24 new reports that focus on immigration, the death penalty, drug policy and more

Criminal Justice Research Library for April 9, 2025 Bringing you the latest in empirical research about mass incarceration

Our mission is to empower activists, journalists, and policymakers to shape effective criminal legal system policy, so we go beyond our original reports and analyses to curate a database of the best empirical research on the criminal legal system available online [[link removed]]. This newsletter includes just the newest additions to this database.

Securing a Second Chance

Hello friends,

Over 600,000 people are released [[link removed]] from prison each year. When they walk out of the prison walls, they’re met with a daunting series of challenges as they work to rebuild their lives, families, and careers.

April is Second Chance Month, a time dedicated to acknowledging and addressing the obstacles that formerly incarcerated people face after their release. So this month, we’re highlighting some of the research that shows what strategies actually work to help formerly incarcerated people overcome the most significant difficulties they face on a daily basis.

Guaranteed basic income: Formerly incarcerated people were often on precarious financial footing before being locked up and are even more insecure after their release. There is a growing body of research, including from the Chicago Future Fund [[link removed]] and the Penn Center for Guaranteed Income Research [[link removed]] (the latter report is co-authored by Prison Policy Initiative alum Lucius Couloute), that shows ensuring recently released people have the money to meet their basic needs, improves housing stability, decreases stress, increases food security, and much more. Housing: The challenges that formerly incarcerated people face in securing housing have been well documented [[link removed]]. They are 10 times more likely to experience homelessness [[link removed]] than the general public. It should come as no surprise, then, that one of the most effective ways to help people after their release is to simply make it easier for them to secure housing through a model known as Housing First [[link removed]]. This model shows that if someone has access to safer, secure housing, they’re better able to address the many other challenges that come their way. Employment: Similar to housing, formerly incarcerated people face a litany of barriers to securing a job. So, it is no surprise that formerly incarcerated people are unemployed at a much higher rate [[link removed]] than the rest of the country. Recent research [[link removed]] explains this problem and what can be done to fix it.

It is also important to remember that, as this stellar report from Colleen Chien explains [[link removed]], for many formerly incarcerated people, the notion of a second chance is out of reach due to institutional barriers to getting records expunged, restoring their right to vote, and much more.

Now, onto this month’s additions to our Research Library. This month, we added 24 new reports that focus on immigration, the death penalty, drug policy and more.

Take care,

Leah Wang, Senior Research Analyst

We've The Prison Policy Initiative has added 24 new reports to the Research Library [[link removed]]: Community impact [[link removed]]

See 106 reports [[link removed]] on the impact of the criminal legal system on housing, schools, employment, neighborhoods, and more.

Building a Mass Movement for Community-Led Public Safety [[link removed]] by Square One Project, May, 2024

"This report examines the political context of [community violence intervention] advocacy...and lays out a framework for how to build a mass movement...that can dramatically reduce gun violence over the long term." Conditions of confinement [[link removed]]

See 270 reports [[link removed]] on prison and jail conditions such as solitary confinement, labor, discipline, food, and more.

Slavery Revisited in Penal Plantation Labor [[link removed]] by Andrea C. Armstrong, April, 2012

"Most types of prison labor will approximate conditions of involuntary servitude [thus] permissible under the convict-labor exception of the Thirteenth Amendment...Other types of labor, however, may approximate conditions of slavery." Death penalty [[link removed]]

See 154 reports [[link removed]] on capital punishment and executions.

Talking turkey about the death penalty: outgoing governors and the president must use their clemency power now [[link removed]] by Prison Policy Initiative, November, 2024

"We applaud elected leaders when they use clemency to relieve people of excessive or unnecessary criminal sentences. But too often, they overlook those given the most draconian punishment on the books -- the death penalty." Drug policy and treatment [[link removed]]

See 177 reports [[link removed]] on punishing and treating drug use in the criminal legal system.

From Crisis to Care: Addressing Addiction, Mental Health, and Homelessness Through Health And Supportive Services [[link removed]] by Drug Policy Alliance, March, 2025

This policy brief explains the complex relationships between mental health, drug use, and homelessness, and highlights effective and humane policy solutions that address these issues and create healthier, safer communities. Economics of incarceration [[link removed]]

See 179 reports [[link removed]] on the economic drivers and consequences of mass incarceration.

Estate to State: Pay-to-Stay Statutes and the Problematic Seizure of Inherited Property [[link removed]] by Brittany L. Deitch, October, 2024

"When states seize inherited property to satisfy the costs of incarceration, the states interfere with the decedent's freedom to choose their beneficiaries as well as the beneficiary's freedom to inherit." Families [[link removed]]

See 156 reports [[link removed]] on the criminal legal system’s impacts on families.

Parental Prisoners: The Incarcerated Mother's Constitutional Right to Parent [[link removed]] by Emily Halter, July, 2018

"While the Supreme Court has chipped away at the rights of prisoners in other areas, finding that many rights are forfeited at the prison doors, it has never ruled on the status of parental rights during incarceration." General [[link removed]]

See 165 reports [[link removed]] on the criminal legal system.

The Incoherence of Prison Law [[link removed]] by Justin Driver & Emma Kaufman, December, 2021

"Exposing the myths that animate prison law yields broader insights about judicial regulation of prisons. This Article explains how outdated tropes have narrowed prisoners' rights and promoted the country's dependence on penal institutions." Health and healthcare [[link removed]]

See 209 reports [[link removed]] on access to healthcare, chronic and infectious disease, mortality, and more.

Impediments to Reproductive Justice: The Criminal Legal System and American Carceral State [[link removed]] by Harvard Law Review, June, 2024

"Until there is a reckoning with how criminal law relates to and affects reproductive rights, legal advocates for abortion cannot fully realize reproductive justice." A review and content analysis of U.S. Department of Corrections end-of-life decision making policies [[link removed]] by Victoria Helmly et al, April, 2022

"When stated, the overwhelming majority (16 of 20, 80%) of policies state that other incarcerated persons could not serve as a health-care proxy." Medication-Assisted Treatment in Criminal Justice Agencies Affiliated with the CJ-DATS (Criminal Justice-Drug Abuse Treatment Studies): Availability, Barriers & Intentions [[link removed]] by Peter D. Friedmann et al, January, 2013

"Pregnant women and individuals experiencing withdrawal were most likely to receive MAT for opiate dependence in jail or prison, while those re-entering the community from jail or prison were the least likely to receive MAT." Immigration [[link removed]]

See 72 reports [[link removed]] on the incarceration and detainment of immigrants.

Duration in Immigration Detention and Health Harms [[link removed]] by Altaf Saadi et al, January, 2025

"Detention periods of 6 months or more [were] associated with higher rates of self-rated poor health, mental illness, and PTSD compared with those detained less than 6 months.." Incarceration rates and trends [[link removed]]

See 337 reports [[link removed]] on the growth of prison and jail populations.

California may take a big step backwards towards more incarceration with Proposition 36 [[link removed]] by Prison Policy Initiative, October, 2025

"[California's Prop 36, which was approved by voters in the November 2024 elections,] is projected to fully undo hard fought progress made in reducing California's prison population." Jails [[link removed]]

See 287 reports [[link removed]] on jail populations, jail conditions, jail construction, and more.

Expanding Alternatives to Incarceration in NYC: A Pathway to Safely Closing Rikers Island [[link removed]] by New York City Alternatives to Incarceration (ATI) and Reentry Coalition, January, 2025

"Expanded application of ATls alone will not fully decarcerate Rikers. The City must also...fully implement its 6-A Work Release program and empower the Local Conditional Release Commission to use their authority to release eligible individuals." Policing [[link removed]]

See 272 reports [[link removed]] on arrests, traffic stops, law enforcement interactions, and more.

Four Decades of Law Enforcement in New York State: Changing Arrest, Prosecution, and Sentencing Trends, 1980-2023 [[link removed]] by Data Collaborative for Justice, December, 2024

"After adjusting for population declines outside NYC, misdemeanor arrest rates per 100,000 people in the suburbs and upstate increased from 1980 to 1990 and then declined throughout nearly all of the remaining 34 years examined." Pretrial detention [[link removed]]

See 127 reports [[link removed]] on the costs and outcomes of detaining people before trial.

Toward Safety, Liberty, and Equity: A Community-Centered Framework for Redesigning Minnesota's Pretrial System [[link removed]] by Minnesota Justice Research Center, February, 2025

"On average, people spend longer in jail pretrial in Greater Minnesota, particularly in counties that overlap with or border Minnesota's tribal nations." In Our Backyards: Money Bail in Rural Tennessee [[link removed]] by ACLU Tennessee, September, 2021

"From 2000 to 2016, the pretrial incarceration rate increased 163% in the state's 53 rural counties, compared to an increase of only 2% in the state's urban counties." Privatization [[link removed]]

See 104 reports [[link removed]] on how private companies exploit incarcerated people and their families.

Prison Banned Books Week: Books give incarcerated people access to the world, but tablets are often used to wall them off [[link removed]] by Prison Policy Initiative, September, 2024

"When we last looked at the availability of prison tablets in 2019, they were relatively new and rare behind bars. Today, at least 48 prison systems indicate they have tablets or, in the case of Alaska and Nevada, are in the process of implementing them." Probation and parole [[link removed]]

See 126 reports [[link removed]] on community supervision policies, conditions, violations, and more.

A Call for Greater Compassion: How Pennsylvania's Compassionate Release Statute Reinforces Cruelty [[link removed]] by Abolitionist Law Center, December, 2025

"Altering the life expectancy requirements could make the statute less restrictive...Requiring merely that an individual be seriously ill, in tandem with proposing a release plan, would provide a far more effective, compassionate avenue of relief." The Public Harm Under a For-Profit Probation System: Spotlight on Augusta [[link removed]] by Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, December, 2024

"Metro Augusta has some of the state's highest concentrations of Georgians with low incomes. For Georgians experiencing poverty, a private probation model provides few to no easy exits from misdemeanor probation supervision." Public opinion [[link removed]]

See 50 reports [[link removed]] on public perceptions of crime, prison, reform, and more.

Mass incarceration is on the ballot [[link removed]] by Prison Policy Initiative, September, 2024

"While presidential campaigns get most of the attention...many lesser-known down-ballot races can have a much more dramatic impact on criminal legal system reform in America. This guide focuses on the most common and consequential offices." Racial and ethnic disparities [[link removed]]

See 183 reports [[link removed]] on racial and ethnic disparities in the criminal legal system.

New, expanded data on Indian country jails show concerning trends extend to tribal lands [[link removed]] by Prison Policy Initiative, October, 2024

"Much like other jails across the country, Indian country jail populations are quickly bouncing back from the lows of the COVID-19 pandemic, and this growth has disproportionately impacted women and older adults." Reentry and recidivism [[link removed]]

See 248 reports [[link removed]] on the challenges and outcomes for people released from incarceration, including collateral consequences.

The Labor Market for People with Conviction Histories: An Examination of Access to Good Jobs [[link removed]] by Vera Institute of Justice, January, 2025

"Findings from this study underscore the value of a bachelor's degree's flexibility, but also the ambiguous barriers people leaving prison with these credentials may have to navigate in seeking a job." Women and gender [[link removed]]

See 142 reports [[link removed]] on gender disparities in the criminal legal system.

Great Weight: A Review of California Board of Parole Hearings Transcripts to Assess Frequency and Consideration of Intimate Partner Violence among Women Convicted of Homicide Offenses [[link removed]] by Stanford Criminal Justice Center at Stanford Law School, June, 2023

"[By reviewing] over 140 parole hearing transcripts...we found that approximately 23% of women incarcerated for homicide in California are serving time for a crime directly linked to their experience of intimate partner violence." Depressive Symptoms among Pregnant and Postpartum Women in Prison [[link removed]] by Mariann A. Howland et al, July, 2021

"More time remaining in prison after giving birth was associated with higher levels of postpartum depressive symptoms, after adjusting for depressive symptoms during pregnancy." Please support our work [[link removed]]

Our work is made possible by private donations. Can you help us keep going? We can accept tax-deductible gifts online [[link removed]] or via paper checks sent to PO Box 127 Northampton MA 01061. Thank you!

Other news: Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2025 [[link removed]]

After their pandemic-era drops, prison and jail populations are increasing once again.

In the new edition of our flagship report, Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie [[link removed]], we crunch the numbers to show how many people are incarcerated in the U.S., in what types of facilities, and why. We also explain the trends driving these numbers, and bust ten of the most persistent myths about crime, incarceration, and more.

A closer looker look at medication for opioid use disorder behind bars [[link removed]]

A new report from a New York prison oversight agency offers insights about the need for, and challenges of, implementing medication-assisted treatment in prisons.

In this new briefing [[link removed]], we examine this new report, explain what other states can learn from it, and offer a 50-state analysis of treatment for opioid use disorder behind bars.

Please support our work [[link removed]]

Our work is made possible by private donations. Can you help us keep going? We can accept tax-deductible gifts online [[link removed]] or via paper checks sent to PO Box 127 Northampton MA 01061. Thank you!

Our other newsletters General Prison Policy Initiative newsletter ( archives [[link removed]]) Ending prison gerrymandering ( archives [[link removed]])

Update your newsletter subscriptions [link removed].

You are receiving this message because you signed up on our website [[link removed]] or you met Peter Wagner or another staff member at an event and asked to be included.

Prison Policy Initiative [[link removed]]

PO Box 127

Northampton, Mass. 01061

Web Version [link removed] Unsubscribe [link removed] Update address / join other newsletters [link removed] Donate [[link removed]] Tweet this newsletter [link removed] Forward this newsletter [link removed]

You are receiving this message because you signed up on our website or you met Peter Wagner or another staff member at an event and asked to be included.

Prison Policy Initiative

PO Box 127 Northampton, Mass. 01061

Did someone forward this to you? If you enjoyed reading, please subscribe! [[link removed]] Web Version [link removed] | Update address [link removed] | Unsubscribe [link removed] | Share via: Twitter [link removed] Facebook [[link removed] Email [link removed]