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 The inmate recidivism rate is the benchmark by which the success or failure of our current prison system is judged. Are we rehabilitating our inmates or simply training them to become more skilled, elusive criminals? The greater problem for the Florida Department of Corrections lies in the fact that in 2009, 40,000 inmates will be released from the State’s prisons while 45,000 more are incarcerated, a staggering 12-1/2% annual growth rate within our budget-strapped system. The recidivism rate, for offenders committing new crimes, is currently around 32%, meaning that of that 40,000 released, at least 12,800 will become repeat offenders. However, when VOP (Violation of Probation) statistics are included, the recidivism rate more than doubles the 32%. Furthermore, there is not enough bed space, so current prison facilities must be expanded and more must be built and staffed or else, like California, inmates will be turned out long before their mandatory sentences are completed. It costs the State approximately $25,000 annually to house, feed and care for each inmate, but when you couple in the fact that the majority of inmates’ families are receiving State-funded assistance of some kind, that number effectively soars upward toward $100,000 each. With this overall claim on State funds, the ability to institute and pay for effective rehabilitative programs has been greatly diminished, if not eliminated. Furthermore, if the truth be told, we know that these programs have not truly rehabilitated very many inmates. So, with a growing number of career criminals within our State and the prisons seemingly becoming a graduate school for criminal training, what are we to do as a government charged with protecting our citizens?
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