Prison time can be avoided with neighborhood prevention

neighborhood prevention – A retired corrections official argues that the fastest way to cut crime is also the easiest to overlook: prevention in neighborhoods and rehabilitation in the community. A survey of law enforcement officers finds overwhelming support for training, conflict med

For more than 50 years in corrections, Gary Mohr says the hardest part isn’t deciding what to do after a crisis—it’s realizing how often the same crises keep returning.

“Public safety requires reducing the likelihood that people enter the system in the first place and, just as importantly, reducing the likelihood that they return,” he writes, pressing for a shift away from a punishment-first model and toward neighborhood-based prevention.

Mohr’s argument leans on a first-of-its-kind survey of law enforcement officers, and the numbers are blunt. The survey found 92% of officers say their departments are burdened by social issues beyond crime. Eighty percent say having community members trained in mediating conflicts and other forms of violence diversion makes their jobs safer and easier. and improves community safety. Among law enforcement who have worked with these programs, that figure rises to 90%.

The point, Mohr says, isn’t coming from politicians chasing headlines. The respondents are the people on the front lines—officers who have spent decades facing the risks of the job in every setting, not officials trying to raise their profiles.

He ties the survey findings to day-to-day reality: officers are routinely called to respond to mental health crises. substance use. and homelessness—situations Mohr argues are better suited to mental health professionals. When communities lack the right tools and partners, he says, officers end up responding repeatedly without solving the underlying problem.

That is where he places neighborhood prevention. By investing in community violence intervention and mental health crisis and other neighborhood programs. Mohr argues crime can be prevented before it happens. He says such efforts reduce repeat calls for service and let law enforcement focus on serious threats to public safety. making both communities and police departments safer.

A similar logic runs through his discussion of prisons. Mohr argues that prison programs offering job training, education, and treatment can reduce the likelihood of future crime. He points to the idea that when incarcerated individuals participate in education and job training and are incentivized to do so. they are more likely to become productive members of society after release—joining the workforce. paying taxes. and helping local economies.

The survey that informs his neighborhood-prevention case also extends into the question of earlier release. Mohr says nearly three out of four officers favor policies that allow parole boards to consider earlier release for people who participate in rehabilitation. education. and job training and demonstrate a commitment to change. In his framing. correctional officers know what keeps prisons safe and what can reduce the likelihood of someone returning to prison after release—especially when rehabilitation is rewarded.

Mohr links those policy choices to financial and administrative outcomes. arguing that moving people from prison beds to community-based supervision and treatment reduces wasteful spending and strengthens public safety. He cites examples from Connecticut and Pennsylvania: Connecticut reported nearly $40 million in annual savings tied to rehabilitation programs. and Pennsylvania saw more than $400 million in savings over a decade through recidivism reduction efforts.

Taken together, Mohr’s argument is straightforward: enforcement and incarceration alone do not produce public safety. It depends on a system that invests in prevention, supports rehabilitation, and aligns resources with the realities law enforcement and corrections professionals face.

His conclusion is a call to move away from what he calls outdated models of crime and punishment toward evidence-based strategies for crime prevention—aimed at centralizing safety, improving the lives of law enforcement officers, and being better stewards of taxpayer funds.

Mohr is the retired director of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction and the 106th president of the American Correctional Association.

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