Dr. Joan Petersilia is one of the nation’s most respected experts on community corrections. In 2007, she spoke with Pew’s Public Safety Performance Project about what policy makers should know about the research on these critical programs.

Gone are the days of the chain gang. Today, states are finding more creative uses for felons, from saving retired thoroughbreds in Kentucky to growing poinsettias for state buildings in Iowa to fighting mudslides in California. The work saves millions for states and gives inmates something worthwhile to do. more

Delaware will launch a prisoner reentry program next month aimed at reducing the number of former prisoners who commit new crimes and end up back in prison. The three-year pilot program, created with a $2 million federal grant, could potentially save the state millions of dollars a year and reduce crime by helping ex-convicts receive the services they need to successfully re-enter society, state officials said. more

A small but growing number of states are using a new tool to keep women prison inmates from committing more crimes motherhood. In Ohio, Nebraska, New York and Washington, some women who give birth behind bars are allowed to keep their babies instead of giving up the child to a foster agency or a relative, as other states require. The programs appear to be helping women clean up their lives, although officials havent conducted major recidivism studies yet. more