs
Published:
| Author: Christopher Veeh, Tanya Renn, Carrie Pettus-Davis
The Reentry Well-Being Assessment Tool (RWAT) is an innovative practice tool to systematically guide individualized assignment into reentry program services based on a participant’s changing needs during the transition from prison to the community. Clearly defined treatment targets that promote an individual’s well-being are paired with a comprehensive set of assessments within the RWAT to measure progress throughout a prisoner reentry program.
Category: Reentry, Well-Being
Deferred Prosecution Programs: An Implementation Guide
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus-Davis, Matthew Epperson, Annie Grier, Megan Kraatz, Leon Sawh, Stephanie Kennedy, Bianca Schindeler
Deferred prosecution is one prosecutor-led diversion mechanism which has the potential to reduce criminal justice involvement and incarceration rates while maximizing public safety.
