For nearly three decades, the United States of America has been the consistent leader in incarceration rates worldwide. A number of structural social problems have contributed to this reality (e.g., the school-to-prison pipeline, the 1994 Crime Bill, and aggressive surveillance and policing of poor and minority neighborhoods). Recently, a number…

The State of New Jersey's inmate population totals almost 22,000 men and women. Nearly 53% of released inmates are re-arrested while 31.1% return to prison within 3 years. The stigma of being an ex-convict has multiple effects for former prisoners who seek to fully participate in society, and inmates re-entering society find their convictions can…