1. Chapter 7
Jails and Prisons

2. Introduction
Jails in the United States are one of the most maligned and forgotten components of the criminal justice system
Typically, jails are city or county funded and operated facilities designed to confine offenders serving short sentences or those awaiting trial
Prisons, are intended as long term custodial facilities for more serious offenders
Today, however, with prison overcrowding, smaller jails are housing inmate overflow from prisons

3. Jails and Jail Characteristics
Jail is derived from the old English term gaol which originated in 1166 A.D.
In 2006, there were 16 million admissions to and 14.9 million releases from U.S. jails
Average daily population in the U.S. was around 739, 000
There are jail population increases and serious overcrowding problems in most city or county jails
This overcrowding has been directly or indirectly linked to numerous inmate deaths and extensive violence

4. Jails and Jail Characteristics
History
Gaols in England were locally administered and operated, and housed many of society’s misfits
Since the church of England was powerful and influential, many religious dissidents were also housed in gaols
Local administration of jails by shire-reeves was continued by American colonists in later years (Later term is the Sheriff)
Today they are locally controlled and thus suffer from much political influence
In fact, changing jail conditions from year to year are often linked to local political shifts

5. Jails and Jail Characteristics
Workhouses
Workhouses were established largely in response to mercantile demands for cheap labor
The Bridewell workhouse was established in and housed many of the city’s vagrants and general riffraff
Jail and workhouse sheriffs and administrators capitalized on the cheap labor these facilities generated
It became commonplace for sheriffs and other officials to “hire out” their inmates to various merchants

6. Jails and Jail Characteristics
The Walnut Street Jail
The Pennsylvania legislature authorized in the renovation of a facility originally constructed on Walnut Street; this served as both a workhouse and a jail
The Walnut Street Jail was innovative for several reasons:
It separated the most serious prisoners from others
It separated other prisoners according to offense seriousness
It separated prisoners according to gender

7. Jails and Jail Characteristics
Subsequent jail developments
Information about the early growth of jails in the United States is sketchy
There were a different array of facilities and the number of jails depended on who was doing the counting
Another reason for inadequate statistics is that there was little interest in jail populations
Also records of inmates were rarely maintained

8. Jails and Jail Characteristics
The number of jails in the United States
No one knows the exact number of jails in the United States at any given time
One reason is that observers disagree about how jails ought to be defined
Some persons only count locally operated and funded, short term incarceration facilities while others include state operated jails
The American Jail Association suggests that to qualify as a jail, the facility must hold inmates for 72 hours or longer

9. Jails and Jail Characteristics
Functions of jails
Jails hold indigents, vagrant, and the mentally ill
Jails hold pretrial detainees
Jails house witnesses in protective custody
Jails house convicted offenders awaiting sentencing
Jails house persons serving short term sentences
Jails house some juvenile offenders

10. Jails and Jail Characteristics
Functions of jails (continued)
Jails hold prisoners wanted by other states on detainer warrants
Jails hold probation and parole violators
Jails hold contract prisoners from other jurisdictions
Jails operate community-based programs and jail boot camps
Jails hold mentally ill patients pending their removal to mental health facilities

11. A Profile of Jail Inmates
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, 2006
Approximately 90 percent of all jail inmates were male, while 43 percent were white, non-Hispanic
The number of female arrestees has climbed slowly since from 9.2 percent to 14.1 percent in 2006
Some observers believe that selective law enforcement and racial profiling have contributed to the disproportionate number of jail inmates that are African American who number about 46 percent
Over half of all jail inmates were not convicted of any crime
At midyear about 94 percent of all jail space in the U.S. was occupied

12. A Profile of Jail Inmates
Many sorts of persons are processed through jails every day
Drunks, vagrants, and juveniles
Pretrial detainees and petty offenders
Shock probationers and prison inmate overflow
Work releasees and the mentally ill
Probationers and parolees

13. Prisons, Prison History, and Prison Characteristics
Prisons defined
State and federally funded and operated institutions to house convicted offenders under continuous custody on a long term basis
Compared with jails, prisons are completely self-contained and self-sufficient
In 2005, there were over 2.4 million inmates in state and federal penitentiaries
Prisons were operating at 108 percent of their capacity
The Federal bureau of Prisons was operating at 132 percent of capacity

14. Prisons, Prison History, and Prison Characteristics
The development and growth of U.S. prisons
Early English and Scottish penal methods were very influential on the subsequent growth and development of U.S. prisons
John Howard, an influential English prison reformer criticized the manner and circumstances under which prisons were run, and he succeeded in convincing British authorities that reforms were needed
In 1779, the Penitentiary Act was passed where prisoners could work productively

15. Prisons, Prison History, and Prison Characteristics
State prisons
The first state prison was established in Simsbury, Connecticut in 1773
It was actually an underground copper mine converted into a facility for felons
Prisoners were shackled, worked long hours, and received harsh punishments for minor offenses
Walnut Street Jail was the first true American prison that attempted to correct offenders
The Walnut Street Jail, and the Pennsylvania System became a model used by many other jurisdictions

16. Prisons, Prison History, and Prison Characteristics
Auburn State Penitentiary
New York correctional authorities developed a new type of prison in 1816, the Auburn State Penitentiary
It was designed according to tiers where inmates were housed on different levels, this tier system became a subsequent feature of U.S. prison construction
Penitentiary actually refers to a system that segregates prisoners both from society and from each other
At Auburn prisoners were held in solitary cells at night but allowed to work together during the day, this was called the congregate system

17. Prisons, Prison History, and Prison Characteristics
The American Correctional Association
In 1870, the American Correctional Association was established and Rutherford B. Hayes was selected to head that organization
The goals of the ACA were to establish a correctional philosophy, to develop sound correctional policies and standards, to offer expertise in design and operation of facilities, and to assist in training correctional officers

18. Prisons, Prison History, and Prison Characteristics
The Elmira Reformatory
Elmira Reformatory experimented with new rehabilitative philosophies
Its first superintendent Zebulon Brockway envisioned better and more effective treatment for prisoners
Elmira was truly a reformatory and used the military model similar to boot camps
Prisoners did labor and participated in educational and vocational activities

19. The Functions of Prisons
Prisons provide societal protection
Prisons punish offenders
Prisons rehabilitate offenders
Prisons reintegrate offenders

20. Inmate Classification Systems
Religious movements are credited with early prisoner classification
In 1790, the Walnut Street Jail attempted to classify prisoners according to age, gender, and offense seriousness
No single scheme for classifying offenders is foolproof
There are several risk instruments designed to predict inmate behavior
How inmates are classified and housed will directly affect their parole chances

21. Inmate Classification Systems
Minimum-security classification
These facilities are designed to house lo-risk, nonviolent first-offenders
Also established to accommodate offenders serving short-term sentences
Often of a dormitory-like quality, with grounds and physical features resembling university campuses
Administrators place greater trust in inmates in minimum-security institutions

22. Inmate Classification Systems
Medium-security classification
Sixty percent of state and federal facilities are medium- and minimum-security
Forty percent are maximum-security, which house the most dangerous offenders
Visitation privileges are minimal
Most often, no effort made to rehabilitate offenders

23. Inmate Classification Systems
Maxi-maxi, admin max, and super max prisons
Prisoners with the highest levels of security and inmate supervision are maxi-maxi
Admin max facilities house inmates with extensive criminal histories
Sometimes referred to as super max

24. A Profile of U.S. Prisoners
Considerable diversity exists among prisoners in state and federal institutions
These include the nature and seriousness of offenses, age, and psychological or medical problems
In 2005, seven percent of prison inmates were female
Between 1995 and 2005, the female inmate population increased by 45 percent

25. Some Jail and Prison Contrasts
Jails are in poorer conditions with many under court order to improve conditions
Jails do not have programs associated with long term incarceration
Jails have greater diversity of inmates
Jail inmate culture is less pronounced and persistent
Quality of jail personnel is lower
Jails are usually not divided into minimum-, medium-, or maximum-security

26. Some Jail and Prison Contrasts
Jails are in poorer conditions with many under court order to improve conditions
Jails do not have programs associated with long term incarceration
Jails have greater diversity of inmates
Jail inmate culture is less pronounced and persistent
Quality of jail personnel is lower
Jails are usually not divided into minimum-, medium-, or maximum-security

27. Selected Jail and Prison Issues
Jail and prison overcrowding
Violence and inmate discipline
Jail and prison design and control
Vocational/technical and educational programs in jails and prisons
Jail and prison privatization
Gangs… formation and perpetuation