...Criminal Justice Trends Paper Dwight Blackshire September 9, 2013 CJA/484 Mr. James Herring Criminal Justice Trends Paper New philosophies to aid in the future progress of corrections are being developed as a result of past and current trends. The issues and concerns surrounding the corrections component of the criminal justice system are overcrowded prisons and their decreasing budget. If these issues and concerns are not address, they will continue to affect the effectiveness and future operations of corrections. Restorative and community justice programs are options being considered for the future of corrections as administrators, legislators, and activists debate philosophies to address these issues and concerns resulting from past and current trends. In the past, the national political climate favored the “get tough” approach against crime. It was believed that treatment programs could not reduce recidivism. Furthermore, it was also believed to keep the national crime rate low and protect the public, offenders of crime must be punished to deter crime. As a result, reforms such as truth-in-sentencing and three-strike legislation were implemented into the law. These...
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...OVERCROWDED PRISION The dramatic increase in incarceration rates cannot be explained by our crime rates. Homicide rates in the United States are much higher than those of comparable countries, but homicide convictions account for an insignificant number of sentenced prisoners. In general, other crime rates in the United States are high, but they remain in ranges that overlap with comparable rates in other countries--for example, one can point to industrialized countries with higher auto theft rates than the United States. And while there is much contested terrain about changes in U.S. crime rates since 1970, it is generally conceded that the crime rates have not changed dramatically and that movements up and down in the incarceration rate have not correlated with crime rate changes. (http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HSP/is_1_3/ai_66678533/) Criminal activities among Americans are on a constant rise compared to other parts of the world, leading to overcrowding in prisons. The contributing factor to this notion could be strict punishments for minor crimes, some pertaining to racial profiling. According to Hernandez (March-April 2009), African Americans represent nearly half of the prison population. The “war on drugs” has made a significant impact on the prison population, particularly within the African American communities. The war on drugs is aimed at reducing the supply and demand for drugs within the United States. The program focuses on stricter punishments...
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...Solutions This comprehensive analysis describes the different possible alternative solutions for women, and juvenile offenders. The Bureau of Justice Grant programs developed incentives for other programs to decrease the overcrowded conditions for most state and federal prisons. These grant programs provided the information and incentives for state governments to expand, build, and adapt closed military bases as extension of the federal penal prison system. This initiative encouraged local and state courts to implement truth-in-sentencing and alternative sentencing concepts to lessen the burden of overcrowded prison systems. The grants divided in half for building prisons to increase the bed space for violent offenders, and the other half for alternative solutions to incarceration. The incentive funds used for more alternative solutions; prison islands, or barges, or closed military bases. Sentencing Drug Statistics The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) reported four to one ratio of prisoners showed under the influence of drugs, or alcohol while committing the current crime, or at the time of the violation (Langan, P, & Levin, D, 2002). The BJS showed detailed statistics report of 400; 000 people arrested for drugs, or drug-related offenses; 70% sent to state prisons, 40% drug-related offenses, 32% alcohol-related offenses, and 20% other violent crimes. The survey researched by the Department of Justice (DOJ) along with the (BJS) report shows out of 100 inmates surveyed 70%, agreed...
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...Overcrowding in Prisons. Overcrowding in prisons is one of the biggest challenges facing the American criminal justice system today. The total population of prisons and jails in the United States neared the 2.1 million mark in June 2003, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The Bureau of Justice Statistics reported incarceration rates of state and federal prisoners continued to rise. At midyear 2003, the number of sentenced inmates was 480 per 100,000 U.S. residents, up from 476 per 100,000 on December 31, 2002. There were 238 jail inmates for every 100,000 on June 30, 2003. Overall, one out of every 140 U.S residents was incarcerated in prison or in jail. During the late 1980’s and early 1990’s state and local governments got tougher on crime by passing legislation calling for mandatory sentences for repeat offenders, such as California’s “three strikes you’re out” law and New York and other cities adopted the “Broken Windows” strategy that called for the arrest and prosecution of all crimes large and small. Because of these polices the number of violent crimes has dropped. Unfortunately, one unintended consequence of America’s new tough stance on crime is that our prison system has become dangerously overcrowded, forcing prison officials to release violent criminals after serving...
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...Solutions This comprehensive analysis describes the different possible alternative solutions for women, and juvenile offenders. The Bureau of Justice Grant programs developed incentives for other programs to decrease the overcrowded conditions for most state and federal prisons. These grant programs provided the information and incentives for state governments to expand, build, and adapt closed military bases as extension of the federal penal prison system. This initiative encouraged local and state courts to implement truth-in-sentencing and alternative sentencing concepts to lessen the burden of overcrowded prison systems. The grants divided in half for building prisons to increase the bed space for violent offenders, and the other half for alternative solutions to incarceration. The incentive funds used for more alternative solutions; prison islands, or barges, or closed military bases. Sentencing Drug Statistics The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) reported four to one ratio of prisoners showed under the influence of drugs, or alcohol while committing the current crime, or at the time of the violation (Langan, P, & Levin, D, 2002). The BJS showed detailed statistics report of 400; 000 people arrested for drugs, or drug-related offenses; 70% sent to state prisons, 40% drug-related offenses, 32% alcohol-related offenses, and 20% other violent crimes. The survey researched by the Department of Justice (DOJ) along with the (BJS) report shows out of 100 inmates surveyed 70%, agreed...
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...explores prison overcrowding and the negative effects it has on inmates. Prison overcrowding causes the inmates to become more aggressive, results in lack of resources, and lastly, it creates an unsanitary environment for staff and inmates. The inmates are idle for extensive periods of time and being confined to tight living quarters, all this restrained energy may lead to an increase in violence on the staff and other inmates. Prison Overcrowding: The Effect It Has On Prison Inmates According to the 2009 Bureau of Justice Statistics, they were 7,225,800 offenders under correctional supervision at the end of 2009. Correctional supervision refers to adults supervised in the community on probation or parole and those incarcerated in state or federal prisons and local jails (Glaze, 2010). Prison overcrowding has become a major concern in recent years and is considered one of the biggest problems faced by the American prison system. It causes harmful effects and consequences for the inmates and prison staff and it is an unpleasant and uncomfortable situation for everyone and is considered a current crisis in America. Overcrowding does not only affect the inmates and the prison staff, but it also affects our economy, the American people, and our lives. Prison overcrowding has several major effects on the daily environment of inmates such as an increase, in violence, lack of resources, and health and sanitary issues. Increase in Violence The first major effect of prison overcrowding...
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...Prison Overcrowding In today’s society, crime happens nearly every 5 seconds. Depending on the type of crime determines where an individual is placed either in jail or prison. This leads to an ongoing problem today, prison overcrowding. Prison overcrowding is when the demand for space in prisons in a jurisdiction exceeds the capacity for prisoners in the place. Prison Overcrowding has many dangers that can lead to major destruction to society and those captivated behind bars The dangers of overcrowded prison, is that it can become very toxic for both prisoners and guards. Overcrowded conditions contribute to stronger inmate misconduct, more competition for prison services such as educational or vocational training programs and a lack...
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...| Prisons | | | | | | Our country has come a long way in the way that it disciplines those who break the laws. Once convicted, criminals can be sentenced to many different punishments depending on the crime they committed. Punishments can range from lenient, such as probation or community service, or more severe, such as jail or prison. Punishments increase in severity depending on the severity of the crime committed. A person who has committed a non-violent crime will have a better chance at seeing a probation sentence than someone who has committed a violent crime. Prior criminal record also plays a role in the sentence an offender receives. Even if the crime committed was not violent, if the offender continues to commit the same crime, their sentence will increase. The main idea behind prisons is to provide a facility that houses individuals being punished for committing a crime. There are several different types of prisons that people may be sent to depending on the kind of crime they committed. The most well-known are medium to high security facilities that are also referred to as general population prisons. These are the penitentiaries that most people would think of, where inmates who were found guilty of crimes ranging from theft to assault and even murder are housed. Minimum security prisons typically house convicted criminals who have not committed a crime of violence against another person. These misdeeds are better known as white collar crimes...
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...Alternatives to Incarceration Abstract Our country continues to search alternatives to the overcrowded prisons bulging at the seams. Citizens are crying for a relief on taxation in funding these prisons. The criminal justice system has searched for years for ideas to limit incarceration. Some alternative programs have withstood the test of time, some continue to build a name for themselves, and others have just come onto the scene. This paper will focus on three alternative programs to placing adults in prisons. These programs include military services, intensive supervision programs (ISP’s), and Restorative Justice programs. Each provides some type of benefit to criminals, corrections department, and society. Alternatives to Incarceration Our country seems to have gone in various directions trying to find a successful justice system to work in punishing crimes. We went from a rehabilitation system, to no tolerance policies in the 1980’s. Overcrowded prisons forced officials to let prisoners out early in the 90’s. Taxpayers wanted something done with crime in their communities, but didn’t know which way to turn. A faulty criminal justice system has been blamed in such that it had, “Inadequate or ineffective rehabilitation programs, lack of drug treatment, insufficient funding for resettlement after prison, and other . . . policies. . . .”, (Sherman & Strang, 2007, p. 12). Crimes continue to be a major concern within American society, yet our only response...
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...I do believe that prison overcrowding is a violation of the Eighth Amendment because it is cruel and unusual punishment The Eighth Amendment of the states “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted” . Crime and unusual punishment is defined as a phrase describing punishment that is considered unacceptable due to the suffering, pain, or humiliation it inflicts on the person subjected to it. There are generally test that can serve as a guide to what cruel and unusual punishment is according to various legal textbooks in accordance with the law. They are 1) the frequency at which the punishment occurs in society, 2) overall acceptance in society, 3) severity (the punishment fits the crime), and 4) if the punishment arbitrary (random). I say that overcrowding is a violation of the Eighth Amendment because prisoners that are subjected to that experience some very horrible things. For example, in some prisons that are overcrowded several prisoners are forced to share the same cell. That could cause some violent prisoners to be bunked with less violent ones and that could lead to a lot of different things (i.e... torture, rape, etc.). It can also lead to inmates to get sick. Another problem with prison overcrowding is that when the cells get overcrowded it may require some prisoners to sleep on the floor and that could lead them to catch any kind of sickness. For example there was a prisoner who served 28 months...
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...Problem Analysis Patricia Gacho Program Development and Evaluation/CJA595 October 25, 2010 Sean Reeves Problem Analysis Hard sentencing laws, drug offences are causing the prison population to rise at alarmingly high rates. This is one of the reasons why the United States (US) prisons are the highest populated in the world (Vicini, 2006). According to statistics, the US shows that in 2006 seven million people were in prison or on probation or parole. Of this amount, over two million were physically in jail or prison (Vicini, 2006). According to Ethan Nadelmann the US has five percent of the world’s population, and also has 25 percent of the world’s incarcerated population (Vicini, 2006). The United States also imprisons more people on drug charges than all of Western Europe combined (Vicini, 2006). Like every other county jail, DuPage County jail is overcrowded due to the backlog of the court dockets. Alleged offenders must wait for their day in court and then be sentenced and transported to various prisons. Many of these offenders are non violent offenders, or are first time drug offenders (Vicini, 2006). In Cook County jail many inmates are tried and sentenced, but depending on the crime the sentencing could be one year or less in the county jail, prison time, probation, periodic imprisonment, or conditional discharge. There is however, another choice for first time drug offenders and non-violent offenders and that is Boot Camp. Boot Camp Boot Camp is...
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...History of Prisons CJA/234 February 3, 2014 Robert Bennett This week’s readings reflected the history of prisons and the eras in which they have evolved. Within this document the evolution of today’s prison systems will be discussed, along with the complications of prison overcrowding. Finally the comparison of today’s prison to the prisons of the past. The penitentiary era changed using the Quaker’s system converting the Walnut Street jail into use instead of using the older method of stocks, flogging, and public humiliation. This was a more humane way to deal with the individuals who chose to break the laws set before them. The inmates were able to work on crafts to keep themselves occupied and their sanity level was maintainable. The mass prison era changed the ways of the jail to a prison in which there were more solitude and less rehabilitation. Inmates were not allowed to speak to make contact with each other, but vocational job training was introduced. Not until the reformatory era was the idea of education introduced into prisons to allow children and adults to become educated with incarcerated. Also the ability for early release for good behavior was introduced. The industrial era introduced prison work labor. Inmates within the prison system would create goods for the public for a minimal wage. The punitive era did away with the industrial aspect of prisons. The ability for education became a luxury, and maximum security prisons were built. As the restrictions...
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...Many offenders within the prison system, when released, must follow up with a parole officer. There can be many different conditions of parole placed upon the offender. The Parole Commission assigns these conditions of parole to assure that the parolee will live a life without crime or assist him or her to do so. The parolee may have to gain suitable employment, attend rehab, report to their parole officer at certain times or even wear a device that allows the offender to be monitored electronically. The parole system interacts or affects the Criminal Justice System in many ways. Are there ways to improve the effectiveness of this system? What does the future hold for this organization and its impact on the Criminal Justice System? History and Creation In June of 1910 there were three federal penitentiaries. Due to the enactment of legislation, federal prisoners began receiving parole on June 25th of 1910. The Parole Board, at this time, consisted of the warden and the physician of the prison and the Superintendent of Prisons of the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. Each prison had its own parole board. In May of 1930, however, a single parole board was established. This board consisted of three members that served full-time and were appointed by the Attorney General. In 1945, the board started reporting directly to the Attorney General. Then in 1948, two other members were appointed to the parole board due to the increase in the prison population. The parole board...
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...CJR 240 March 1, 2011 History of the Prison System Prison is an institution for the confinement of persons convicted of criminal offenses. Throughout history, most societies have built places in which to hold persons accused of criminal acts pending some form of trial. The idea of confining persons after a trial as punishment for their crimes is relatively new. During the 15th century in Europe, the penalties for crimes were some form of corporal punishment like whippings for less serious crimes and execution or enslavement for more serious offenses. In early 16th century England, vagrants and petty offenders were committed to correctional institutions known as workhouses. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the government transported convicted felons to the English colonies. The punishment was thought of as the hard labor to which the prisoners were consigned. It wasn't until the 17th century that the idea that persons convicted of crimes could be punished by confinement and released after a period of time. During the 17th century, England and other European countries like Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands began imprisoning debtors, delinquent juveniles, minor misdemeanant, and felons. Early jails were mostly dark, overcrowded, and filthy. Prisoners were herded together indiscriminately, with no separation of men and women, the young and old, the...
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...Issues Janet Peralta, Latisha Smith, Michael Winters, Sarah Berry, Trent Neffendorf CJA/394 November 24, 2014 Becky Killian-Willis Correctional Issues Introduction The issues of mandatory sentencing have been affecting the prison forecasts, tax revenue, over-crowding in prisons, as well as flooding the court systems and backlogging cases. Mandatory prison sentences take the discretion away from prosecutors, as well as judges. An Inmate who is sentenced under a mandatory sentence does not qualify for early release, good time while in prison, and in most cases, the offender is not required to complete any supervision after release, due to the fact that he or she has fulfilled the obligations of his or her sentence. Several states, including the State of Oregon, have introduced legislation to reform their mandatory minimum sentences. With budgetary constraints in the volatile economy, the government cannot afford to continue to incarcerate individuals without the ability to modify sentences, supervision, etc. How courts are affected by mandatory minimum sentences Congress, as well as some of the state legislations introduced mandatory sentences in the 1970s and 1980s. These mandatory sentences forced the court system to hand down fixed prison sentences to those convicted of certain criminal acts. The lawmakers felt by enacting these sentences then it would help in the battle against the drug trade and hopefully prevent individuals from entering. However, while it did...
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