Policy Statement 18, Research Highlight 1
Research suggests that prerelease assessments can help determine when a prisoner is ready to be released.
The use of assessment instruments to determine risk and needs levels has been widely adopted among parole agencies that make discretionary release decisions. [1] These assessments, which identify an individual's risks, service needs, and response to treatment, can also be used to distinguish prisoners who will be at high or low risk of re-offending once they are released. Parole boards currently use assessments to deem low-risk offenders "ready" for release. [2] Such assessments also provide releasing authorities with the opportunity to tailor the supervision period according to the risk that each individual presents with particularized interventions that are designed to maximize opportunities for successful re-entry.
- Don A. Andrews and James Bonta, The Psychology of Criminal Conduct (Cincinnati: Anderson Publishing Co., 1994); Joan Petersilia, When Prisoners Come Home: Parole and Prisoner Reentry (New York: Oxford University Press, 2003). back
- For example, parole boards in Georgia, Missouri, and Texas use the results of risk assessments to guide their parole decisions. back