Community Sentencing More Favorable Than Short Prison Sentences on Reoffending Rates

An article on the positive statistical results of community corrections in comparison with short prison stays:

Perhaps most significantly, the figures also show a substantial drop in reoffending by adults who are given non-custodial sentences, with 36% of adults given community sentences now reoffending within one year. This contrasts favourably with short prison sentences, with nearly three out of every five offenders (59%) released from a prison sentence of less than 12 months reoffending within one year, the highest of any sentence. Unlike community penalties, short prison sentences are also barely more effective than they were at the start of the decade. Between 2000 and 2006 there has only been a 4.8% reduction in the frequency of reoffending for prisoners on sentences of less than 12 months (compared to a 23.4% reduction for community sentences).

As the author admits, community sentences are not directly comparable to short prison stays and therefore any statistical comparisons are somewhat misleading. But, always a fan of community corrections, I take positive news where I find it.