COLUMBIA, S.C. — Prison officials say South Carolina now has the lowest rate of released inmates returning to prison within three years in the country, thanks to an in-depth and expanding program of job and life skills.
The Department of Corrections says less than 22% of South Carolina inmates released in 2017 found themselves back in prison within three years. State prisons Director Bryan Stirling says that rate was 33% just before he took over the prison system in 2013.
The reentry teaches inmates job skills like plumbing or carpentry. They also get help from state agencies in finding jobs and getting IDs and birth certificates needed in a modern society.