Kaila Gomez

10/20/2021

Pros:
In past years, the early release of prisoners has proven to have many benefits to both
those incarcerated and everyday taxpayers. Many people in the USA strongly believe that
prisoners who exhibit improvement and good behavior deserve to be rewarded with shorter
sentences. In the article, “Let the Good Times Roll: Early Release for Good Behavior in Prison”,
O’Hear states, “Good-time programs such as Washington’s offer the potential of reducing prison
overcrowding and taxpayer costs by accelerating the release dates of inmates whose good
performance in prison indicates rehabilitative progress and diminished recidivism risk.”
Overcrowding has become an increasingly relevant problem in US prisons as crime rates
increase, and early release could be a viable solution. As stated, not just anyone gets released in
these programs, only inmates who have shown significant improvement and are no longer
considered a threat to society are. This means these former prisoners are far less likely to return
to prison in their future or reoffend. This, in part, is due to the various programs that inmates
join to help shorten their sentences. Inmates in good-time programs often join many programs or
even vocational activities while incarcerated. For example, a study on recidivism rates by the
California Innocence Project states, “Programs for the incarcerated, such as anger management,
vocational skills training, educational opportunities, and even trauma support groups, are vital to
ensuring inmates who are reintroduced to society have the life skills necessary to stay on the
right path”. As a result of the effort inmates put in to achieve an early release, they often do not
participate in the same behavior that led to their incarceration in the first place. Overall, the
early release of prisoners due to good behavior is beneficial in many ways, for both the former
inmates and taxpayers.

Cons:
Despite the benefits of releasing prisoners early, when it is done on such a large scale,
ex-convicts are put at a disadvantage because of a shortage of resources. As a result of
Covid-19, a large number of prisoners have been released in many different states due to the
overcrowding problem. This poses a problem to many as the government agencies that help
former offenders reintegrate into society are not as readily available to help everyone. In her
article, Swannell states, “Support services that are ordinarily available to released offenders are
currently compromised or are experiencing significant delays”. If ex-cons are not able to receive
the help they need from these agencies, they may be more likely to return to prison shortly after
they are released. Furthermore, not only inmates incarcerated for non-violent crimes are being
released. An article from KTLA states, “More than 63,000 inmates convicted of violent crimes
will be eligible for good behavior credits that shorten their sentences by one-third instead of the
one-fifth that had been in place since 2017”. The thought of people who have committed violent
crimes back on the streets is one that strikes fear into many people. After all, it can be very
difficult, near impossible, for people to change their ways, especially when those ways are
violent.
 Kaila Gomez
10/20/2021

Opinion:
I believe the early release of prisoners is a good incentive for inmates to stay on the right
track and join programs that will help integrate them back into society. It is also a necessary step
to take to prevent overcrowding in prisons, especially during a Covid-19 pandemic. I feel
programs built towards helping inmates reintegrate into society can effectively rehabilitate them
to the point where they are able to “change their ways”. The majority of people are not “innately
evil” and deserve the chance to become a better person.

Works Cited:
1. O’Hear, Michael. “Let the Good Time Roll: Early Release for Good Behavior in Prison.”

Marquette University Law School, State Bar of Wisconsin, 16 Mar. 2015,

scholarship.law.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1655&context=facpub.

2. California Innocence Project. “Recidivism Rates.” California Innocence Project,

California Western School of Law,

californiainnocenceproject.org/issues-we-face/recidivism-rates. Accessed 21 Oct. 2021.

3. Swannell, Cate. “Covid-19: Pros and Cons of Early Prisoner Release.” MJA, The Medical

Journal of Australia, 8 May 2020,

www.mja.com.au/journal/2020/covid-19-pros-and-cons-early-prisoner-release.

4. Associated Press. “California Is Releasing 76K Inmates Early, Including Violent Felons.”

KTLA, The Associated Press, 30 Apr. 2021,

ktla.com/news/california/california-will-release-76k-inmates-early-including-violent-felo

ns.