Prison Population Essays (Examples)

.....psychologists working in prisons in the United States, Boothby & Clements (2000) found some disturbing trends in corrections. Although the number of prison psychologists has doubled in the past twenty years, the vast majority of prison psychologists remain Caucasian males who may be unable to address the diverse needs of the incarcerated community. Biases and assumptions about inmates may also hinder the ability of inmates to seek and receive psychological treatment. Moreover, a full third of prison psychologist work time is spent on administrative duties -- more than the time spent on direct treatment. Only 26% of their work time is devoted to directly treating the inmates, meaning that structural and institutional variables are impeding the delivery of quality mental health care to the prison community.

Interestingly, the profession of clinical psychology was practically born in the prison context. As Magaletta, et al. (2016) point out, prison wardens partnered with…

prison overcrowding and its effect on the criminal justice system. Prison overcrowding has skyrocketed in the United States in the last three decades, leading to a multitude of problems in the criminal justice system. Overcrowding costs taxpayers money, it leads to dysfunction within the penal population, and it creates dangers for prison staff. It is a result of many items in society and the criminal justice system, and it must change if America's prisons are to remain effective and viable.

Many people may not be aware just how much the prison population has grown in the last thirty years. One researcher notes, "From 300,000 prisoners in 1977, the prison population has risen steadily to over 1.5 million as of June 30, 2005, a 400% increase" (Pfaff, 2008). The two largest states housing prisoners, California and Texas, have seen stupendous growth in their prison populations, but not in their funding. Another…

References

Haney, C. (2006). Prison overcrowding: Harmful consequences and dysfunctional reactions. Retrieved 31 July 2009 from the Commission on Safety and Abuse in America's Prisons Web site:  http://www.prisoncommission.org/statements/haney_craig.pdf . 1-17.

Jacobs, J.B. (2007). Finding alternatives to the carceral state. Social Research, 74(2), 695+.

Moore, S. (2009). The prison overcrowding fix. Retrieved 31 July 2009 from the New York Times Web site:  http://www.nytimes.com /2009/02/11/us/11prisons.html.

Pfaff, J.F. (2008). The empirics of prison growth: A critical review and path forward. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 98(2), 547+

prison gang is a select group of inmates with an organized chain of command and an established code of conduct. They operate in secrecy with a view to controlling their prison environment through intimidation and violence meted on non-members. Some of the oldest prison gangs in the U.S. were formed as early as 1950s. Some notable example is Gypsy Jokers that operated in Washington State prisons (Fleisher & Decker, 2001). Violence in correctional facilities in the United States is something that has been with us for quite a while. Prisoners and prison officers have both fallen victims to this violence.

Think of the San Antonio, Texas incident where 281 prisoners were stabbed and 13 slain (The Ledger, 1984). There was divided opinion on what motivated such heinous acts with some prison officials opining that prison gangs who were divided along racial lines were responsible. Some attacks were thought to be…

References List

Fleisher, M.S. & Decker, S.H. (2001). An overview of the Challenge of Prison Gangs.

Corrections Management Quarterly, 5(1), 1-9.

Knox, G.W. (2005). The Problem of Gangs and Security Threat Groups (STG's) in American

Prisons Today: Recent Research Findings From the 2004 Prison Gang Survey. Retrieved from  http://www.ngcrc.com/corr2006.html

Maximum security prisons have grown in recent decades and have implemented methods some may deem inhumane. A 2016 article discusses prison conditions in maximum security prisons and addresses specifically the topic of preservation of human dignity and disease prevention. The author mentions the Dudley Lee v. Minister of Correctional Services case that held "that prison authorities have a duty of care to prevent prisoners from being infected with HIV-related illnesses such as TB" (Torriente, Tadion, & Hsu, 2016). The applicant was sent to a maximum security prison in South Africa where he eventually was diagnosed three years later with TB. Another instance of the government and its failure to acknowledge the need to safeguard a prisoner's health is the . v. Secretary of State for the Home Department, ex-parte Glen Fielding. Here the case discusses of a prisoner in the United Kingdom asking for condoms and being denied unless given…

References

Engel, P. (2013). Here's What Life Is Like Inside Russia's Toughest Prison.Business Insider. Retrieved 16 April 2016, from  http://www.businessinsider.com/inside-russias-black-dolphin-prison-2013-10?op=1 

Torriente, A., Tadion, A., & Hsu, L. (2016). Opening the Door to Zero New HIV Infections in Closed Settings. Health and Human Rights Journal. Retrieved 16 April 2016, from  http://www.hhrjournal.org/2016/02/opening-the-door-to-zero-new-hiv-infections-in-closed-settings/ 

Vasiliades, E. (2005). Solitary Confinement and International Human Rights: Why the U.S. Prison System Fails Global Standards. American University International Law Review, 21(1). Retrieved from  http://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1045&context=auilr

Prison Overcrowding

Arguably the most pressing issue facing the field of corrections today is the problem of prison overcrowding. Overcrowding negatively impacts nearly every aspect of running a corrections facility, and even exacerbates problems when inmates are eventually released (Specter, 2010). Overcrowded prisons increase the likelihood of violence against both inmates and corrections officers, and there is evidence tying overcrowding to higher rates of suicide and homicide (Davies, 2004, & Camp, Gaes, Langan, & Saylor, 2003). The problem has only gotten worse over the last few decades, and there is no evidence that policymakers or administrators have plans to do anything soon (Giertz & Nardulli, 1985, & Taggart, 1996). After examining the relevant literature concerning the history, scope, and reasons behind prison overcrowding, it becomes clear that the solution to overcrowding and its attendant costs must come in the form of administrative/institutional reform coupled with a serious reconsideration of the…

References

Camp, S.D., Gaes, G.G., Langan, N.P., & Saylor, W.G. (2003). The influence of prisons on inmate misconduct: A multilevel investigation*. Justice Quarterly: JQ, 20(3), 501-533.

Davies, R. (2004). Deaths in UK prisons are due to overcrowding, says report. The Lancet,

363(9406), 378-378.

Giertz, J.F., & Nardulli, P.F. (1985). Prison overcrowding. Public Choice (Pre-1986), 46(1),

A major portion of an inmate's helplessness, deprivation, depression and self-loathing etc. arises due to physical and psychological victimization that he or she has to face. Physical victimization includes homicide, assault and rape. These arise due to poor staff supervision and keeping defenseless prisoners with the violent ones. On the other hand, psychological victimization involves verbal manipulation and harsh psychological attacks of personal nature.

The stronger inmates attempt to create their own subcultures that show their dominance, rule and assertion on all prisoners (Heilpern, 1998). To fulfill the maintenance of these subcultures, they resort to rape, riots or even homicide spreading mental illnesses like stress, phobias, enhanced criminal activity, shame, guilt, etc. among the weaker prisoners.

Imprisonment: Eliminating or aggravating crime?

It is not a hidden matter that jails, even after intensive care and security, are not free of brutality, stress and violence among the inmates. The safety of each…

References

Cragg, W. (2002). The practice of punishment: Towards a theory of restorative justice. Routledge.

Foucault, M. (2008). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison.

Gendreau, P., Cullen, F.T., & Goggin, C. (1999). The effects of prison sentences on recidivism. Ottawa: Solicitor General Canada.

Gudrais, E. (2013, March). The Prison Problem. Harvard Magazine.

However, given that the problem of overcrowding is pervasive in the prison system in general, and not simply at these specific junctures of the judicial process, the choice between a low-use jail and a high-use jail would seem to be the real question. More and more prisoners who might once be shipped to the state penitentiary are now being confined to jails for more extended periods of time than ever before. Thus, to accommodate this problem, a high-use jail that has many of the monitoring and rehabilitative capacities of a prison system would be more useful to the community.

The purpose and function of a high-use jail low-use jail is designed for shorter-term inmates, while a high-use jail is designed to accommodate not simply more inmates, but a wider variety of inmates for longer durations of time. It has the ability to deal with more violent offenders, but also has…

Works Cited

What is the difference between jail and prison?" (2006). Public Health and Criminal

Justice. Operated by the CDC: Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Page last reviewed 18 Oct 2006. Retrieved 9 Mar 2007 at  http://www.cdc.gov/nchstp/od/cccwg/difference.htm

Prison Punishment

Should Prison be Punitive or Rehabilitation in Nature?

A question that has existed since the beginnings of the modern prison system has been that of whether prison should be an unbearable punishment for an action committed, or rehabilitation for the accused to rid them of a particular behavior. In ancient times, a violent crime was usually responded with a violent verdict, resulting in torture and pain, and the concept of 'an eye for an eye' that led human law for thousands of years. Recently, however, civilization has rejected the outward torture of prisoners, and has tried to implement a system based on fairness, both during the trial and during the punishment. hile prisoners may not feel like their jail time is fair, modern civilization has elected judges to make these decisions for society. There is still the question, however, of what in today's world is the goal of…

Work Cited

Larrabee, A., (2006). Punishment vs. Rehabilitation in the Criminal Justice System. Retrived from,  http://voices.yahoo.com/punishment-vs.-rehabilitation-criminal-justice-119962.html .

Multiple authors. (2010). Should Criminal Justice Focus More on Rehabilitation or Punishment. IDebate. Retrieved from http://idebate.org/debatabase/debates/law-crime/house-believes-criminal-justice-should-focus-more-rehabilitation.

Peak, K., (2012). Justice Administration: Police, Courts and Corrections Management (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson: Prentice Hall.

Turner, A., (2012). Work Programs for Texas Inmates Go High Tech. Chron. Retrieved from,  http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Prison-factories-train-inmates-and-save-the-state-3450137.php .

AIZONA'S COECTIONAL HEALTHCAE SYSTEM

Prison Healthcare

Arizona's Correctional Healthcare System

The Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) is the agency ultimately responsible for providing healthcare to the state's prison population. Even though the Healthcare Services division within the ADC manages the medical clinics in Arizona's prisons, there are a number of sections and divisions that have important roles to play in ensuring inmates receive the care they are legally entitled to recieve. This essay describes the structural organization that ultimately provides healthcare to inmates and how it operates to ensure statutory compliance.

Arizona's Correctional Healthcare System

Arizona Department of Corrections Organizational Structure

The Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) is ultimately responsible for providing healthcare for the prison inmate population in the state of Arizona (ADC, 2011). This state agency is responsible for maintaining and administering all ADC institutions and programs, including community supervision for adult inmates released to their communities. The…

References

America Civil Liberties Union. (2009). Know your rights: Medical, dental, and mental health care. ACLU.org. Retrieved 15 Dec. 2011 from  http://www.aclu.org/prisoners-rights/know-your-rights-medical-dental-and-mental-health-care 

Arizona Department of Corrections. (2011). AZCorrections.gov. Retrieved 15 Dec. 2011 from  http://www.azcorrections.gov/ 

Arizona Department of Corrections. (2011). Medical Services. AZCorrections.gov. Retrieved 15 Dec. 2011 from

Federal Bureau of Prisons

While most people seem to agree that prisoners should have access to basic healthcare while incarcerated, there is tremendous variation about what type of healthcare constitutes basic care. The reality is that many prison inmates receive a better quality of healthcare than non-incarcerated working-class individuals, but many inmates also suffer consequences because of significant medical neglect. For the federal prison system, the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is the agency given broad oversight over healthcare in prison. In fact, the BOP is in charge of all aspects of inmate care for all inmates in the federal prison system.

The BOP is part of the Department of Justice (DOJ). It was established in 1930 to regulate the federal prison system. The BOP's job is not limited to healthcare. Instead, it has responsibility for the entire federal prison system, which "currently includes 114 prisons, 6 regional offices, 2…

References

U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General Audit Division. (2008). The

Federal Bureau of Prison's Efforts to Manage Inmate Health Care. Retrieved April 29,

2013 from the Justice.gov website: http://www.justice.gov/oig/reports/BOP/a0808/final.pdf

Wallechinsky, D. (2012). Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved May 1, 2013 from Allgov.com website:  http://www.allgov.com/departments/department-of-justice/federal-bureau-of-prisons-bop?agencyid=7204

Prison Inmates Should Be Paroled Early to Help Control the State's Budget Problems

This paper argues that inmates at State prisons should be having premature releases from prisons so that the States can manage their budget problems. As the paper illustrates, despite criticisms on parole that it introduces unreformed culprits back in the society and that the program is unorganized, parole is a major contributor in reducing prison populations, which directly translates to reduced State expenditures (Licari, 2009). All the implementation of parole releases has either direct or indirect economic effect to the States as well as the prisoner and society as a whole. eformed individuals are able to earn their income thus independent of the government (Sons, n.d.). In addition, as there is professional structure of parole, they lead to faster reforming and procedures that reduce caseloads enabling parole officers to spend more time with the high-risk individuals (National…

References

Clear, T.R., Cole, G.F., & Reisig, M. (2008). American Corrections, (8th ed.). Connecticut, U.S.:

Cengage Learning.

Corley, C. (2009, December 13). States release inmates early to cut prison costs. Npr.org.

Retrieved from  http://www.npr.org /templates/story/story.php?storyId=121338571

Substance Abuse Programs in Prison

The work of Harrison (nd) reports that the 'Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) for State Prisoners Formula Grant Program was created by the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 in response to the increasing number of incarcerated individuals in the United States with substance abuse problems." (p.vi) It is reported that RSAT grants may be used to "implement or expand treatment programs for inmates in residential treatment facilities operated by State and local correctional agencies that provide individual and group treatment activities for inmates." (Harrison, nd, p. 2) The RSAT programs must be in a six to twelve month length, provide residential treatment facilities that are apart from the general prison population, be focused at the substance abuse problems of inmates, work in developing the cognitive, social, behavioral, vocational in addition to other skills that serve to bring about resolution to the…

Bibliography

Frantz, M. (2009) What You Need to Know…Before You Go To Federal Prison. Dog Ear Publishing. 2009.

Harrison, LD (nd) Residential Substance Abuse Treatment for State Prisoners Implementation Lessons Learned. Google Books. Retrieved from:  http://books.google.com/books?id=bbE6-erVr98C&dq=SUBSTANCE+ABUSE+PROGRAMS+IN+PRISON&source=gbs_navlinks_s

In the American Disease: Origins of Narcotic Control, David Musto notes that throughout the twentieth century, America's drug wars have regularly scape-goated minority groups, like the Chinese with opium, marijuana among the Mexicans, and cocaine among the African-Americans (McCormick 2000).

The National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals reported in 1973 that "the prison, the reformatory and the jail have achieved only a shocking record a failure. There is overwhelming evidence that these institutions create crime rather than prevent it," yet during the next two decades both state and federal legislatures implemented increasingly stiffer penalties and mandatory minimums claiming that prisons were an effective tool for crime control, and longer prison terms would reduce crime by deterring or incapacitating criminals (McCormick 2000). However, at the end of this period, after the average prison sentence had tripled and the prison population at more than quadrupled, a National Academy of…

Works Cited

Demleitner, Nora V. (2005 October 01). Smart public policy: replacing imprisonment with targeted nonprison sentences and collateral sanctions. Stanford Law Review. Retrieved September 18, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Dickenson, Rachel. (1996 February 01). The prison population bomb.

American Demographics. Retrieved September 18, 2006 from HighBeam Research Library.

Incarceration. (2005). The Sentencing Project. Retrieved September 18, 2006 at http://www.sentencingproject.org/issues_01.cfm

The Home Office website was also a good source of informstion in this regard. A very good article that shed light on the more negative view of Holloway prison as well as units in other prisons was Getting it right? Services for pregnant women, new mothers, and babies in prison. An extremely useful report that deals specifically with Holloway prison was REPORT ON AN UNANNOUNCED FOLLOW-UP INSPECTION OF HM PRISON HOLLOWAY 11 -- 15 December 2000

Y HM INSPECTORATE OF PRISONS. This report provide some telling and insightful data that invaluable in terms of assessing the value and function of the mother and baby units in this prison.

4. Theoretical aspects

There are many theoretical aspects that pertain to the issue of mother and child units at a prison such as Holloway. In general terms, and from a criminological perspective, there is the view that units of this kind are…

Bibliography

Burrell I. Jail baby units reviewed 1998 [Online] Available at: By

 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/jail-baby-units-reviewed-1189057.html  [Accessed 2 April, 2010].

Female Prisoners [Online] Available at:  http://www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/adviceandsupport/prison_life/femaleprisoners  / [Accessed 3 April, 2010].

Holloway [Online] Available at:  http://www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/prisoninformation/locateaprison/prison.asp?id=454,15,2,15,454,0 [Accessed 3 April, 2010].

238). Furthermore, prison stigmatizes convicts, and, upon release many people, particularly employers, are reluctant to take a chance on someone with the stigma of a prison record (Macionis, p.238). Prison also breaks social ties between the prisoner and non-criminal friends and family, weakening the very type of community ties that are believed to help deter criminal behavior (Macionis, p.238). Therefore, if one of the goals of the tough-on-crime stance is to reduce criminal activity, it is clear that American prisons simply are not accomplishing that goal.

In addition, over the past two decades, "the American prison population has climbed from 300,000 to more than two million- roughly equal to the combined population of Austin, Denver, Nashville, and ashington, D.C." (Silverstein, p.1). In addition, "largely because of racially-biased drug sentencing laws, about half of America's prison population is African-American and one-quarter of all black men are likely to be imprisoned at…

Works Cited

Macionis, John J. Sociology. 13th ed. City of Publication. Prentice Hall, 2009.

Silverstein, Ken. "Introduction." Prison Nation: The Warehousing of America's Poor. Eds.

Tara Herivel and Paul Wright. New York. Routledge, 2003.1-5. Print.

Street, Paul. "Color Blind." Prison Nation: The Warehousing of America's Poor. Eds.

The oyal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (CAP) was established in 1991 to investigate the issues faced by the Canadian First Nations in terms of both their social lives and justice issues. This entity also found that the Canadian First Nations have been disproportionally represented, and concluded that the justice system has "failed" these people (Office of the Correctional Investigator, 2010). CAP also found a particular overrepresentation of Aboriginal women in the criminal justice system, while the general federally incarcerated population in the country declined by 12.5% from 1996 to 2004. For the same period, First Nations representatives in the system increased by 21.7%.

Factors that influence this population include not only discrimination and racial or cultural prejudice, but also economic and social deprivation that tend to lead to substance abuse and violence across generations, as mentioned above.

Demographic information shows Aboriginal offenders to be among the younger age groups, who…

References

The History of Canada Online. (n.d.). First Nations and the Justice System. Northern Blue Publishing. Retrieved from: http://canadachannel.ca/HCO/index.php/6._First_Nations_and_the_Justice_System

Office of the Correctional Investigator. (2010). Backgrounder: Aboriginal Inmates. Retrieved from:  http://www.oci-bec.gc.ca/rpt/annrpt/annrpt20052006info-eng.aspx

Pocatello, Idaho New Women's Prisons

ISSUES, COST, ENEFITS

New Women's Prisons in Pocatello, Idaho

Approximately 8 years ago, former State Corrections Director Tom eauclair defended the need for three new prisons at the Pocatello Women's Correctional Center before the Joint-Finance Appropriations Committee (Russell, 2005). If lawmakers would approve the proposal, the additional 300 beds to the existing privately-run prison near oise, a new 400-bed prison for female inmates and a 1,500-bed new prison for male inmates. These additional structures would cost almost $160 million Director eauclair emphasized that these structures were needed in the five succeeding years in order to manage prisoners safely. He said that every State prison is overbooked, with the corrections department then having 360 more inmates than beds. At that time, the State had 6,502 inmates, which was an increase from 2,900 in 1994. Director eauclair said they expected the population to increase by 30 every…

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Boone, R. (20100. Auditing agency: replace Pocatello Women's Correction Center.

Idaho State Journal: The Associated Press. Retrieved on May 26, 2013 from http://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/article_dd40c684-0aec-11df-b882-001cc4c002e0.html?

Russell, B.Z. (2005). Idaho wants new prisons. The Spokesman-Review: The

Spokesman. Retrieved on May 26, 2013 from  http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2005/jun/16/idaho-wants-new-prisons

The cost for processing a drug court case through the court system is only a fraction of the cost for processing criminal drug cases through the court system. Furthermore, the cost of drug court and other drug treatment for drug offenders is only a fraction of the cost for imprisonment of these individuals. Drug offenders finishing alterative drug court or other treatment programs have been found less likely to have repeated charges and convictions of drug offenses and to have longer abstinences from use of drugs. Finally, in terms of costs to society that cannot be measured in monetary terms, the alternative sentencing of drug offenders to drug courts and other treatment programs will end the breakdown of society that has been witnessed due to imposition of prison sentences on drug offenders. The research conducted in order to prepare for the debate and in order to complete the research within…

Bibliography

The Federal Prison Population: A Statistical Analysis (2004) the Sentencing Project. Online available at http://www.sentencingproject.org/Admin/Documents/publications/inc_federalprisonpop.pdf

Clay, Rebecca (2006) Incarceration vs. Treatment: Drug Courts Help Substance Abusing Offenders. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration News March/April Vol. 14. No.2. Online available at  http://www.samhsa.gov/samhsa_news/VolumeXIV_2/index.htm 

Shaffer, Deborah; Bechtel, Kristin; and Latessa, Edward J. (2005) Evaluation of Ohio's Drug Courts: A Cost Benefit Analysis. Center for Criminal Justice Research Dec 2005. Online available at  http://www.uc.edu/criminaljustice/ProjectReports/Ohio_Drug_Courts_Cost_Benefit_Analysis_2005.pdf 

Drug Court Benefits (nd) Online NCDI.org available at  http://www.ndci.org/courtfacts_benefits.html

Privatizing Prison Administration

Description of the Financing System.

Description of How the Current System orks. The financial costs associated with maintaining America's prison system are staggering. Just to stay even with an inmate population that grows by 50,000 to 80,000 a year, approximately, 1,000 new jails and prisons have been built since 1980, and about one new 1,000 bed facility must be added every week for the next ten years (Mccormick 2000). The cost of imprisoning adult offenders ranges from $25,000 to $70,000 a year, and the total costs associated with constructing each new prison cell has soared to $100,000; as a result, the annual budget for constructing and maintaining prisons has jumped in the last two decades from $7 billion to almost $40 billion dollars (Schlosser 1999).

According to Stephen Donziger (1997), "prisons are the largest public works program in America, providing housing, food, (and only sometimes) education, mental…

Works Cited

Campbell, Allison, Andrew Coyle and Rodney Neufeld (Eds.). Capitalist Punishment: Prison

Privatization & Human Rights. Atlanta: Clarity Press, 2003.

Mccormick, Patrick T. (2000). Just Punishment and America's Prison Experiment. Theological Studies, 61(3):508.

Schlosser, Kathryn Casa. (July 2, 1999). Prisons: The New Growth Industry. National Catholic Reporter, 16.

Terrorism and Correctional Administrations

As if correctional administrators and other connected with prisons don't have enough problems on hand, when prisoners are also terrorists, or prisoners get radicalized in prison and attempt to conduct terrorist activities, prisons have a huge problem. This paper reviews the issues surrounding terrorism and prisons.

Ann Coppola, News Reporter for Corrections.com

This interview between counterterrorism planning expert, Bill Sturgeon, and reporter Ann Coppola, took place on the 12th of November, 2007, long before the more recent terrorism issues in the news (ISIS, and "lone wolves" doing terrible violent deeds). Sturgeon flatly said, "hile currently there is not a large number of terrorists in American prisons and jails, that could change quickly in corrections" (Coppola, p. 2).

Sturgeon said that throughout history prisons have been places where "disgruntled groups" such as terrorists, revolutionaries, and others have seen as "targets" for disruption and violence (Coppola, 2007). Coppola…

Works Cited

Coppola, A. (2007). Terrorism in corrections, a ticking time bomb. Corrections.com.

Retrieved April 19, 2015, from  http://www.corrections.com .

Hamm, M.S. (2010). Locking Up Terrorists: Three Models for Controlling Prisoner

Radicalization. Indiana State University. Retrieved April 19, 2015, from  http://www.indstate.edu .

5%, compared to 4.8% for males). (Chesney-Lind, 1998, p. 66)

The author also re-confirms the fact that data regarding of female inmate's indicate that as cited the passage of increased penalties for drug offenses has certainly been a major factor in this increase. Again, it is also important to see that implementation of these stricter sentencing reform initiatives which supposedly were devoted to reducing class and race disparities in male sentencing, pay very little attention to gender and the particular needs of women have been grievously overlooked. (Chesney-Lind, 1998; Aday, 2003)

The advent of mandatory sentencing schemes and strict punishment for drug offenses has been devastating to women. Many states have adopted harsh mandatory sentencing schemes. The Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which eliminated gender and family responsibility as factors for consideration at the time of sentencing, were adopted. (5) the policy of eliminating gender and family responsibility, combined with heightened penalties…

ole and Evolution of the American Prison System

Explain the Primary ole and Evolution of the American Prison System and Determine if Incarceration educes Crime

The United States constitution is the fundamental foundation of the American criminal justice system. Given that the document is now over two hundred years old, it constantly experiences numerous amendments and interpretations. As a result, the criminal justice system over the years experienced alterations in order to reflect the needs and beliefs of each subsequent generation. The configuration of the modern prison system has its basis in the late 1700's and early 1800s. The development of the modern prison system aims at protecting innocent members of the society from criminals. The prison systems also deter criminals from committing more crimes through detaining and rehabilitating them. However, more and more deluge of white-collar crimes and other crimes, burdens the American criminal justice system and the prison…

References

Barnes E. Harry. (1921). The Historical of the Prison System in America. Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology. Vol. 12, No. 1, May, 1921

Craig Haney. (1998). The Past & Future of U.S. Prison Policy Twenty-Five Years after the Stanford Prison Experiment. American Psychological Association July 1998 Vol. 53, No. 7, 709-727

Dina R. Rose & Todd R. Clear (2006). Incarceration, Social, Capital, & Crime: Implications for Social Disorganization Theory. Volume 36, Issue 3, pages 441-480.

Escresa - Guillermo, Laarni (2011) Reexamining the Role of Incarceration and Stigma in Criminal Law. Law and economics, criminal law, stigma, social norms, behavioral economics.

Alternate Corrections Proposal

Alternative Punishment for a Population of Inmates

Alternate Corrections Program Proposal

The need for a major overhaul of the U.S. prison system, and its purpose, is becoming increasingly recognized by human rights organizations around the world (for example, see Bewley-Taylor, Hallam, and Allen, 2009; Pew Center on the States [Pew Center], 2010). Prior to 1972, the size of the prison population in the United States predictably tracked the growth rate in the general population, but during the past 38 years has grown by 705% (ibid., p. 1). In contrast, the U.S. population grew by less than 44% during the same period (U.S. Census Bureau, 2011, p. 1). If we include the number of Americans currently under community supervision, then about 1 in 31 Americans is under some form of correctional control today (Pew Charitable Trusts, 2009, p. 1; U.S. Department of Justice [U.S. DOJ], 2010, p. 2).…

References

Bewley-Taylor, Dave, Hallam, Chris, and Allen, Rob. (2009). The incarceration of drug offenders: An Overview, Report Sixteen. The Beckley Foundation Drug Policy Programme, International Centre for Prison Studies, Kings College of London, University of London. Retrieved June 12, 2011 from  http://www.idpc.net/php-bin/documents/Beckley_Report_16_2_FINAL_EN.pdf 

Blumstein, Alfred and Wallman, Joel (Eds.). (2002). The crime drop in America. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Boxer, Paul, Middlemass, Keesha, and Delorenzo, Tahlia. (2009). Effects on psychological adjustment following release. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 36(8), 793-807.

Cusac, Anne-Marie (2009). Cruel and Unusual: The Culture of Punishment in America. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Aleinikoff, . (2014). Between National and Postnational: Membership in the United States. Palgrave Macmillan UK, 110-129. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/9780230554795

his paper focuses on the 'postnational viewpoint' to the American notion of sovereignty and membership. he author defines what postnational viewpoint is and explains it means the view that a universal model of membership is replacing national citizenship and is doing so because it is anchored within deterritorialized concepts of persons' rights. Essentially this means there is a respect for global human rights norms leading to a "deterritorialized membership." his is important to consider when comparing the states of prisons in Russia and the United States because the rights of prisoners may reach a form of universal expression in that everyone gets treated in a way that people deem appropriate regardless of location.

Kennedy, S., Sharapova, S., Beasley, D., & Hsia, J. (2016). Cigarette Smoking Among Inmates by Race/Ethnicity: Impact of Excluding African-American…

This article shares the extent of prison conditions in an American prison named Pelican Bay State Prison in California. July 1, 2011, prisoners there started a sustained hunger strike. The reason being the majority of them were kept in complete solitary confinement, experiencing conditions considered torturous like extreme sensory deprivation for over five years. Some were kept in isolation for two decades. They asked for basic things during their strike like a phone call once a week, warm clothes to go outside in, supply of decent food, and a chance at escaping solitary confinement. {risons like this show how bad the American prison system can be.

Sarang, A., Platt, L., Vyshemirskaya, I., & Rhodes, T. (2016). Prisons as a source of tuberculosis in Russia. International Journal of Prisoner Health, 12(1), 45-56.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ijph-07-2014-0022 

This study examines the poor conditions of Russian prisons that leads to a prevalence of tuberculosis. They analyze the poor prevention, treatment, and management of tuberculosis through collecting data from qualitative interviews with participants that are former medical specialists and prisoners in the region of Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia. They also show aside from poor management of tuberculosis infection; HIV infection are poorly managed revealing a poor prison health system in Russia. The study highlights the need for reform of the health system as well as the most common serious infections in Russian prisons. The most common being Tuberculosis and HIV.

Furthermore, even the goal of preventing recidivism (and crime rates in general) conflict with the profit motive of any industry whose demand is measured by the numbers of criminals convicted and sentenced to terms of incarceration.

Conclusion:

Prison privatization has increased in the last few decades in the U.S. Its proponents believe that privatizing prisons will reduce the financial strain on government authorities in connection with maintaining correctional services. Critics are extremely wary of any transition to for-profit business models in the realm of corrections, primarily because of the tremendous potential for inherent conflicts of interests. Ultimately, the best approach might be a hybrid format where private entities supplement government authorities, but subject to appropriate legislative guidelines and oversight mechanisms sufficient to ensure that industry standards and integrity are not compromised the way they might be under unrestricted privatization policies.

eferences

Cullen, F.T., Eck, J.E., Lowencamp, C.T. (2002). Environmental Corrections:…

References

Cullen, F.T., Eck, J.E., Lowencamp, C.T. (2002). Environmental Corrections: A New Paradigm for Effective Probation and Parole Supervision. Federal Probation, Vol. 66, No. 28.

Dershowitz, a.M. (2002). Shouting Fire: Civil Liberties in a Turbulent Age. New York: Little Brown & Co.

Gaines, L.K., Kaune, M., Miller, R.L. (2006). Criminal Justice in Action: The Core.

Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Mental Health, Prisons and Hospitals

The two videos -- the news piece on Connecticut's "purple pods" used in Hartford hospital and the Frontline special on prisons and mental health -- both indicate a problem in how society copes with and treats individuals with mental health. They also portray the two extremes of society's response to mental health issues. The Hartford hospital is on the one extreme -- in which the patient's comfort and security are top priorities (to the extent that mental health patients are given their own specially constructed rooms where safety mechanisms and soothing features have been built into the room). The prison system in Ohio described in Frontline is on the other extreme -- where prisons essentially act as mental health hospitals because the mental health facilities in Columbus are no longer able to tend to the needs of mental health patients: the patients end up being…

References

Gonzalez, M., Connell, N. (2014). Mental health of prisoners: identifying barriers to mental health treatment and medication continuity. American Journal of Public Health, 104(12): 2328-2333.

Harner, H., Riley, S. (2013). The impact of incarceration on women's mental health.

Qualitative Health Research, 23(1); 26-42.

Letter of Transmittal

To the Head,

Department of Jails

There are often heavy psychological pressures on inmates as they are dislocated from the society. The type of interactions that happen in a prison setting also create psychological pressures and the incarceration also results in acute psychological stress. Prison life of inmates is most often associated with reduced physical activity as they are often subjected to a solitary life style without much scope for physic activity. There are also reduced opportunities for mental activities due to lack of resources as is the norm in prisons. Physical problems such as diabetes mellitus, heart diseases and other chronic disabilities have been established to have greater chance of setting on individuals who are sedentary.

This study recommends the ways and means to reduce physical and mental ill health of inmates due to the above mentioned reasons and conditions as recommendations of a training program…

References

Battaglia, C., di Cagno, A., Fiorilli, G., Giombini, A., Fagnani, F., & Borrione, P. et al. (2013). Benefits of Selected Physical Exercise Programs in Detention: A Randomized Controlled Study. International Journal Of Environmental Research And Public Health, 10(11), 5683-5696.  http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph10115683 

CASHIN, A., POTTER, E., & BUTLER, T. (2008). The relationship between exercise and hopelessness in prison. Journal Of Psychiatric And Mental Health Nursing, 15(1), 66-71.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2850.2007.01207.x 

Ciuhodaru, T., Iorga, M., & Romedea, S. (2013). Non-lethal Self-harm among Inmates. Procedia - Social And Behavioral Sciences, 78, 320-324.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.04.303 

Kaba, F., Lewis, A., Glowa-Kollisch, S., Hadler, J., Lee, D., & Alper, H. et al. (2014). Solitary Confinement and Risk of Self-Harm Among Jail Inmates. Am J Public Health, 104(3), 442-447.  http://dx.doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2013.301742

U.S. Corrections Systems

The current U.S. prison system has several purposes, including retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, and rehabilitation. (Legal Encyclopedia, 2011). Although the current model is attempting a greater emphasis upon rehabilitation, this objective has met varying successes and failures. One of the most legitimate criticisms against prison rehabilitation programs is the fact that the treatment involved is compulsory or coercive. This factor then led to the likelihood of returning to criminal activity once the prisoner is released.

According to the Legal Encyclopedia (2011), there have been advances in rehabilitation programs that have in fact proved to reduce recidivism. The success of these programs are based upon their focus on offenders' needs and on improving their cognitive and social skills. ecidivism resulting from these programs amounted to 30% or more.

Because of the high costs of maintaining and constructing prisons, the rehabilitation purpose has enjoyed increased attention over recent years. Simply…

References

Gest, T. (2010). Covering Sentencing. Covering Crime and Justice. Retrieved from:  http://www.justicejournalism.org/crimeguide/chapter14/chapter14_pg05.html 

Legal Encyclopedia (2011). Prisons and Jails: Development of Prisons and Jails in the United States. Retrieved from:  http://law.jrank.org/pages/18929/Prisons-Jails.html

In addition, prison managers must deal with the mundane as well as the human equation, because much of their jobs are in the paperwork, union rules, state statutes, and other regulations that are required in the prison system. Management in the prison is a unique challenge, because of the many responsibilities that come with it. It is clear, just as business management and leadership are evolving, that prison management will continue to evolve, and as it does, it could create model prison systems of the future.

Finally, it is important to note that prisons are unique operations, but they still should uphold management principles. Author Daly continues, "Management is responsible for the mission and strategy of the organization. Prisons are unique with special features but they still reflect the philosophy and methodology of management" (Daly, 2002). Prison management should have clearly defined goals and missions regarding their inmate populations, but…

References

Boin, a. (2001). Crafting public institutions: Leadership in two prison systems. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner.

Daly, W.C. (2002). Shades of gray in prison administration. Education, 122(3), 488+.

Greene, J. (2003). Chapter Five Lack of correctional services. In Capitalist punishment: Prison privatization & human rights, Coyle, a., Campbell, a., & Neufeld, R. (Eds.) (pp. 56-66). Atlanta: Clarity Press.

Jail Time and Death Penalty: Finding New Ways to Deter Criminal Behavior

Jail Time and Death Penalty: A Deterrent?

For years many law enforcement agencies have relied on the assumption that jail time or the death penalty serve as adequate deterrents to crime or criminal activity. However multiple studies confirm that jail time and the death penalty are not effective methods alone for deterring criminals. Because of this it is important that law enforcement agents, government officials and community members work together to uncover effective tools for deterring crime and discouraging criminals from repeating crimes after release.

Jail time and the death penalty do not deter crime. Early Gallup Polls conducted in the 1980s and 1990s show that while roughly two thirds of Americans and law enforcement agents support the death penalty, there is inadequate evidence supporting its use as an effective deterrent to crime (Akers & adelet, 1996). Many…

References:

Abraham, E., Boyle, J., Mullen, R. & ratelle, J. (1996). "California program reduces recidivism and saves tax dollars." Corrections Today, 58(5): 118.

Akers, R.L. & Radelet, M.L. (1996). "Deterrence and the death penalty: The views of the experts." Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 87(1): 15.

Clayton, S.L. (2005 -- Apri). "Jail inmates bake their way to successful reentry."

Corrections Today, 67(2):78.

Prison Life for Inmates

Sending offenders to prison has been used as a way of dealing with prisoners for a long time. It was not always seen as a way of punishment; rather, it was used as detention pending the actual punishment of these offenders. The application of imprisonment has been around, perhaps, for as long as humanity has existed. In Old Testament times, prisons were used in Jerusalem. Some prominent personalities have been reported to have been born in prison environments. Others have been imprisoned. It is reported that Lord Krishna was born in prison at a place called Mathura. Shahjahan was imprisoned by his son at Agra. The ritish constructed the historic cell at Port lair for detaining for life those who revolted against their rule. Prisons have not always been viewed as a way of punishing offenders; rather they have been used to detain offenders before the…

Bibliography

Bradford, Andrew Ryan. "An Examination of The Prison Environment: An Analysis of Inmate Concerns Eight Environmental Dimensions." School of Graduate Studies (2006).

Burlington County. "Prison Museum." A National Historic Landmark Located in The Heart of Holly 2013.

Covert, H. "Ministry to The Incarcerated." Chicago: Loyopla Books, 1995.

Department of Corrections. Victims Services Programs. 2015. .

Prison Condition in USA vs. ussia

In assessing the human rights conditions of maximum security facilities, human rights groups look into 3 main areas: the duration of confinement; the conditions of confinement, and the criteria of eligibility. Each of these areas must be looked into individually and then considered in the context of the entire situation (Human ights Watch). Quite a number of concerns have been raised about the human rights conditions of the individuals held in prisons including: mistreatment of inmates / detainees by prison officials; unsafe conditions; and lack of sufficient legal protection (United States Department of State, n.d.). This paper also compares the situation of prison facilities in the United States and ussia.

Introduction

The Standard Minimum ules, or the SMs for the Treatment of Prisoners are one of the most important international agreements on how prisoners should be handled. The SMs were adopted in 1955 by…

References

Hounshell, B. (2010). What are Russian prisons like? Retrieved March 15, 2016 from  http://foreignpolicy.com/2010/12/28/what-are-russian-prisons-like/ 

Human Rights Watch (n.d.). Supermax Prisons: an overview. Retrieved March 15, 2016 from  https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/supermax/Sprmx002.htm#TopOfPage 

Markovic, V. (2000). Maximum Security Prisons: A Comparative Analysis. CRIME AND JUSTICE INTERNATIONAL, 16(39), 9-10.

Rosen, A. (2012). Inside Russia's Prison System. Retrieved March 15, 2016 from  http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/10/inside-russias-prison-system/263806/

Overcrowding in Prisons: Impacts on African-Americans

The overcrowded prisons in the United States are heavily populated by African-Americans, many of them incarcerated due to petty, non-violent crimes such as drug dealing. This paper points out that not only are today's prisons overcrowded, the fact of their being overcrowded negatively impacts the African-American community above and beyond the individuals who are locked up. This paper also points to the racist-themed legislation that has been an important reason why so many African-Americans are incarcerated -- and the paper points to the unjust sentencing laws that have unfairly targeted black men from the inner city.

Critical Analysis

hen overcrowding becomes an extremely serious human and ethical problem such that state or federal prison officials must find a temporary solution, one trend that has been implemented is to move inmates to other prisons in distant states. However, according to author Othello Harris, who is…

Works Cited

Dalrymple, Jane, and Burke, Beverley. (2006). Anti-Oppressive Practice: Social Care and the Law. New York: McGraw-Hill International.

Hallet, Michael A. (2006). Private Prisons in America: A Critical Race Perspective. Champaign,

IL: University of Illinois Press.

Harris, Othello, and Miller, Robin R. (2003). Impacts of Incarceration on the African-American

role of prisons in the society. I have included the theories of deterrence, rehabilitation, retribution, incapacitation, non-interventionism and restoration to support my discussion along with their positive and negative aspects. In the conclusion, I have given my preferred theory of imprisonment as the most effective and important ones.

A prison can be defined as a protected and locked institution where juvenile and grown-up offenders are housed with punishments that vary from a year to life. Such facilities hold the objective of accomplishing the verdict that the courts impose on the offenders and also of protecting the community and civil society by taking measures to prevent escapes. These facilities are also liable to provide programs and services that are important for taking care of the convicted population under their custody (Sumter 2007).

The issue of imprisonment has constantly been an intense experience for every individual found guilty of committing offenses. Sometimes…

References

Banks, C. (2004). The Purpose of Criminal Punishment. In: Criminal Justice Ethics: Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks, Calif: Sage Publicaton, pp 103-126.

Mauer, M. (2004). Thinking About Prison and its Impact in the Twenty-First Century. Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law [online].2, p.607-618. Available from: . [Accessed February 17, 2013].

Macionis, J.J. & Plummer, K. (2008). Control, Crime and Deviance. In Sociology: A Global Introduction (5th edition), New York: Pearson Prentice Hall, pp591-592.

MacKenzie, D.L. (1996). Criminal Justice and Crime Prevention. Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice University of Maryland, Maryland. Available from: . [Accessed February 17, 2013].

Contraband in Jail

Controlling contraband should be the top priority of any prison management, regardless of the level of security. Contraband is any item that a prisoner is not allowed to possess (Frantz 178). All correctional facilities provide their inmates with room and board, clothing, medical care, and basic hygiene items. A number of these facilities allow their inmates to buy items from the commissary or receive other articles or items through other authorized channels. Any other thing, aside from these that a prisoner possesses are contraband. eapons and escape materials are both dangerous in the correct circumstances. A number of staffs who work in prisons are acutely aware of the destruction that these items are likely to cause. These items, in addition to drugs and alcohol, can cause great havoc and pose a potential danger to staff and other inmates. Other items such as materials to make homemade ropes…

Works cited

Blackburn, Ashley G, Shannon K. Fowler, and Joycelyn M. Pollock. Prisons: Today and Tomorrow. Burlington, Mass: Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2013. Print.

Frantz, Michael. Jail Time: What You Need to Know Before You Go to Federal Prison! Indianapolis, IN: Dog Ear Pub, 2009. Print.

Hoover, Stevin. Mark Whitacre Against All Odds: How "The Informant" and his Family Turned Defeat into Triumph. Bloomington: Xlibris, 2010. Print.

There should be a manual override system in place in regards to the cell doors. This would allow those in charge to manually lock down all cells to help make sure that no other ones opened on their own.

Providing training to all staff ahead of time so that they are enabled to handle any such situation that might arise is critical. Every staff member should know what they are supposed to do and when they are supposed to do it, if an emergency situation should arise. Training and practice drills should be conducted ahead of time so that everyone is one the same page. Because human lives are at stake every effort should be made to make sure that the best possible plan is developed and available.

The security threat plan should be reviewed an updated on a regular basis. This will help to ensure that any changes that…

References

MCI - Cedar Junction. (2009). Retrieved September 29, 2009, from Mass.gov Web site:

 http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=eopsterminal&L=4&L0=Home&L1=Law+Enforcement+ 

%26+Criminal+Justice&L2=Prisons&L3=State+Correctional+Facilities&sid=Eeops&b=t erminalcontent&f=doc_facility_mcicedarjunction&csid=Eeops

Ranalli, Ralph. (2005). Havoc created in jail cells. Retrieved October 1, 2009, from Boston.com

Prisoners feign conformity with rehabilitation programs merely in an effort to get ahead. Prison stays involving the shedding of one's former self, and its replacement with a new prison self that conforms to all the expectations and behavioral patterns of inmate culture. This inmate culture is inherently hostile to the aims of corrections staff. Corrections staff must avoid doing anything that would tend to enhance the validity of inmate culture. They must resort to equal measures in reaction to prisoner provocations. Prisoners must not be stripped of their humanity. They must be maintained as independent men and women capable of surviving on their own, in a reasonably normal society. Notions of status, respect, and hope for the future, must be maintained as they would outside the prison walls. Corrections personnel must enable prisoners to continue to follow, and believe in, the rules of normal society, even if, in the beginning,…

References

Frase, R.S. (2004). 4 Limiting Retributivism. In The Future of Imprisonment, Tonry, M. (Ed.) (pp. 83-112). New York: Oxford University Press.

(2003). Prisonization: Individual and Institutional Factors Affecting Inmate Conduct. New York: LFB Scholarly Publishing.

Richards, S.C., & Ross, J.I. (2001). Introducing the New School of Convict Criminology. Social Justice, 28(1), 177.

Stanko, S., Gillespie, W., & Crews, G.A. (2004). Living in Prison: A History of the Correctional System with an Insider's View. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Jails and Prisons

The general characteristics of prisons and jails are almost the same though they are considered as different entities in the criminal justice system. The main difference them is that whereas a prison holds convicted offenders who have sentences that are mostly beyond one year, offenders are locked in a jail either holding awaiting transportation to prison units or serving short-term sentences usually ranging from a few days to a year (Gaines and Miller, 2006). With reference to the United States of America criminal justice system the other difference is that prisons are under the jurisdiction of either federal or state while jails are controlled and used by local jurisdictions such as counties and cities. Due to the period of time that offenders take and the life they live in prisons, prisons have been considered to be total institutions. "A total institution can be defined as a place…

References

Alarid, W.L. et al. (2008). Community-based corrections, 7th ed. Thomson/Wadsworth:

Belmont, CA.

Davies, C. (1989). "Goffman's concept of the total institution: Criticisms and revisions" Human

Studies, 12(1-2): 77-95.

America's private prison system has led to drastic changes in the criminal justice system. Beginning in the early 1980's profiting from running prisons first started with the Corrections Corporation of America. They pictured inmates like selling real estate, hamburgers, and cars (Aviram, 2015). While corporate-run prisons only account for eight percent of the American inmate population, it has generated a significant change in how criminals are prosecuted and handled in the criminal justice system. It all began with the founder of the world's first private prison company, Corrections Corporation of America.

Founders T. Don Hutto and Thomas Beasley introduce Corrections Corporation of America in 1983. A year later the company operated a Tennessee-based juvenile detention center and county jail. CCA then opens a Houston-based privately owned facility that held immigration detainees. In 1985 CCA tried a $250 million offer to lease Tennessee's entire prison system for 99 years. They were…

References

Allen, J. & Sawhney, R. (2014). Administration and Management in Criminal Justice. SAGE Publications.

Aviram, H. (2015). Cheap on Crime: Recession-Era Politics and the Transformation of American Punishment. Univ of California Press.

BJS,. (2016). Total Correction Population. BJS. Retrieved 7 October 2016, from  http://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=tp&tid=11

Performance-Based Standards

Accreditation plan for the American Correctional Association

The accreditation of the correctional facilities is aimed at ensuring the well-being of the inmates but also is targeted at benefiting the employees, the victims, the courts as well as the legislators of a state. The standards that are set do allow the protection of the judicial system from embarrassment as well as allowing the correctional institutions to have and retain the autonomy from outside interventions.

Goals and functions of functional areas

Safety; this involves provision of conditions that are humane, protection of the inmates from rape and possible assault, giving of nutritious food as well as medical care, giving the inmates a hygienic living environment and recreation activities. This will ensure the inmates are safe from ill health or physical harm while within the walls of the facility as well as being safe from abusive guards.

Security; this functional are…

References

American Correctional Association, (2014). Public Correctional Policy on Standards and Accreditation. Retrieved March 7, 2014 from https://www.aca.org/government/policyresolution/view.asp?ID=44

David Ronald R., (2006). Evaluating American Correctional Association Accreditation of Adult Correctional Institutions. Retrieved March 7, 2014 from  https://www.google.co.ke/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CEgQFjAE&url=https%3A%2F%2Fdspace.uta.edu%2Fbitstream%2Fhandle%2F10106%2F478%2Fumi-uta-1244.pdf%3Fsequence%3D1&ei=r3YcU97SBubb7Aa2hIHAAQ&usg=AFQjCNGeh6YJwRQeOzwduuSGkhI3J9IXMg&sig2=jVsH_ysiTj7ZUyDagJDjSA&bvm=bv.62578216,d.bGE 

Flynn E.E., (1977). The Correctional Facility: The Environment Today and in the Future. Library Trends. Summer edition.

Manitoba Laws, (1999). The Correctional Services Act. Retrieved March 7, 2014 from  https://web2.gov.mb.ca/laws/statutes/ccsm/c230e.php

Of course, I completely understand the volatile nature of the prison vs. rehab debate. However, I believe that if you take a look at the information available. Specifically check out the publications from Deputy Director of the Prison Reform Trust, Nick Flynn -- especially, "Drugs in Prison, Another Quick Fix (2005)." Also, consider the 2002 Corrections Today article by Jeff Goodale. I trust that both of these writers will present my point quite will.

In short, I urge you to consider my opinion regarding an alternative sentencing option for offenders like Mr. Smith. In my opinion one of the states in-patient, minimum security rehabilitation centers may be more appropriate. Please let me know what you think.

Thank you very much for your time.

Sincerely:

Officer Betty Rumble

orks Cited

Goodale, Jeff. (2002). The prison that drugs built: Illinois designs a new women's prison for the new reality. Corrections Today. August.…

Works Cited

Goodale, Jeff. (2002). The prison that drugs built: Illinois designs a new women's prison for the new reality. Corrections Today. August. Retrieved from Web site on October 18, 2005, from,  http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go1850/is_200208/ai_n7187734 

Flynn, Nick. (2005). Drugs in Prison: Another Quick Fix. Web page. DrugText.org. Retrieved on October 18, 2005, from,  http://www.drugtext.org/library/articles/four1.html

Abstract

Writing a Letter from Birmingham Jail analysis essay offers the student the gift of going back in time to the courage and ferocity of the Civil Rights Movement to examine one of the most eloquent documents of that era. The Civil Rights Era was one of the uglier periods in American history—and one of the most triumphant and inspiring. No document embodies this dichotomy as fully as King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail. In it, King details many of the horrors that black Americans have suffered at the hands of white hatred and complacency. Yet, the letter is without a doubt, a document of hope and conviction, inspiration and profundity. This paper details the background circumstances that provoked King in writing the letter and examines closely the brilliance contained in the words, ultimately discussing why it remains such a lauded document even today.

Introduction

Letter from Birmingham Jail is often…

sociology in indigenous populations. Specifically it will discuss what the terms ethnicity and racism mean, and critically examine how these terms apply to Indigenous Australians? Ethnicity and racism apply to Indigenous Australians (Aborigines) throughout their history, sad but true. Since the English first settled Australian in the 1700s, the Indigenous population has suffered greatly, and it is one of Australia's greatest shames that it went on so long.

The Indigenous people of Australia (Aborigines and Torres Straight Islanders) are one of the oldest cultures on Earth. Archaeologists believe their lineage goes back at least 50,000 years, and some believe it could go as far back as 65,000 years ago. They were the original occupants of Australia, and have a deep and abiding respect for the land and its many different environments. An Aboriginal Web site notes, "For Indigenous Australians, the land is the core of all spirituality and this relationship…

References

Adams, M. (2006). Raising the profile of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men's health: An Indigenous man's perspective. Australian Aboriginal Studies, 2006(2), 68+.

Author not Available. (2006). Indigenous Australians. [Online] Available at:  http://www.aihw.gov.au/indigenous/index.cfm .

Clarke, F.G. (2002). The history of Australia. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Editors. (2008). Australian Indigenous cultural heritage. [Online]. Available at: http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/indigenous / [Accessed 17 June 2009].

The stories are as varied as the people, but certainly one cannot lump every homeless person into a bundle and say they "want to be" in this condition (Conference of Mayors, 2009).

My assignement for Thanksgiving Day was filling coffee and Kool-Aid. This was perfect because it forced me to interact and get to know some of the clients in a different way. This was a real paradigm shift, and something that took me out of my comfort zone and provided a new personal achievement for me. I found the clients, for the most part to be engaging, interesting, and polite. They were so genuinely grateful that I was taken aback by the sheer emotionality of the situation.

Because of this Holiday experience, I continued on with the shelter a minimum of two days per week. I quickly found that one of the issues that seemed to be holding many…

REFERENCES

Housing and Urban Development, Dept. (2010). "Chronic Homelessness." HUD.GOV.

Cited in:  http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/homeless/chronic.cfm 

U.S. Conference of Mayors. (December 2009). "Hunger and Homelessness."

USMAYORS.ORG. Cited in:

psychiatric nursing practice in Australian prisons," Doyle (1999) attempts to discern what factors influence psychiatric nursing care. In particular, the researcher attempted to decide what factors may influence a nurse's ability to work effectively under straining circumstances, in this case working with challenging patients in a prison.

The problem as the researcher states it is that more than 100,000 patients require treatment while living in prison and correctional institutions. The unique client group presents many challenges to nursing staff including mental illness and developmental disabilities. In addition many patients are emotionally unstable. The author clearly identifies problems associated with providing optimal health care to incarcerated offenders. Also noted are the increased mortality rate and disease rate among this population.

Nurses must often face challenging situations. They are often tasked with working with difficult patients. In addition they may face technological obstacles or conflicting values when working in certain settings, or…

References:

Doyle, J. (1999). "A qualitative study of factors influencing psychiatric nursing practice in Australian prisons." Perspectives in Psychiatric Care, 35(1):29

Lather, P. (1991). Getting smart. New York: Routledge.

Massarik, F. (1981). The intervening process re-examined. In P. Reason & J. Rowan

(Eds.), Human enquiry: A source book of new paradigm research (pp. 201-207). New York: Wiley.

Corrections officers serve a distinct role in the criminal justice system. They are involved in the day-to-day lives of inmates, and are responsible for maintaining prison safety, security, and integrity. In some ways, corrections officers may fulfill a role similar to that of a guard, whereby they enforce the rules and regulations of the institution, prevent problems such as inmate fighting or rioting, monitor inmate behavior, prevent escapes, and may administer punishments to inmates. Occasionally, correctional officers may need to use force when mitigating behavioral problems among inmates. Essentially, corrections officers represent the authority of the criminal justice system within the prison framework. Correctional officers may sometimes be involved in rehabilitation efforts, too, helping steer inmates toward specific self-improvement methods such as educational programs or job training programs. Likewise, correctional officers might be involved in parole hearings to offer testimony based on the behavior and status of an inmate. The…

References

Griffin, M.L. (2013). From resistence to integration. Chapter 15 in Routledge International Handbook of Crime and Gender Studies. Renzetti, et al. (Eds). Routledge.

Stress and Suicide in Law Enforcement Populations

The paper is an understanding of what stress could have on law enforcement officials. The factors which cause stress for law enforcement officials are varied ranging from personal life issues, the pressures of work, the public response towards police job, the entire criminal law system and the entire rules and procedures involved in the law system. If this stress is not alleviated then the officers start reacting in negative ways. The biggest stress on most police officers is suicide. The numbers of police officers that face death by committing suicide are very high when compared to those who are killed when they are on duty. During 1934 and 1960 the suicide rates of the police officers were nearly half of the general population. But then from 1980 to the current date this situation has changed so drastically that the death rates as to…

The Nerio article shows prisons are organizations because they are run by administrators with power, they serve a purpose in the local economy and in keeping people safe, and they are powerful in the criminal justice system by resolving who stays in prison and who does not. They can be corrupt as organizations, which clearly has severe humanitarian, political, and social repercussions on society, the community, and of course, black Americans, who suffer most from these repercussions.

In conclusion, I agree with these perspectives because the facts do not lie, and there are more blacks in prison, and that helps the economy of many areas, which acting as another way to subjugate black Americans, and prisons are indeed organizations that suffer from an organizational mentality, where blacks do not do as well as whites in organizations. All of this combines to keep more black Americans in prison.

eferences

Nerio, .…

References

Nerio, R. Prisons as organizations in five parts.

Street, P. (2007). Reverse reparations: Race, place, and the vicious circle of mass incarceration. ZDNet. 1-14.

Western, B. Punishment and inequality in America.

Women in Prison

Major Legal Issues Concerning Female Inmates

Problems in corrections:

Dealing with the unique needs of women in the prison system

The number of female prison inmates in America and internationally is growing. Although men still outnumber women in the prison population, the rates of female incarceration, once considered relatively nominal, have skyrocketed. "In the U.S., where the prison and jail population reached two million in the year 2000, women's incarceration is also spiralling upwards at a greater pace than that of men. While the number of men in U.S. prisons and jails doubled between 1985 and 1995, women's imprisonment during the same period tripled" (Sudbury 2002). These escalating rates are surprising, given that women are far more likely to be the victims rather than the perpetrators of violent crimes. "While their relative proportions are small, the growing numbers of women being sent to prison is disproportionate to…

References

Blitz, C.L., Wolff, N., Ko-Yu, P., & Pogorzelski, W. (2005). Gender-specific behavioral health and community release patterns among New Jersey prison inmates: Implications for treatment and community reentry. American Journal of Public Health, 95(10), 1741-6.

Brewer-Smyth, K., Bucurescu, G., Shults, J., Metzger, D., Sacktor, N., Gorp, W. v., & Kolson,

D. (2007). Neurological function and HIV risk behaviors of female prison inmates. Journal of Neuroscience Nursing, 39(6), 361-72.

Case, P., Fasenfest, D., Sarri, R., & Phillips, A. (2005). Providing educational support for female ex-inmates: Project PROVE as a model for social reintegration. Journal of Correctional Education, 56(2), 146-157

Three Strikes Law

There are numerous problems associated with the prison system in the state of California. More than a few of these problems are directly caused by the state's infamous Three Strikes legislation -- in which individuals who receive three felonies are sentenced to 25 years to a life term in prison. In codifying the problems related to the state's prison system as identified by the essay written by the politician who was eligible for reelection, it becomes apparent that the most salient of these are the huge expense associated with quartering so many prisoners, overcrowding, and a lack of rehabilitation.

In 2010, the state spent a total of nearly 8 billion dollars to quarter, feed, and provide healthcare for prisoners, which represents a 12.2 percentage of costs outside of the state budget (Vera, 2012). These budgetary constraints are due in large part to the fact that the prisons…

References

Ireland, J. (2001). "Pros & Cons of Free Universal Healthcare." www.livestrong.com.

Retrieved from  http://www.livestrong.com/article/30692-pros-cons-universal-health/#ixzz1t2lGiOFK// 

Rodriguez, S. (2013). California prison conditions driving prisoners to suicide. Solitary Watch. Retrieved from  http://solitarywatch.com/2013/03/15/california-prison-conditions-driving-prisoners-to-suicide/ 

Skolnick, A. (2011). Runaway Prison Costs Thrash State Budgets. The Fiscal Times, 9 Feb 2011. Retrieved from  http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2011/02/09/Runaway-Prison-Costs-Thrash-State-Budgets

Ethics of Prisoner Experiments

Prisoner Experiments

Prior to the medical trial at Nuremberg physicians and scientists were largely free to conduct experiments on unsuspecting persons (Freyhofer, 2004, p. 9-10), including inmates inside America's prisons. When it was discovered that German physicians had been conducting inhumane experiments on death camp and concentration camp prisoners during WWII, the world was shocked that doctors were capable of such behavior. The American Military Tribunal in Nuremberg heard arguments from both the defense and prosecution for twenty three doctors and administrators accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The defense argued that the doctors' conduct was not a significant departure from past practices and any inhumanity was more a function of the ongoing hostilities. The judges on the tribunal saw it differently and created ethical guidelines for medical researchers, because the evidence presented in court revealed the Hippocratic Oath could not protect patients and…

References

Freyhofer, Horst A. (2004). The Nuremberg Medical Trial: The Holocaust and the Origin of the Nuremberg Medical Code: Vol. 53. Studies in Modern European History. New York: Peter Lang.

HHS (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). (2005). The Nuremberg Code. HHS.gov. Retrieved 4 Sep. 2013 from  http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/archive/nurcode.html .

Hornblum, Allen M. (1998). Acres of Skin. Human Experiments at Holmesburg Prison. A True Story of Abuse and Exploitation in the Name of Medical Science. New York: Rutledge.

Lerner, Barron H. (2007). Subjects or objects? Prisoners and human experimentation. New England Journal of Medicine, 356(18), 1806-1807.

Evolution of Prison Life

hat were prisons like, how were prisoners treated and classified through American history -- including prison environments in the last few years? This paper delves into those topics and provides the available literature that validates the points to be made in this essay.

The History of Prisons and Prisoner Life in America

According to author and Professor Jack Lynch, prisons were among the very first public buildings when settlers began to populate and develop the New orld. And there were few long-term punishments that were meted out, and among those were individuals convicted of being "debtors" (Lynch, 2008). The problem with putting the poor in prison because they couldn't pay their debts was that "…they could never earn the money they owed"; but it wasn't until the 1830s that the U.S. began to "…abolish debtor's prisons" (Lynch, 3). Instead of being imprisoned, convicted criminals were forced…

Works Cited

American Civil Liberties Union. (2013). Prison Conditions. Retrieved March 19, 2014, from  https://www.aclu.org .

Austin, J., and Hardyman, P.L. (2004). Objective Prison Classification: A Guide for Correctional Agencies. U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved March 19, 2014, from http://www.jfa-associates.com.

Lynch, J. (2008). Cruel and Unusual Prisons and Prison Reform. History.org. Colonial Williamsburg. Retrieved March 19, 2014, from  http://www.history.org .

Schwirtz, M. (2014). Mental Illness and Violence Rise at a Vast Jail. The New York Times.

Each semester the prison system has about six inmates obtain college degrees and their average income after leaving prison is more than $30,000 each in whatever field they enter.

The program has saved Utah taxpayers more than $1.5 million in what it would have cost to continue to house inmates and to receive them back had they returned to prison.

When inmates take courses or obtain a degree from USU, the rate of recidivism becomes less than 1%. Lowering this rate is the base of the whole program (Gray, 2001)."

Those who are against the program believe it is wrong to reward a criminal by paying for an education that many law abiding citizens are unable to afford. In their argument the prisoners should not be allowed to attend classes while in prison at the cost to the taxpayer. They believe the inmates should work in prison and repay their…

References

Klug, Elizabeth a (2002) According to a Department of Education study, inmates who receive vocational training or take high school- or college-level classes are far less likely to return to prison within three years of their release.(Brief Article) Corrections Compendium

Gray, Kari (2001) Utah State U. distance learning provides education for inmates

If a Community Corrections participant is questioned by police for any crime whatsoever they can be violated simply for being questioned. If their officer decides not to violate them they still have to report the questioning within 12 hours of its occurrence or face violation.

Following several months on the program the participant is moved to phase two at which time he or she is allowed one pass a week. The pass must be pre-approved and under no circumstances can the participant be out after 9 p.m.

Following several months on that program without incident the participant can move to the curfew phases. This is a time period in which the participant has graduated curfews of 7 p.m. And 9 p.m. For the remainder of time in the program (Evans, 1996).

Throughout the program probation officers do surprise house checks to be sure the participant in indeed in the house…

REFERENCE

Evans, Donald (1996) Defining community corrections.

Corrections Today.

The significant increase in prison terms has created unsafe, unhealthy, and potentially dangerous conditions for violent and non-violent criminals alike, frequently affecting the potential to rehabilitate felons. The Law has led to various unusual circumstances that have attracted national attention, especially those cases that send third-time offenders to prison for 25 years or more for simple, non-violent, victimless crimes, such as in the case of Santos Reyes in 1998. Despite the controversy and negative consequences, the Supreme Court upheld the Three Strikes Law, saying that it stopped short of constituting "cruel and unusual punishment."

The Three Strikes Law had the intention of limiting recidivism. However, numerous studies suggest that declines in recidivism have been negligible. This is another unintended consequence of the Three Strikes Law; the general failure to curb third offenses. Violent crimes have dropped in urban areas in California, but those declines are in line with declines in…

PA: Mason Crest Publishers.

Tyler, T. (1997). Three Strikes and You're Out, but Why? The Psychology of Public Support

for Rule Breakers. Law & Society Review, vol. 31, 2, pp. 23-246.

Court records also stick on, whether the charges are dropped or followed by a conviction. People of color or ethnic minorities, such as African-Americans and Hispanics, have come to accept that they cannot avoid acquiring a criminal record. The 1990 Washington DC-based sentencing project found that one in every four African-Americans aged 20 to 29 was in prison, in jail or on probation or parole. A research conducted by the National Center on Institutions and Alternatives had a comparable finding. In a decade, the figure decreased to one out of three or 76% of 18-year-old African-Americans in the urban areas who can expect arrest and imprisonment before age 36. The racial gap became evident at the approach of the millennium. In 1926, 79% of inmates in state and federal prisons were whites and only 21% were lacks. ut in 1999, African-Americans made up 55-60% of new admissions. Including Latino inmates,…

Bibliography

1. Bates, D. (2006). Policy Makers Working to Find a Solution for Increased Incarceration. Falls Church News Press.  http://www.fcnp.com/432/parole.htm 

2. Beck, A.R.. (2001). Jail Bloating: a Common but Unnecessary Cause of Jail Overcrowding.  http://www.justiceconcepts.com/jail%20overcrowding.pdf 

3. ISECUREtrac. (2004). Reducing Prison Overcrowding. ISECUREtrac Corporation. http://www.isecuretrac.com/sa_po.asp

4. Joel, D. (1989). Time to Deal with America's Prison Crisis. The Heritage Foundation. http://www.heritage.otg/Research/Criminalbg735.cfm

For example, he notes that one out of eleven men is estimated to go through the correctional system throughout his life but the figures for nonwhites are even higher. Forty-nine percent of inmates are African-American and eighteen percent are Latino. What happens is that many of these black inmates are taken from cities and locked up in prisons built in rural areas. Residents of these communities are white men and women who have limited, if any, experience of living with people of color and are of working-class background. ome of them are young men right out of high school. Not surprisingly, this encounter often leads to violence and racial tension. Hallinan writes that "it is hard to ignore that those getting rich are usually white and those in prison are usually not" (p. xiii). In other words, the profitability of the prison-industrial complex is not only corrupting the system by…

Some of his assertions are controversial. He emphasizes the pernicious influence of the private prison industry but that industry began in 1983 and the number of private prisons today is around 150. Most of the prisons are still federally funded though Hallinan notes that the relatively small number of private prisons have developed a culture that has influenced other prisons -- namely, an emphasis "not on producing an improved inmate, one who will commit fewer crimes when released, but on producing a cheaper inmate" (p. 145). And given that the number of private prisons is growing and that the concept is being viewed as acceptable and effective by ever greater number of corrections officers, criminologists, politicians, and ordinary Americans, the influence is also likely to grow.

Another controversial point Hallinan makes is the idea that there is an identical logic behind military-industrial complex and the prison-industrial complex. He argues that the U.S. government exaggerated the threat of Communism in the 1950s to dramatically increase the defense budget and similarly the correctional system in the 1980s and '90s exaggerated the threat of crime to justify prison boom. There is always a risk of downplaying the real danger in such arguments, as there was indeed Communist bloc armed with nuclear weapons during 1950s and there were criminal gangs increasing the number of street shootings in 1980s. Hallinan, however, has a point because the crime rate does not justify the titanic prison boom that America has witnessed in the last thirty years. And there is a ground for linking prison-industrial complex to the military-industrial complex. Consider, for instance, the $77.5 million prison in Wallens Ridge, Virginia, which is "identical to the sophisticated sixteen-foot-high fence used by the Israeli government on the Golan Heights, according to the warden" (p. 204).

Going Up the River's only significant weakness is Hallinan's overemphasis on the role of corporations as the driving force behind prison boom. He does not, for example, discuss the fact that paroles have been decreased or even eliminated in some states, which might have accounted for the greater prison population. He does not also entertain the idea that tougher and longer sentences may be one of the reasons of the decreasing crime rate. Nevertheless, Hallinan's outrage directed at the prison-industrial complex is justified. It has gone awry.