1. Introduction to Criminal Justice
Chapter 10: Institutional Corrections

2. 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.

3. Forerunners of Modern Incarceration
Two forerunners of modern incarceration were:
Banishment
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.

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

5. Reform Initiatives
During the 1700s and 1800s, three reformers were important to initiatives in corrections:
Cesare Beccaria
John Howard
Jeremy Bentham

6. Beccaria
Beccaria’s book On Crimes and Punishments (1764) argued for a system of detailed written laws describing the behaviors that constitute crime and the associated punishments.
Beccaria further argued that, to deter crime, the punishment should fit the crime in two ways:
The severity of punishment should parallel the severity of harm resulting from the crime.
The punishment should be severe enough to outweigh the pleasure obtainable from the crime.

7. Beccaria
Finally, Beccaria argued that, to deter crime, punishment needed to be certain and swift.
Certainty means that criminals think it is likely they will be caught and punished.
Swiftness implies the punishment will occur soon after commission of the crime.

8. Howard
John Howard’s 1777 book, The State of the Prisons in England and Wales, was based on his visits to penal institutions.
Appalled by the crowding, poor living conditions, and abusive practices, Howard advocated for:
Safe, humane, and orderly penal environments.
Religious teaching, hard work, and solitary confinement as ways to instill discipline and reform inmates.

9. Bentham
In penology, Jeremy Bentham is remembered for his idea that order and reform could be achieved in a prison through architectural design.
Bentham’s ideal prison was called a pantopicon.

10. Penitentiary Movement
In 1790, the Walnut Street Jail in Philadelphia was converted from a simple holding facility to a prison and is considered the nation’s first state prison.
Inmates labored in solitary cells and received large doses of religious training.

11. Pennsylvania System
An early system of United States penology in which inmates were kept in solitary cells so that they could study religious writings, reflect on their misdeeds, and perform handicraft work.

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

13. 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.

14. Twentieth Century Prisons
John Irwin summarized imprisonment in the 20th Century into three types of institutions:
The “big house” dominant for the first three decades.
The “correctional institution” in the 1940s and 1950s.
The “contemporary violent prison” in the 1960s and 1970s.

15. Twentieth Century Prisons
The “big house” was a walled prison with large cell blocks that contained stacks of three or more tiers of one- or two-man cells.
Often, the big house exploited inmate labor through various links to the free market.
The “correctional institution” was smaller and more modern looking.
During this time, a medical model came to be used.
Inmates were subjected to psychological assessment and diagnosis and received academic and vocational education and therapeutic counseling

16. Privatization
One alternative to traditional confinement is the movement toward privatization.
Although the private sector has long been involved in programs such as food services, legal aid, and medical care, modern privatization entails private companies building and even running prisons.

17. Shock Incarceration
Such facilities are often designed for young, nonviolent offenders.
Although “boot camps” appeal to those who wish to convey a “tough on crime” message, they have not proven to affect recidivism rates.

18. Cost Estimates
Total spending on state and federal prisons in fiscal year 2010 was budgeted at nearly $45 billion.
The average daily cost of incarceration per inmate in 2010 was $79.64 ($29, per inmate per year).

19. The Crowding Issue
Americans have developed a tradition of strong reliance on the prison to control crime.
It has never done very well.
Crime prevention programs fail, providing more criminals for prisons.
The increased prison population takes resources away from effective community corrections and crime prevention programs.
The response to perceived high crime and high recidivism is to conclude that criminals are not being punished enough and to increase the use of imprisonment.

20. Introduction to Criminal Justice
Chapter 10: Institutional Corrections

21. Prison Inmate Characteristics
2009: 87% of prisoners in the United States are in state prisons;13% are in federal prisons.
The largest proportion of state prisoners are:
Male.
Black.
Have not completed high school.
Under age 35.
Have never married.
Were employed full-time prior to their arrest.
Had relatively low monthly incomes.

22. Prison Inmate Characteristics
In 2008, the prison population was characterized as follows:
52% were serving sentences for violent offenses.
18% for property offenses.
18% for drug offenses.
The remainder for public order offenses.

23. Prison Inmate Characteristics
The federal prison population has some noticeable differences:
Higher percentage are white.
Somewhat older than state prison population.
More educated.
51.4% are serving time for drug offenses.
Many are parents.

24. Organization and Administration by Government
Incarceration facilities exist at all three levels of government, and each jurisdiction operates with much autonomy.
However, the different levels are interconnected:
Federal requirements affect the operation of state prisons.
Local jails are affected by federal and state regulations.

25. 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.

26. Classification and Other Special Facilities
Most prisoners are initially sent to a 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.
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.

27. Men’s Prisons Often distinguished by security level
Maximum-security facilities are characterized by very tight internal and external security, a high wall or razor-wire fencing, with armed- guard towers, electronic detectors, and external (perimeter) armed patrols are common.

28. 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.

29. 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.

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

31. 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 and drug offenses.
Women are more likely to have dependent children and to be serving their first prison term.

32. 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.

33. Jail Functions
In practice, a jail serves a catchall function in criminal justice and corrections. Jails also:
Readmit probation, parole, and bail bond violators and absconders.
Temporarily detain juveniles pending transfer to juvenile authorities.
Hold mentally ill persons.
Hold individuals for the military.

34. Jail Functions Hold individuals for protective custody.
Hold individuals for contempt.
Hold witnesses for the courts.
Release convicted inmates to the community upon completion of sentence.
Transfer inmates to other authorities.
House inmates for federal, state or other authorities.
Sometimes operate community-based programs.
Hold inmates sentenced to short terms.

35. Institutional Security, Services, and Programs
In many ways, an incarceration facility is like a miniature society, with its own security procedures for maintaining order and preserving the safety of inhabitants, as well as a variety of services and programs.

36. Security and Inmate Discipline
An inmate’s custody level indicates the degree of precaution to be used when working with that inmate.
Inmates who are vulnerable to assault by other inmates may be designated for protective custody.
Inmates who represent a danger to other inmates or staff may be designated for administrative segregation.

37. Security and Inmate Discipline
Protective Custody
The segregation of inmates for their own safety.
Administrative Segregation
The keeping of inmates in secure isolation so that they cannot harm others.

38. Security and Inmate Discipline
In order to maintain security, prisons routinely institute policies such as:
Daily counts of inmates to detect escapes.
Constantly monitoring inmates’ whereabouts.
Procedures for transporting inmates.
Searches of inmates’ clothing, bodies, and cells.
Monitoring mail and phone conversations.

39. Security and Inmate Discipline
Written rules and regulations are part of an institution’s formal bureaucratic structure.
Within that structure, there develops an unwritten, informal structure that is vital to the operation of a facility.
Most institutions have an elaborate snitch system.

40. Security and Inmate Discipline
Disciplinary measures vary widely from institution to institution, and staff typically have broad discretion in dealing with rule violations.
If staff members decide to file formal disciplinary reports, inmates face a disciplinary hearing and may have privileges restricted, be placed in solitary confinement, or experience other sanctions.

41. Introduction to Criminal Justice
Chapter 10: Institutional Corrections

42. Services and Programs
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.
Visitation.

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

44. Inmate Rehabilitation Programs
Inmates hoping to better themselves during their incarceration normally have the opportunity to participate in a number of rehabilitation programs.
Examples are:
Self-improvement programs.
Work programs.
Education and vocational training.
Counseling and therapy.

45. Work Programs Examples of work performed include:
In some institutions, all inmates who are physically able are required to work.
In other institutions, the inmates who work are those who choose to do so.
Examples of work performed include:
food services.
building maintenance.
laundry.
health care.
clerical services.
manufacturing.
agricultural.

46. Programs in Perspective
Rehabilitation programs serve many functions within a prison:
Give inmates ways to occupy their time.
Help the institution achieve control over inmates.
Rehabilitation programs also have problems that hinder their ability to effect rehabilitation:
The prison workday is often short and interrupted.
There is often little concern for the quantity and quality of work.
Some jobs lack a free-world counterpart.
Educational programs lack funding.