This article presents the findings of an exploratory study of parole release and parole failure as seen through the eyes of inmates who have been returned to prison following parole revocation. The small sample of revoked inmates was limited to parolees of a young adult offender (YAO) program. The YAO program was designed for young men who were (a) under the age of 18 at the time of conviction, (b) waived to the adult system, and (c) sentenced to a term of imprisonment in an adult prison. This research project used qualitative interviews to explore perceptions about parole supervision and revocation. The men described their experiences and thoughts about parole from the perspective of parole failure. The authors believe the insights of the men can inform discussions about reentry and efforts to enhance parole services for recently released inmates.Release from prison and reintegration of offenders into the free community are critical issues for all parties involved in correctional policy makingcorrections professionals, other criminal justice and related agency officials, academics, and most particularly offenders themselves. This article presents the results of a qualitative study of the parole experience as seen through the eyes of young men whose parole had been revoked and who had returned to prison. We interviewed young men from a special population: adolescents sentenced as adults to serve prison terms in an adult institution.The goal of qualitative research is to enter the world of the research participant and to see and understand that world as the participant does. For this project, we sought to understand what it is like to be a young man leaving prison and learning to negotiate the free community. Our purpose was to see

Research into the criminal justice policy formation process has made it clear that public preferences are important influences. While public preferences about punishment are often strong and well-articulated, they are largely unconstrained by the consequences associated with those choices. This study examines these policy issues as they relate to a recent national survey of public attitudes concerning punishment for criminal offenses. The potential policy consequences of the preferences expressed in the survey were estimated by applying the punishment preferences to a recent conviction cohort from New York State. Comparisons were then made between the actual outcomes in New York with those that would have occurred if the survey results had applied. As anticipated from prior research concerning public attitudes about punishment, the survey respondents were more punitive than actual practice. The additional correctional costs that would have been associated with applying those preferences to the New York offenders were also estimated and found to be very high. The implications of these results for public policy formulation are discussed.

Although it is true that inmates in U.S. prisons are experiencing high rates of HIV disease, it also is true that incarceration affords a meaningful opportunity to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS through education. Consequently, providing effective education programs for inmates is an important corrections and public health concern. In an attempt to assess our current efforts in this area, a survey of all 50 state departments of corrections was conducted. As part of that survey, descriptions of inmate AIDS education programs were obtained from 27 states. These programs were analyzed using themes garnered from a variety of published recommendations concerning effective AIDS education. The results of the content analysis for the 27 descriptions were then specifically compared with the National Commission on AIDS recommendations for AIDS education programs for inmates.

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Prisons and other correctional environments are in many ways optimal settings for the development, delivery, and study of AIDS education and prevention programs. Prior research has shown such programs to be widespread, but little is known about their impact. This article presents findings from a recent nationwide survey of AIDS education efforts in U.S. prisons. Results (a) provide baseline information about major program variations that evaluators must take into account and (b) serve as a catalyst for discussion of the types of questions that require their attention.