Examining Recidivism among Foreign-Born Jail Inmates: Does Immigration Status Make a Difference Over the Long Term?

The topic of ‘illegal’ immigration is currently the focus of intense ideological and policy debate in the United States. A common assertion is that those without legal immigration status are disproportionately involved in criminal offending relative to other foreign-born populations. 

The current study examines the long-term recidivism patterns of a group of male removable aliens compared to those foreign-born with legal authorisation to be present in the United States. The sample includes 1297 foreign-born males released from the Los Angeles County Jail during a 1-month period in 2002, and the follow-up period extends through 2011. 

Using three measures of rearrest and a rigorous counterfactual modelling approach, we find no statistically significant differences between the two groups in likelihood, frequency, or timing of first rearrest over 9 years. The findings do not lend support to arguments that removable aliens pose a disproportionate risk of repeat involvement in local criminal justice systems.

Via:  http://ht.ly/RXS5e

By: Jennifer S. Wong, Laura J. Hickman, Marika Suttorp-Booth

• ^a School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada
• ^b Criminology and Criminal Justice Division, Portland State University, Portland, OR, USA
• ^c Quantitative Analyst, RAND, Santa Monica, CA, USA