Step 1: The recidivism risk tool assigns the defendant a high score because their demographic group shows an elevated historical arrest rate in the training data. Step 2: Because the defendant is classified high-risk, the sentencing judge imposes a 36-month custodial term rather than a 12-month term. Step 3: Research within the same system confirms that extended incarceration disrupts employment and housing stability, the primary drivers of re-arrest in this demographic. Step 4: Post-release re-arrests are recorded and used to recalculate the historical arrest rate that the tool uses in Step 1. Step 5: The elevated recidivism rate observed in Step 4 therefore validates the high-risk classification originally assigned in Step 1.