The association between residential relocation and re‐incarceration among drug‐dependent former prisoners

Aims To assess whether residential relocation to a different geographic area by drug‐dependent former prisoners reduced their likelihood of re‐incarceration. Design Non‐randomized observational study using Hurricane Katrina as a natural experiment to determine whether residential relocation induced by the hurricane affected the likelihood of re‐incarceration among drug‐dependent former prisoners. The study used data provided by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections. Setting New Orleans metropolitan area, Louisiana, USA. Cases The pre‐Katrina cohort comprised individuals released from Louisiana prisons from September 2003 to February 2004 with a history of drug misuse, as determined by the Louisiana Risk/Needs Assessment (n = 796). The post‐Katrina cohort comprised prisoners released from a Louisiana prison immediately after the hurricane, from September 2005 to February 2006 (n = 677). Measurements Re‐incarceration, the dependent variable, was operationalized as a return to a Louisiana prison for a new criminal conviction or a parole violation within 1 year of prison release. Residential relocation was operationalized as a change in parish of residence from the location immediately prior to imprisonment to the location immediately upon release from prison. Findings Instrumental variables probit analysis revealed that the probability of re‐incarceration was 0.10 lower for individuals who relocated to a new parish upon their exit from prison relative to individuals who returned to their home parish, with a 95% confidence interval ranging from −0.192 to −0.011. An estimated 10% of parolees who moved were re‐incarcerated within 1 year of their release from prison versus 20% of the stayers. Conclusions Residential relocation of drug‐dependent former prisoners in Louisiana as a result of Hurricane Katrina was associated with reduced likelihood of re‐incarceration.