Chapter 12 Prison Life: Living In and Leaving Prison

Learning Objectives Discuss the problems of the adult correctional system Know what is meant by the term of “total institution” Be familiar with the problem of sexual coercion in prison and what is being done to help Chart the prisonization process and the development of the inmate social code Compare the lives and cultures of male and female inmates

Learning Objectives Be familiar with the different forms of correctional treatment Discuss the world of correctional officers Understand the causes of prison violence Know what is meant by prisoners’ rights, and discuss some key privileges that have been granted to inmates Be knowledgeable about the parole process and the problems of prisoner reentry

Men Imprisoned Total institutions: Coping in Prison: Segregated Under constant surveillance Forced to obey strict official rules Evaluated and assigned a classification Isolated from friends and family Coping in Prison: Inmates learn to adapt Survival in prison may depend on one’s ability to identify troubled inmates and avoid contact

Men Imprisoned Sexual Coercion: A common belief of prison life is the threat of sexual coercion, long considered routine in penal institutions Difficult to measure incidents of rape as most go unreported Congress enacted the Prison Rape Reduction Act of 2003 establishing programs in the Department of Justice with the intention of controlling sexual violence in prisons

Men Imprisoned Inmate Social Code: Experts believe that inmates have formed their own set of norms and rules known as the inmate subculture A significant aspect of the inmate subculture is the inmate social code Inmate social code includes unwritten guidelines that express values and attitudes Represents the values of interpersonal relations in the prison

Men Imprisoned Study of Inmate Life in Maximum-Security from Donald Clemmer’s classic book The Prison Community: Identification of the prisonization process Prison argot (language) Inmate assimilation Destructive effects

Men Imprisoned The New Inmate Culture: The importation of outside values into inmate culture has had a dramatic effect on prison life Prison assimilation began to chance in the 1960s Black power movement Racial, religious and political groups now more cohesive Powerful, racially homogeneous gangs enforce a code of their own

Women Imprisoned Female Institutions: The majority are smaller, non-secure institutions similar to college dormitories and groups homes Like male prisons, women’s prisons suffer from lack of educational and vocational training, and inadequate medical and social program treatment

Women Imprisoned Female Inmates: Young (under 30), minority group members, unmarried and undereducated (1/2 are dropouts), and either underemployed or unemployed 75% of inmates have substance abuse problems Most are mothers Broken homes Physical and sexual abuse violence

Women Imprisoned Adapting to the Female Institution: Differ from male institutions Less violent The social code of male institutions does not exist in female institutions Women form make-believe (or pseudo) families 

Correctional Treatment Therapy Vocational Programs Educational Programs

Correctional Treatment Therapy (individual or group) Anger Faith Drug HIV/AIDS Cognitive Skills Reality Aversion Milieu Behavior Mod.

Correctional Treatment Educational Programs: The first prison treatment programs were educational A prison school at the Walnut Street jail was opened in 1784 Today, most institutions provide some type of educational program Most research indicates that participation in correctional education is related to lower recidivism rates, and higher post-release earning and employment rates.

Correctional Treatment Vocational Programs: Vocational Training Work Release Private Prison Enterprise Post Release Programs Can Rehabilitation Work? Although promising, some of the most carefully crafted treatment efforts have failed to show a positive impact on inmates returning to the community

Guarding the Institution Roles: Supervise the interior and exterior of the prison Monitor inmate behavior Prevent escape Maintain order within the population Enforce institutional rules and policies Conduct searches for contraband Settle disputes between inmates Correctional officers must manage the stress of working in a dangerous environment

Guarding the Institution Roles: Controlling a prison is a complex task of balancing the conservative goals of punishment against the liberal goals of rehabilitation and treatment Maintain order and security Advocate humane treatment and rehabilitation

Correctional Treatment Female Correctional Officers: Perform the same duties and tasks as male correctional officers Discipline has not suffered because of the inclusion of women as C.O.s Research has indicated that the presence of female officers can have an important beneficial effect on the guard-inmate working relationship

Prison Violence Conflict, violence, and brutality are part of institutional life Violence can involve individual or group conflict amongst inmates and between inmates and staff Sexual assault is a common threat Politically driven prison riots: More than 300 prison riots since 1774 90% of them since

Prison Violence What Causes Violence? Factors related to prison administration, inmate population characteristics, and the racial makeup of inmates and staff can influence violence levels Individual Violence Collective Violence

Individual Violence History of Violence Age Psychological Factors Prison Conditions Lack of dispute mechanisms Basic Survival

Administrative Control Theory Collective Violence Inmate Balance Theory Administrative Control Theory

Prisoners’ Rights Before the early 1960s, on conviction all rights were forfeited and inmates were considered civilly dead Hands-off doctrine Access to courts, legal services, and materials Freedom of the press and of expression Freedom of religion Medical rights Cruel and unusual punishment Racial segregation Overall prison conditions

Prisoners’ Rights Hands-Off Doctrine: A judicial policy that the courts would only intervene in correctional matters if there was a serious breach of the Eighth Amendment After the 1960s, the Civil rights Act, 42 U.S.C. 1983 had federal courts hearing and considering inmate complaints about prison conditions – the hands-off doctrine eroded

Prisoners’ Rights Substantive Rights – rights granted to inmates: Access to Courts, Legal Services, and Materials Freedom of the Press and of Expression Freedom of Religion Medical Rights Cruel and Unusual Punishment Overall Prison Conditions

Leaving Prison Parole – Defined: The planned community release and supervision of incarcerated offenders before the expiration of their full prison sentences Decision to parole is determined by statutory requirement Discretionary parole (parole boards) Mandatory parole (release upon completion of a predetermined percentage of term)

Leaving Prison Parole: Functions of the parole board Select and place prisoners on parole Aid, supervise, and provide control of parolees in the community Determine when parole has been completed and the parolee may be discharged Whether parole should be revoked if violations occur

Leaving Prison Parole Effectiveness: Despite all of the efforts to treat released offenders, most parolees fail Rearrested within the first six months after release 45% re-incarcerated within 3 years of release States differ in success/failure rates depending upon correctional strategies

Leaving Prison The Problem of Re-entry: Why Do People Fail on Parole? The psychological and economic problems that lead offenders to recidivism are rarely addressed in prison The habitual personal deficits like drug abuse, criminal behavior, antisocial personality, and family dysfunction Inmates leave prison without savings and few employment prospects Why Do People Fail on Parole? Economic problems Family problems Community problems Legal problems

Leaving Prison Improving Chances of re-entry: On April 9, 2008 Second Chance Act signed into law: Authorized various grants to government agencies and nonprofit groups to provide a variety of services including: Employment assistance Substance abuse treatment Family programming State correctional agencies have made an effort to help inmates take advantage of these services