I was just reading an article on the MSNBC news website that a lot of states are considering early release and no parole for a lot of their prisoners that were not convicted of violent or sex-related crimes. I understand that there is a huge budget restraint, but I have a lot of concerns about that. I don’t think that many of these folks will be able to find legal and decent jobs once they are released and because of that they will turn back to crime in order to make ends meet.
I happen to know a few people who have done jail time, and they don’t have jobs. They’ve been looking for work but can’t get hired because of their prison record. How are they to support themselves? Go on food stamps and collect some kind of welfare check? Go back to stealing and selling drugs? This really concerns me a lot. These prisoners need rehabilitation and guaranteed jobs before being released back into the community. It’s not enough to be released from jail with good intentions of getting a job, they need a guaranteed job or it just will not work.