1. Corrections
Carrying out the sentence of the decreed by the judicial system
History of Corrections
Community Corrections
Intermediate Sanctions
Institutional Corrections

2. Colonial America (1600s-1750s)
Punishment was public
Punishment was corporal or capital
Prison-like institutions existed, but were not used as “punishment”

3. COPORAL PUNISHMENTS

4. The Rise of the Penitentiary (1750-1800)
William Penn
Revised criminal code in Pennsylvania to forbid torture and mutilation; ordered new “houses of correction”
Walnut Street Prison (1790)
Other states (New Jersey, New York) followed

5. Walnut Street Jail and Eastern Penitentiary

6. Pennsylvania vs. Auburn System
Western Penitentiary, Eastern Penitentiary
Silent System
New York
Auburn Prison
Congregate System
Only difference?
Isolation of inmates during the day

7. Corrections in the 1800s Auburn System wins debate
Easier to perform labor; the only way to perform factory labor
But, prison brutal, corporal punishment prevalent
Prison building boom (1850s)
Prison Industry
Contract system, convict-lease, state account

8. The Progressive Era (early 1900s) to the 1960s
The Progressives attacked many social ills (working conditions, poverty….)
In Criminal Justice
Rehabilitation (not punishment, penance) should be the goal of corrections
Psychology/Sociology “Causes”
Platform of indeterminate sentences, probation, parole…

9. Corrections from 1970 to present
Faith in rehabilitation crushed
Liberals = justice model, Conservatives = punish
1970s = deterrence
1980s-2000s: deterrence/incapacitation
Return to determinate sentencing
3 strikes legislation, mandatory minimums, harsh sentencing guidelines…
Chain gangs, “strip-down” prisons

10. Conscience and Convenience
Why were the first prison built?
Revulsion of Gallows  “Penitentiaries”
Then, “Correctional Facilities”
Why do we still build prisons if we no longer believe in rehabilitation?
Incapacitation as the “default” goal of prisons….or “convenience”

11. The Corrections Continuum
Probation
Intermediate Sanctions
Jails
Prisons

12. Probation Father of Probation is John Augustus
Formally adopted in progressive era
Suspend sentence, in return, offender abides by “conditions of probation”
Conditions set and enforced by judicial system
Offenders who “fail” may have probation revoked, and original sentence imposed

13. Functions of Probation Departments
Pre-sentence Investigation (PSI)
Interview offender, case history, tied to rehabilitation
Includes recommendation for sentence
Supervision of Offenders
Counseling, meet with offenders
Help with job, broker community resources
Supervise (house visits, drug testing)

14. Use of Probation
Almost 2/3 of the total corrections population is on probation
Roughly 4.2 million offenders are on probation
Average Caseload = 120
Goal has shifted
Rehabilitation ( s) to supervision/zero tolerance (1980s-1990s) to “balanced” (?)

15. Parole Parole as release from prison Parole as supervision
Discretionary release
Parole board = appointed by governor
Related to rehabilitation and intermediate sentences
Parole as supervision
Similar to probation supervision
Early release a privilege, therefore must follow conditions of release
Many states abolished parole release in 1980s, but now retain supervision
“Post-custody supervision” or “Community Control”

16. How “effective” are probation and parole supervision?
Cost savings
Probation and parole are much less expensive than prison
Recidivism
Large differences in “recidivism” across jurisdictions
As high as 65% (California felons), as low as 25% (Huntsville, TX)
Depends upon “risk” of clients

17. Intermediate Sanctions
Probation Prison Death
ISP EM Boot Camp

18. WHY do these critters exist?
Prison crowding in 1980s
Probation viewed as failure
Need for “continuum” of sanctions

19. What is the goal of these critters?
Divert offenders from prison (save money)
Reduce recidivism (through deterrence)
Provide an option to judges that fits between prison and probation

20. Intensive Probation or Parole Supervision (IPS)
Idea is to “soup up” traditional supervision
Reduce Caseloads (15 to 40 offenders)
Daily contact with offender
Routine drug testing
Curfews, home and employment visits

21. Do ISP’s work? Do ISP’s divert from prison?
NO, judges are reluctant to send “prison-bound” offenders to ISP (Net Widening)
Do ISP’s reduce recidivism?
NO, when compared to similar group of offenders, they actually do worse (fishbowl effect)
Movement over past decade to use ISP as a way
to enforce treatment

22. Shock Incarceration (boot camps)
Short, intense incarceration to “shock” the offender into his/her senses
military drill and discipline, physical exercise, hard physical labor
typically reserved for young, non-violent, first-time offenders
short time-span, typically 6 months

23. Do boot camps work? Reduce Recidivism? Divert Offenders?
NO, boot camp graduates have similar recidivism rates as offenders who receive different sanctions
Divert Offenders?
Depends upon where in the system they are diverted
Very small numbers compared to prisons, so not a lot of “diversion”

24. Home Confinement and Electronic Monitoring
Home confinement is an old practice
Electronic Monitoring is used to enforce home confinement
Technology emerged in the 1980s
Most are bracelets that work like invisible dog fences
Newer GPS devices
Key issue = what is done when violate confinement

25. Residential Community Corrections
Traditional “Half-way house”
Used to reintegrate prison inmates into society
Now
Traditional functions
Sanction for probation violators
Day reporting centers
Split sentences (probation + RCC time)

26. How do RCC’s Work?
Typically, they are house-like structures (not prison-like)
Inmates (clients) are usually free to leave during the day (job, classes)
Return at night

27. IMS and Recidivism
None of these sanctions have demonstrated recidivism reductions.
Why not? All of them are based on the principle of specific deterrence. Example of boot camp--why would this reduce recidivism?
Exception: some incorporate intervention programs grounded in good theory

28. Institutional Corrections
Go to jail, go directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200

29. JAILS County Level Institutions
Usually run by Sheriff and deputies
House inmates (less than 1 year) and pre-trial detainees
Conditions notoriously poor
Little programming, no medical facilities
Violence, shifting population, suicide rates high

30. Prisons Hold individuals sentence to at least 1 year
Operated by the executive branch
Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP)
98 Facilities
126,000 inmates
Most inmates (60%) are serving time for drug offense
Prisons ranked on a 1 to 6 scale (1 = FCI in Colorado)

31. State Prisons Over 500 prisons, and 1.5 million offenders
Governor typically appoints warden
Organization
Maximum (razor wire, guard towers…)
Medium (similar to max, but less serious offenders)
Minimum (typically campus style)

32. Since the late 1970s, the total number of inmates in custody has increased dramatically

34. Why the dramatic increase?
Change in public opinion, and political emphasis
Three strikes laws, “truth in sentencing”
Longer sentences in “guidelines”
Drug Policy
Increase in felony convictions
Factors that do not clearly influence incarceration
Crime rates, Economy

35. Profile of Prison and Jail Inmates
Racial Profile
35% White, 44% Black, 11%, Hispanic
11% of black males in 20s and 30s
Most (98%) are male
Most are poor, with less than a high school education
Majority (60%) have been in prison before

36. What type of offenders go to prison?

37. Does (did) incapacitation “work?”
Yes and No
Yes: small to moderate reductions in crime levels for certain offenses (burglary, theft, robbery).
Doubling the prison population (200,000 to 400,000) reduced these crimes by 18% over a decade
But, doubling again, will have less of an effect!!
NO: Little if any effect on murder, rape, simple or aggravated assault….
Zero effect on drug crimes (replacement)
“Does it work” as wrong question

38. The Inmate Economy A black market exists in almost all prisons
Sex, drugs, alcohol, food, better living conditions…
What is the currency of the prison economy? Used to be cigarettes…now stamps…
Why not “stamp out” the prison economy?
Guards are pragmatic
Some guards are part of the economy

39. Does Rehabilitation Work?
Martinson (1975) “nothing works”
He later recanted his position, and argued that some things do “work,” but nobody listened
Don Andrews (Canadian Psychologist)
Much “rehabilitation” is “correctional quackery”
What works? Evidence-Based Corrections
Cognitive/Behavioral based programs
Intensive intervention with follow-ups