Institutional Corrections Chapter 10 Institutional Corrections

European Background Historically, institutional confinement has been used since ancient times, but not until the 1600s and 1700s as a major punishment for criminals. Prior to that it was used to: Detain people before trial Hold prisoners awaiting other sanctions Coerce payment of debts and fines continued…

European Background Hold and punish slaves Achieve religious indoctrination (the Inquisition) Quarantine disease

Forerunners of Modern Incarceration Modern incarceration strives to change the offender’s character and is carried out away from public view. Early punishments for crime were directed more at the offender’s body and property. Goals were to inflict pain, humiliate the offender, and deter onlookers from crime.

Forerunners of Modern Incarceration Two additional forerunners of modern incarceration were: Banishment Transportation

banishment transportation A punishment, originating in ancient times, that required offenders to leave the community and live elsewhere, commonly in the wilderness. transportation A punishment in which offenders were transported from their home nation to one of that nation’s colonies to work.

Forerunners of Modern Incarceration The closest European forerunners of modern U.S. prisons were known as workhouses. workhouses European forerunners of the modern U.S. prison, where offenders were sent to learn discipline and regular work habits.

Developments in the United States In colonial America, penal practice was loose, decentralized, and unsystematic, combining private retaliation with fines, banishment, harsh corporal punishments, and capital punishment.

The Penitentiary Movement The Walnut Street Jail opened in 1790 in Philadelphia and is considered the first state prison. Inmates labored in solitary cells and received large doses of religious training.

The Penitentiary Movement Pennsylvania and New York pioneered the penitentiary movement by developing two competing systems of confinement: The Pennsylvania system The Auburn system

Pennsylvania system An early system of U.S. penology in which inmates were kept in solitary cells so that they could study religious writings, reflect on their misdeeds, and perform handicraft work. continued…

Auburn system An early system of penology, originating at Auburn Penitentiary in New York, under which inmates worked and ate together in silence during the day and were placed in solitary cells for the evening.

The Penitentiary Movement By the end of the Civil War, many were questioning the value of the penitentiary movement, as prisons failed to deter crime, and became increasingly expensive to maintain. A new movement sought to improve the method of incarceration.

The Reformatory Movement The reformatory movement was based on principles adopted at the 1870 meeting of the National Prison Association. The reformatory was designed: for younger, less hardened offenders. based on a military model of regimentation. with indeterminate terms. with parole or early release for favorable progress in reformation.

Institutions for Women Until the reformatory era, there was little effort to establish separate facilities for women. The first women’s prison based on the reformatory model opened in Indiana in 1873. Women’s prisons concentrated on molding inmates to fulfill stereotypical domestic roles.

Recent Trends - The Incarceration Boom Between 1980 and 2000, the adult prison population in the U.S. (state and federal) more than quadrupled. There are more than 1.4 million state and federal prisoners in U.S.

Recent Trends Local jail populations saw a similar (less dramatic) trend.

Cost Estimates The average yearly cost of incarceration per inmate is about $22,000.

The Crowding Issue Crowding has become especially troublesome over the past two decades. The staggering increase in prison construction has frequently failed to keep pace with the increase in prison populations.

The Crowding Issue The prison population has exploded even as crime rates are stable, and in some cases even declining.

Prison Inmate Characteristics 90% of prisoners in the U.S. are in state prisons; 10% are in federal prisons.

Prison Inmate Characteristics The largest proportion of state prisoners are: Male Minority Have not completed high school Under age 35 Have never married

Prison Inmate Characteristics The prison population is characterized as follows: About 50% are serving sentences for violent offenses About 20% for property offenses About 20% for drug offenses The remainder for public order offenses

Organization and Administration by Government Each state has a department of corrections or a similar administrative body to coordinate the various adult prisons in the state. Most adult prisons employ a quasi-military model of administration and management.

Types of Facilities Some of the more common facility types are: Classification and other special facilities Men’s prisons Women’s prisons Jails and lockups

Classification and Other Special Facilities Classification facility Most prisoners are initially sent to a classification facility. Classification facility A facility to which newly sentenced offenders are taken so that their security risks and needs can be assessed and they can be assigned to a permanent institution.

Classification and Other Special Facilities The decision of where to place an offender rests on a variety of factors: The offender’s security risk Program services the offender needs, such as counseling Any problems such as alcohol dependency The nature of the offense continued…

Classification and Other Special Facilities The offender’s prior record, propensity toward violence and escape, and vulnerability to victimization by other inmates Programs offered at the state’s institutions, and the related crowding levels

Men’s Prisons Men’s prisons, the most common general type of prison, are often distinguished by security level. security level A designation applied to a facility to describe the measures taken, both inside and outside, to preserve security and custody.

Men’s Prisons The simplest security level categorization is: maximum medium minimum

Men’s Prisons Maximum-security facilities are characterized by very tight internal and external security.

Men’s Prisons Common security measures include: A high wall or razor-wire fencing Armed-guard towers Electronic detectors External armed patrol A wide, open buffer zone between the outer wall or fence and the community continued…

Men’s Prisons Restrictions on inmate movement The capability of closing off areas to contain riots or disruptions

Men’s Prisons A recent development is the “ultramaximum” or “supermaximum-security” prison to house notorious offenders and problem inmates from other institutions. These institutions utilize: Total isolation of inmates Constant lockdowns

Men’s Prisons Medium-security institutions place fewer restrictions on inmate movement inside the facility. Characteristics often include: Dormitory or barracks-type living quarters No external security wall Barbed wire rather than razor wire Fences and towers that look less forbidding

Men’s Prisons Minimum-security prisons are smaller and more open.

Men’s Prisons They often house inmates who: Have established records of good behavior Are nearing release Characteristics often include: Dormitory or barracks living quarters No fences Some inmates may be permitted to leave during the day to work or study Some inmates may be granted furloughs

Men’s Prisons Individual inmates are classified by custody level. Although custody levels are sometimes designated by the same terms as security levels, they are independent of each other.

Women’s Prisons Women make up about 7% of the prison population, but the incarceration rate for women has grown faster than the incarceration rate for men. A greater proportion of women than men are serving sentences for property offenses. Women are more likely to have dependent children and to be serving their first prison term.

Women’s Prisons Prisons exclusively for women tend to be smaller and house fewer inmates than institutions exclusively for men. Dorm and cottage plans are much more common than cell-block plans for women’s prisons.

Jails and Lockups Suspects usually stay in a lockup for only 24 to 48 hours. A suspect may later be transferred from the lockup to the jail.

Jails and Lockups In practice, a jail serves a catchall function in criminal justice and corrections. A jail may hold: Convicted offenders serving short sentences Convicted offenders awaiting transfer to prison Offenders who have violated their probation or parole Defendants who are awaiting trial

Prison Services Many of the human services and programs found in the free society are duplicated within prisons: Food services Building maintenance and repair (often performed by inmates) Medical and dental services Mail and phone services continued…

Prison Services Visitations Commissaries where prisoners can purchase food, tobacco, radios, and reading materials Recreational facilities Legal resources Religious services

Prison Services All institutions have special-needs populations, in particular: Elderly inmates who require more medical attention Inmates with mental disorders Inmates with HIV and AIDS

Prison Services It has long been assumed that rehabilitation can be facilitated by improving inmates’ academic skills and providing them with job skills. Much prison education amounts to remedial schooling designed to prepare inmates to obtain their GEDs.

Prison Services Some prison vocational programs operate as part of job assignments, others are separate. Either way, the goal is to provide inmates with job skills that will improve their marketability upon release.

Prison Services Counseling and therapy offered in prisons varies widely. Sometimes individual counseling (one-on-one with a counselor) and group counseling are both offered.