“When Prisoners Return” identifies the need for individuals and churches to be involved as prisoners return to society; this book also equips individuals and churches with the information they need to effectively assist former prisoners.
Editorial Reviews
From the Publisher
Over 600,000 inmates will be released from AmericaÂ’s prisons this year, returning to neighborhoods across the country. These men and women are coming out, like it or not.
What kind of neighbors will these returning inmates be? What has been done to prepare them to live healthy, productive, law-abiding lives? Each of us has a stake in seeing that these men and women make a safe and successful return to their communities. Yet, today very little is being done to help them make that transition successfully.
Most offenders will be returning from years in overcrowded prisons where they were exposed to the horrors of violence including homosexual rape, isolation from family and friends, and despair. Most are idle in prison; warehoused with little preparation to make better choices when they return to the free world.
Further, little is done to change the moral perspective of offenders. Most inmates do not leave prison transformed into law-abiding citizens; in fact, the very skills inmates develop to survive inside prison make them anti-social when they are released.
For prisoners to return to their communities safely and successfully, we need much more than government programs. Government programs canÂ’t love someone, only people can do that. This is one of the roles the Church is called upon to take in our communities: to minister to the least of these. This book explains why you and your church should become involved in helping returning prisoners, and provides practical ways to help.
About the Author
Pat Nolan is the former President of Justice Fellowship, the criminal justice reform arm of Prison Fellowship. Justice Fellowship works to apply biblical principles to the criminal justice system. He is currently Director, Center for Criminal Justice Reform at American Conservative Union Foundation. American Conservative Union Foundation (ACUF) is a conservative 501(c)(3) headquartered in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1984, the organization is a branch of the American Conservative Union. The ACUF is aimed at educating and informing conservatives.
For 15 years, Nolan served in the California State Assembly, for four years as the Assembly Republican Leader. He was a leader on crime issues, particularly advocating victim’s rights.
Nolan plead guilty to one count of racketeering, relating to a contribution his campaign received; he served 25 months in a federal prison and four months in a halfway house. He was pardoned by President Donald Trump on May 15, 2019.
Pat Nolan continues as a leader on issues of justice and faith. Through lecturing, writing, and working to pass criminal justice legislation, Nolan is actively addressing criminal justice issues.
Nolan and his wife, Gail, have three adult children: Courtney, Katie,and Jamie.
