The Effect of Horticultural Community Service Activities on Incidence of Recidivism in Offenders

The average cost of housing a single inmate in the United States is roughly $31,286 a year, bringing the total average cost states spend on corrections to an average of more than $50 billion a year.   Statistics show 1 in every 34 adults in the United States is under some form of correctional supervision; and after 3 years, more than 4 in 10 prisoners return to custody.  The purpose of this study is to determine the differences in numbers in incidences of recurrences of offenses/recidivism of offenders completing community service in horticultural versus non-horticultural settings.  Data were collected by obtaining offender-profile probation-revocation reports, agency records, and community-service supervision reports from the Hays County Probation Office in San Marcos, Texas.  This sample includes both violent and non-violent offenders classified as: A, B, and C misdemeanors, a capital felony, first, second, and third degree felonies, and a state felony and was evaluated for trends.  The results and information gathered support the continued notion that horticultural activities can play an important role in influencing an offender’s successful reentry into society.