In many countries, there are many cases of recidivism, which means an inmate commits another crime after he leaves prison. In fact, it is very difficult to break the chain of arrest, imprisonment, release and repeated crimes. In this case, we are starting to think about the rehabilitation process with law and inmates education which must be strengthened by giving understanding about applicable state laws.
Why Education for Inmates is Important?
Prison is indeed a place of punishment for serious law violators; in general it can make some people reluctant to commit crimes. However, there is still a big possibility that people who have been imprisoned can still commit crimes again. Seeing this, the role of rehabilitation becomes important. Of the many rehabilitation methods that can be used, providing legal education is something unique.
This legal education includes teaching about inmates’ rights, how the legal system works, and receiving specific legal training. Receiving legal education and information is very important for inmates and for the government, it is very important to be able to provide teaching staff who do not apply any restrictions in providing legal education to inmates. With this knowledge, it can help achieve the country’s bigger goals.
We must agree that knowledge is an important pillar, and providing inmates with an understanding of the law will create a sense of acceptance from society when they leave, and they will be guaranteed their right to vote. If inmates know the rights they have and know how the legal system works, then they can be more in control in the future. Inmates will feel a much greater sense of acceptance from society and will not feel isolated.
Providing legal education will increase self-advocacy. With legal knowledge as a complement, inmates have the capital to carry out self-advocacy, so they can ensure that they also experience justice in the system. For inmates who are interested in studying law, they will have great opportunities to work in the legal field, and this is very important. They can be legal assistants, or even consultants.
Legal Education to Reduce Recidivism
The benefits of legal education in reducing recidivism rates have been widely reported according to research. In a report, the RAND Corporation stated that the percentage of inmates who received legal education returned to prison was 40% lower than those who received no education at all. Basically, this research examines all types of education, but it can be concluded that legal education also has a big impact. The following are positive things that can be found when inmates have knowledge about the law, including:
Feeling Entitled
There is little potential for feelings that they do not have rights. If the inmate understands how the system works, then he will avoid the tendency that a system is run in a fraudulent way.
Ready to Face Challenges when Free
Law and Inmates Education will be very useful for inmates in facing legal cases, for example disputes over child custody, housing disputes, or labor-related violations that they may face when they enter work.
Rehabilitation Revolution
Federal Prison “School District” Performance Research in monitoring the level of change that occurs in inmates after gaining knowledge. The most extraordinary thing is, as previously stated by the RAND Corporation, that those who already have legal knowledge will not commit the same crime, even up to 43%, and this could be said to be quite significant.
Not only that, the fiscal benefits are also felt, where every money paid to provide education in rehabilitation can save up to 5 dollars from being arrested and re-imprisoned. So it could be said that this is a big victory for a country that can achieve two things, namely an economic victory and a social victory.
The Bronner Group, which collaborates with a popular education consultancy, the Bureau of Prisons or BOP, has pioneered a good idea with the idea of building semi-independent school districts to be included in the federal prison system. This will provide many educational opportunities in prison, such as writing and reading education for adults and obtaining educational certificates from intermediate to advanced levels according to needs and abilities. Each inmate has a different learning capacity and will be given special attention individually so that he will receive special treatment.
This is an idea that prioritizes education in rehabilitation and inmates will find a brighter path and change for the better, they are facing the right direction towards a more productive reintegration in society. This also provides great benefits for the community in the form of peace of mind and certainty that they will not receive criminal acts from an ex-convict.
That is a review of the impact of law and inmates education which is very useful in maintaining their stability as individuals and helping the law in a country to run better. We hope that focusing on education for inmates will make them better human beings forever.