Miller Chapter 10 of Jerome

Miller

Chapter 10 of Jerome G. Miller's "The Last One Over the Wall" is contained in section three of the book which discusses reforming the reform schools. In this chapter Miller focuses on Anticipating the worst. Initially, Miller was attempting to make the institutions under his governance more humane for the juveniles. Miller wanted to soften some of the rules and he wanted the staff to be supervised in a way that was more complete and would reduce the amount of abuses that were occurring within the reform schools. Miller was confronted with opposition from the people that he works with. In fact some the employees signed a petition to have him fired. Throughout this chapter, Miller discusses the challenges he faced in attempting to bring reform to the reform schools. Throughout this chapter Miller also explains that those in leadership positions have to be ready to handle the challenges that will inevitably come their way. He also discusses a visit to one of the reform institutions and the attempts of inmates to escape over the walls. This chapter simply relays to the reader some of the unexpected challenges that can occur within the context of reform schools.

Chapter 11 focuses on the practice of doing no harm. Throughout the book Miller emphasizes the need to have reform institutions that are humane. Miller seems to detest institutions that do nothing but warehouse inmates. Miller believed that ensuring that the environments in which the inmates lived were humane would in this chapter Miller speaks more specifically about the steps that need to be taken to ensure that inmates are able to live in a humane environment, so that they can truly be reformed. One of the primary priorities Miller had was to institute some accountability. According to the author the reform system was in desperate need of accountability. Miller explains that this accountability needed to take place at both the bureaucratic and the workers that deal directly with the young people. Miller also expresses in this chapter his understanding of having to hold people aginst their will because they are a threat. He explains that "I do not question the fact that there are dangerous youngsters who need to be held against their will, but this sad reality carries its own set of problems unrelated to crime and punishment. The unintended by- product of keeper-captive coupling is a bureaucracy which is by law unaccountable to those it holds and, somewhat oddly, purports to serve. That would be an unhealthy situation for even the most efficient manager. "Basically, in this chapter Miller is saying that there has to be a balance between providing a secure environment and not abusing the inmates.

The other reform priorities that Miller mentions in this chapter include staff training. Miller emphasizes the need to assist the staff in making the appropriate changes so that the reform can be lasting and meaningful. The author notes that he met some resistance when staff was told that they were expected to participate in new training efforts. Also the purpose of the training was to develop a more humane outlook on the treatment of the inmates.

Chapter 12 of the book introduces the section of the book dedicated to Alternative Systems. In this particular chapter Miller focuses on Deinstitutionalization. The author explains that the effort to deinstitutionalize patients was twofold because there was a desire to allow the lesser offenders to leave the reform school and also a desire to reform the system which evoked the need to change the type of delinquents that were held at the institutions. In addition Miller and others believed that alternative programs needed to be developed. These alternative programs would require the allocation of funds to them in place of the funding that is given to the institutions. The author also explores the benefits and challenges associated with running state vs. privately funded alternative systems.

The next chapter of the book is still in the section labeled Alternative systems. In the 13th Chapter the author explains that Community based alternatives must be examined as it pertains to choosing an alternative system. The author explains that in many cases children who are deinstitutionalized cannot return home; as a result one of the alternative systems should be community-based programs. This would entail arrangement such as halfway houses that would allow the offenders to leave the reform schools and go back into their communities (Lyons 2006). This type of system can be risky because delinquents can reoffend and the blame would be on the system that returned them to the community. However, Miller tried this approach with the creation of the Hyde Park House. Miller explains "From the beginning, Hyde Park House fit the bill. We could have our cake and eat it, doling out control as therapy and psychological assault as discipline. What's more, we could not have been accused of permissiveness. (the Hyde Park model is the one in vogue throughout the United States today for treating adolescents involved in drugs.) Youngsters were expected to conform themselves to authority at all times, to lay out their problems, to assume responsibility for their own actions, and to disown whatever excuses they might have found in their back grounds. House government and group therapy sessions were held a number of times a day. There were chores to do, individual tutoring, and a consultant psychiatrist (Miller)."