Navigating Mainstream Institutions and Non-Traditional Alternatives Post-Incarceration

Session Submission Type: Complete Thematic Panel

Abstract/Description

The three working papers in this panel stem from a multi-year project in partnership with the Office of Returning Citizens in Boston, Massachusetts. Our research team conducted in-person interviews with 100 previously incarcerated adults between July 2021 and October 2022 to address several key research questions. The first paper aims to understand how people perceive, interact with, and avoid non-criminal justice domains in both the immediate reentry period and longer reintegration process. The second paper examines experiences with law enforcement post-release, and whether legal cynicism influences decisions to report crimes to the police and engage with non-criminal justice entities. The final presentation explores whether a subgroup of individuals—parents and caregivers—have different experiences with non-criminal justice institutions in the reentry and reintegration process, with a specific focus on how monetary responsibilities can influence decisions to engage with financial institutions. The presenters will discuss the implications of system exclusion, the perceived short-term gains of institutional avoidance, and policy recommendations for advancing successful long-term reintegration.

Sub Unit

• Area VI. The Criminal Justice System / 50. Prisoner Reentry

Individual Presentations

• Exclusion, Opportunity Knowledge Gaps, or Purposeful Avoidance? Exploring System Avoidance Experiences and Strategies Among Formerly Incarcerated Adults - Megan Denver, Northeastern University; Rodney K. Brunson, University of Maryland; Oscar Navarro-Alvarez, Northeastern University

• The Unsteady Road Home: Returning Citizens’ Experiences Navigating Legal Cynicism, System (Dis)engagement, and Law Enforcement Contact - Ayanna Miller, Northeastern University; Rodney K. Brunson, University of Maryland; Vijay F. Chillar, University of Central Florida

• Parental Carceral Obligations and Institutional Engagement Decisions - Patrice D. Collins, Northeastern University; Cassidy Pereira, Northeastern University; Megan Denver, Northeastern University

Chair

• Rodney K. Brunson, University of Maryland