The prisoner reentry industry (PRI) emerged as a by-product of mass incarceration, with the stated purpose of helping the formerly incarcerated reenter society and achieve a new “law-abiding” status. Traditional criminological studies point to high recidivism rates in the United States as proof that U.S. reentry fails to rehabilitate offenders. Utilizing data from 57 in-depth semistructured interviews with formerly incarcerated individuals and 10 interviews with reentry service providers across five states, we posit that although the PRI purports to rehabilitate offenders, it operates using mechanisms including parole conditions and fee-based reentry services that ensure the formerly incarcerated remain trapped in a cycle of failure. Hence, the PRI is not a broken system. Rather, it is an intentional form of structural violence perpetuated by the state to ensure the continued oppression of the most marginalized groups in our society.

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One misconception in gang research is the assumption that prison gangs and street gangs are organizationally and ideologically synonymous. Although in the minority, some researchers suggest that prison gangs are qualitatively and quantitatively different from other gangs (Fleisher & Decker, 2001). Utilizing 30 in-depth semi-structured interviews with formerly incarcerated gang members in the New England area, this article assesses the effect of environment on the organizational structure, ideologies, and practices of prison and street gangs. The analysis presents a comparative model of prison and street gangs that highlights differences across major aspects of each type of organization, including membership, leadership, organizational operations, and relationships with authority figures. These findings suggest a need for researchers to explore prison and street gangs as distinct entities each affected by their respective environments. Policy suggestions and directions for future research are discussed.

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