Career criminal

Professor Lawrence Sherman explains how policing can prevent far more crimes than prison per dollar spent. His analysis of the cost-effectiveness of prison compared to policing suggests that states can cut their total budgets for justice and reduce crime by reallocating their spending on crime: less prison, more police.

Dr. Kirk discusses how Hurricane Katrina affected those formerly incarcerated persons originally from New Orleans and their likelihood of returning to prison. Kirk also discussed potential strategies for fostering residential change among those who were incarcerated, focusing specifically on parole residency policies and the provision of public housing vouchers.

This Crime File video describes the Repeat Offender Program (ROP) of the Washington, D.C., police department and a similar program that targets young offenders in Mecklenburg County, N.C. A panel discusses these programs and constitutional issues involved in their operation.