We need to help ex-inmates adjust to society

In the movie “The Shawshank Redemption,” the characters “Red” Redding and Brooks Hatlen are released from prison and attempt to re-enter society with little more than a set of clothes and the address of an apartment.

They cannot comprehend what to expect from life “on the outside.” No structure exists to show them how to adapt to their new freedoms, how to handle the pressure of self-reliance or how to resist the temptation of falling back into the only lives they really know. ..

In too many instances, reallife 2017 America is not far enough removed from Hollywood’s take on 1950s and 1960s America where felons are concerned: little forethought, little compassion, little chance of success outside of an institution . ...

In Columbus, state leaders and criminal justice experts announced the launching of a new effort to reduce Ohio’s prison population through an examination of crime, courts, probation and incarceration. The Associated Press reported that a yearlong study by the Council of State Governments Justice Center will analyze thousands of records to examine how sentences imposed for serious crimes affect not only prison populations but also life after prison . ...

As a society, we cannot incarcerate our way out of our existing challenges, particularly drug abuse and addiction.

When felons have served their time, we need systems in place to make their re-entry more seamless and less likely to result in recidivism and a return to prison.

Read the full editorial from the Canton Repository at bit. ly/2zzVj9W