Reentry in Rural Communities
Each year, 600,000 people from state and federal prison and 9 million people from local jails reenter into the community.1 Within a 3-year period, about half of these individuals are reincarcerated and two thirds are rearrested.2 Although many of the challenges of reentry are similar across geographical settings, people in rural communities encounter many additional barriers to successful reentry.
Transportation, employment, housing, and reentry program access/ availability are key factors that characterize the challenges of rural reentry.3,4 The majority of people under community supervision in rural areas report that they do not have access to public transportation.5 This poses barriers to employment, accessibility of behavioral health treatment, and the ability to participate fully in reentry programs and/or meet supervisory requirements.6 People reentering into rural communities may also have diminished employment opportunities due to both decreased availability of overall jobs and the increased stigma of incarceration in some rural areas.7,8 Housing is another challenge, with a study reporting that 78 percent of respondents under rural community supervision indicated problems accessing stable housing.9
Reentry programming is often limited in rural communities as well, with some local jails directing people to sites in neighboring counties (sometimes hours away) in order to receive services and/or comply with supervisory conditions.10 The limited availability of community-based substance use treatment programs is particularly relevant, as continuity of care is necessary to lower the risk of overdose-related mortality (which is highest in the first weeks post-release) and maintain long-term recovery.11,12 Overall, strategies to strengthen protective factors in rural reentry (such as improved access to health insurance and health care, enhanced prosocial relationships and community support, and increased linkages to transportation, employment, and housing) are needed. When tailored to the rural context, such strategies have the potential to significantly reduce recidivism and promote wellness.
Sources
Blanco, C., Ali, M. M., Beswick, A., Drexler, K. Hoffman, C., Jones, C. M., Wiley, T. R. A., & Coukell, A. (2020). The American opioid epidemic in special populations: five examples. (NAM PerspectivesDiscussion Paper.) National Academy of Medicine. https://doi.org/10.31478/202010b
Lowe, N., & Cobb, K. (2016, September 1). The long road home in rural America: Challenges & strategies for rural re-entry supervision. Capitol Ideas Magazine. https://issuu.com/csg.publications/docs/ci_sept_oct_2016
Office of the Assistance Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE). (n.d.). Incarceration and reentry. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://aspe.hhs.gov/incarceration-reentry
Staton-Tindall, M., McNees, E., Leukefeld, C., Walker, R., Oser, C., Duvall, J., Thompson, L., & Pangburn, K. (2011). Treatment utilization among metropolitan and nonmetropolitan participants of corrections-based substance abuse programs reentering the community. Journal of Social Service Research, 37, 379–389. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2011.582019
Staton, M., Dickson, M., Tillson, M., Webster, M., & Leukefeld, C. (2019). Staying out: Reentry protective factors among rural women offenders. Women & Criminal Justice, 29(6), 368–384. https://doi.org/10.1080/08974454.2019.1613284
The National Re-entry Resource Center (NRRC) & The Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center. (2018). Re-entry matters: Strategies and successes of second chance act grantees. https://csgjusticecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Reentry-Matters-2018.pdf
Zajac, G., Hutchison, R., & Meyer, C.A. (2014). An examination of rural prisoner reentry challenges. Pennsylvania State University Justice Center for Research. https://justicecenter.la.psu.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2020/10/CRPA-Rural-Reentry-Report-Final-Justice-Center-version.pdf
Endnotes
1 Office of the Assistance Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE). (n.d.). Incarceration and reentry. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://aspe.hhs.gov/incarceration-reentry
2 (ASPE). (n.d.). Incarceration and reentry.
3 Zajac, G., Hutchison, R., & Meyer, C.A. (2014). An examination of rural prisoner reentry challenges. Pennsylvania State University Justice Center for Research. https://justicecenter.la.psu.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2020/10/CRPA-Rural-Reentry-Report-Final-Justice-Center-version.pdf
4 The National Re-entry Resource Center (NRRC) & The Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center. (2018). Re-entry matters: Strategies and successes of second chance act grantees. https://csgjusticecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Reentry-Matters-2018.pdf
5 NRRC & CSG Justice Center. (2018). Re-entry matters: Strategies and successes of second chance act grantees.
6 Staton, M., Dickson, M., Tillson, M., Webster, M., & Leukefeld, C. (2019). Staying out: Reentry protective factors among rural women offenders. Women & Criminal Justice, 29(6), 368–384. https://doi.org/10.1080/08974454.2019.1613284
7 NRRC & CSG Justice Center. (2018). Re-entry matters: Strategies and successes of second chance act grantees.
8 Staton et al. (2019). Staying out: Reentry protective factors among rural women offenders.
9 Lowe, N., & Cobb, K. (2016, September 1). The long road home in rural America: Challenges & strategies for rural re-entry supervision. Capitol Ideas Magazine. https://issuu.com/csg.publications/docs/ci_sept_oct_2016
10 NRRC & CSG Justice Center. (2018). Re-entry matters: Strategies and successes of second chance act grantees.
11 Staton-Tindall, M., McNees, E., Leukefeld, C., Walker, R., Oser, C., Duvall, J., Thompson, L., & Pangburn, K. (2011). Treatment utilization among metropolitan and nonmetropolitan participants of corrections-based substance abuse programs reentering the community. Journal of Social Service Research, 37, 379–389. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2011.582019
12 Blanco, C., Ali, M. M., Beswick, A., Drexler, K. Hoffman, C., Jones, C. M., Wiley, T. R. A., & Coukell, A. (2020). The American opioid epidemic in special populations: five examples. (NAM PerspectivesDiscussion Paper.) National Academy of Medicine. https://doi.org/10.31478/202010b