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HIGH POINT, N.C. -- The message is simple and straight forward: stop committing crimes or face some serious time in prison.

For repeat offenders in Guilford County it may be their last resort.

"The next time you go out and hit a lick, you're going to be treated like John Gotti," High Point Police Chief Jim Fealy said to a crowd of recent paroles. "I've got the entire resources of the United States government at my disposal to make a case on you."

It's all part of a Repeat Violent Offender Call-In. This week the High Point Police Department along with the FBI, Community Against Violence, N.C. Probation and the Violent Crimes Task Force teamed up to tell newly released criminals to straighten up.

"They've been prosecuted, convicted, gone to prison and now they come back out and we meet them when they come back out and our message is twofold," said Rev. Jim Summey of the HP Community Against Violence. "We're sick and tired of the violence, stop the violence. We're going to help you get your life going in the right direction but if you choose not to do that and you re-offend we're going to choose then to prosecute you as firmly as possible."

And while the message is stern, the offenders were also told about resources for getting back into society like how to find housing, jobs and transportation. The initiative started back in 1997 and it's something leaders said actually works. "Only 37 percent of our offenders re-offend. Nationally it's 67 percent," Summey said.

Fealy is hopeful these people will get the message. "You know we're not going to produce the next CEO of Pepsi Cola out of this population but we can and do frequently see good decent citizens come out of it," he said.

The Violent Crime Offender Call-In was created by David Kennedy, a former Harvard researcher. It is now used throughout the United States.