Firearms Charges, Offenders With

Concern for Firearm Offenses among Those under Community Supervision

Professionals have targeted the prevention of firearm-related offenses among probationers and parolees convicted of violent and weapons-related offenses, since these individuals are becoming more numerous and are at high risk for violent offending and victimization. Even parolees and probationers who have not been convicted of firearm-related offenses have been the target of specialized community corrections firearm-reduction programs and policies, since they share social conditions with and are demographically similar to firearm offenders. Both groups disproportionately reside and spend time in high-crime urban areas, and in both groups there is an overrepresentation of males. The overrepresentation of minorities under community supervision is also striking. Minority overrepresentation is also evident with firearm-related offenders: Blacks are five times more likely than whites to be arrested on a weapons charge, and the gun homicide rate for young Hispanic males is about seven times the rate for young white males. Probationers and parolees are also at great risk for becoming victims of violent crime. Three quarters (75 percent) of young homicide victims in Boston had a prior criminal record, and in Philadelphia 93 percent of homicide victims had a prior criminal record. Nationally, males with a criminal record are 22 times more likely to incur a firearm-related injury than are males with no criminal record.

Preventing Firearm Offenses by Those under Community Supervision

Community corrections agencies have become increasingly diverse in their strategies for supervising specific offender groups, and they have implemented several innovative programs to supervise firearm offenders and prevent subsequent crimes. One of the most replicated programs is lever pulling. Lever pulling is a process that utilizes the justice system's resources in a collective way to provide probationers and parolees with a “carrot” and “stick” message. At lever-pulling meetings, probationers and parolees are provided a choice: Officials suggest resources to help them lead law-abiding lives, but they are also informed that if they choose to continue their violent lifestyles, justice agencies will collaborate to ensure that they receive the maximum penalties under the law.

Community corrections officers have also been actively involved in preventing firearm-related offenses. One widely replicated prevention effort is Operation Night Light, which began as a partnership between Boston-area probation and police officers. It pairs one probation officer with two police [Page 176]officers to make surprise visits to high-risk youth probationers during the nontraditional work hours of 7:00 p.m. to midnight. In Boston, probationer new arrests declined 9.2 percent between January 1994 and June 1996, compared with a statewide increase of 14 percent.

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