The ROP study is tracking the criminal activity of 769 inmates released from Illinois prisons between April 1, 1983, and June 30, 1983. Thus far, the criminal activity of 539 of the releasees has been analyzed. Criminal history data are being obtained from the Computerized Criminal History system of the State police. Releasee demographic data were collected from the Illinois Department of Corrections. The first ROP research bulletin reported that offenders with a relatively high number of prior arrests or incarcerations were most likely to be rearrested or reincarcerated within 18 to 20 months of their release. The second ROP report indicated the same finding among various subgroups of the sample. The analyses for this third report show a direct relationship between the number of prior arrests and the likelihood of an offender being arrested again after leaving prison. The relationship between prior criminal activity and recidivism by arrest is not explained by other factors such as race, age, or type of crime. 8 table, 1 figure, and 4-item bibliography.