Overcrowding and violence in United States correctional facilities

Violence in Prisons

This is a guideline and template. Please do not use as a final turn-in paper.

Violence in Prisons -- Officer vs. Inmate

"In recent years, U.S. prison inmates have been beaten with fists and batons, stomped on, kicked, shot, stunned with electronic devices, doused with chemical sprays, choked, and slammed face first onto concrete floors by the officers whose job it is to guard them. Inmates have ended up with broken jaws, smashed ribs, perforated eardrums, missing teeth, burn scars

not to mention psychological scars and emotional pain. Some have died"

(Human Rights Watch, 2004, para. 4).

It should be obvious to all that our prison system in the U.S. is in serious trouble. The main culprit is overcrowding -- but there are many tentacles that lead from that to all the problems. One of the big ones is frustration for both inmates and security personnel. Living in three-tiered bunks set up in what was supposed to be a gymnasium offers absolutely no privacy and even less security.

Prisoners in many of our federal security institutions are known to sleep with tin plates from the dining hall taped to their chests in case another prisoner (or guard) attempts to stab them. This pent up anger, caused by the overcrowded conditions causes more physical and sexual violence than ever.

The security personnel are just as frustrated. The ratios of security to prisoner have gone up and up in many prisons due to budget cutbacks. These guards must patrol now in prisons, grossly overcrowded with inmates who, in most cases, hate them. The situations are unsafe and potentially explosive.

Bribery/Smuggling Contraband

March, 2009. A prisoner case manager was arrested at Petersburg Federal Prison in Virginia and sentenced to 20 months for accepting bribes from inmates to smuggle them marijuana. and, in Colorado this past February, a prison guard at Englewood was discovered smuggling in tobacco and cigarette papers for bribes from inmates. He had received over $5,000 during the smuggling scheme.

Inmate vs. Inmate

A little over a month ago, prisoners at Chino prison in California rioted due to extreme overcrowding. About 200 inmates were injured, 25% of those seriously. The riot went on for 11 hours. Authorities believe the riot was prompted by tensions between black and Hispanic prisoners. No prison security guards were injured. Chino prison is built to handle 3000 men; it is currently populated by 5,900. And the California system is not that much different from any other state. Judges are ordering the release of thousands of inmates to reduce the overcrowding (NY Times, 2009).

Self-Inflicted

There are many examples of prisoners hanging themselves in their cells for one reason or another. Studies have found that, per capita, prison suicide rates are about 50% higher than in the general population. Recent studies have shown that there are many more times the attempted suicides than there are suicides however. Tartaro and Ruddell (2006) found that the ratio of attempts to suicides is approximately 20:1. The point of this is that most inmates attempt suicide or self-mutilation due to their "life circumstances." The massive overcrowding in our prison system causes increased stress, depression, and thoughts of harming themselves.

Inmate on Officer Violence

Inmates can be very successful in gaining "power" over guards in various ways unrelated to violence: using the court process to enforce their rights and bring officers to task for violations, manufacturing weapons (guards don't carry any), at times utilizing unprovoked violence as a weapon of fear, and coercing other inmates to form gangs and thus compete with guards for control of the prison population. As opposed to direct violence, which brings only punishment and extended jail terms, inmates often gain the upper hand more subtly.

Alleviating the Violence

The number one method put forth by experts to alleviate the violence and increase safety is to reduce the overcrowding and provide a better living environment for inmates so they don't feel like cattle. Living conditions in prison are everything. Hearty, good, nutritious meals that inmates can look forward to go a long way towards alleviating negative feelings and activities. Third, allowing the inmates to work inside the prison. Practical solutions to real problems.