Aging Inmates: An Ethical and Financial Crisis
Incarceration of criminals is a concept that receives a lot of attention from lawmakers and citizens alike. However, majority of this attention is based on the unconscious perception that those in jail pose an immediate danger to our society and their imprisonment is keeping the community safe. Little attention is given to the aging prisoner, the one who is chronically ill and remains in prison despite that he/she may no longer possess the physical and/or emotional capacity to pose a threat. What follows below is an in depth look at the ongoing issue of poor health care provided to the aging incarcerated, as well as its physical, financial and ethical constraints.
Historical Background
In order …show more content…
It is founded on the principle of incapacitation; meaning that while a person is incarcerated he cannot inflict crime on anyone outside the prison wall. Morris & Rothman (1995) bring up the theory of crime and the lifecycle. It is believed that “most serious crimes fluctuate with the life cycle: a tendency towards violence flourishes in males aged fifteen or sixteen, stays high in their twenties, wanes in their thirties and virtually disappears about thirty-five” (p. x). Given this they contend that there is not a clear understanding if prison actually offers reform or if it just simply waits for the person to mature enough to leave behind criminal behavior. This theory is challenged by Clinard, Quinney & Wildeman (2014) who report that it is meaningless to look at age when discussing criminal behavior given that people of all ages commit crimes. The do agree however that there is a decline in violent criminal behavior when adults reach middle …show more content…
While studies discuss that majority of older prisoners have difficulty upon release; it is important to not overlook the large amount who will die in prison. According to Loeb et. al. (2014) 1 in 10 state prisoners is serving a life sentence. If incarcerated in Pennsylvania, Iowa, Illinois. Maine, South Dakota, or Louisiana, where a life sentence means there is no possibility for parole, these individuals will undoubtedly die in prison. However, a life sentence is not the only precursor to dying behind the walls. Within the United States state correctional facilities 89% of prisoner deaths are due to chronic medical conditions (Loeb et. al., 2014). This high number can be attributed to individuals entering the system in poor health and/or accelerated aging related to the prison environment as well as lack of health accommodations in the
Incarceration of criminals is a concept that receives a lot of attention from lawmakers and citizens alike. However, majority of this attention is based on the unconscious perception that those in jail pose an immediate danger to our society and their imprisonment is keeping the community safe. Little attention is given to the aging prisoner, the one who is chronically ill and remains in prison despite that he/she may no longer possess the physical and/or emotional capacity to pose a threat. What follows below is an in depth look at the ongoing issue of poor health care provided to the aging incarcerated, as well as its physical, financial and ethical constraints.
Historical Background
In order …show more content…
It is founded on the principle of incapacitation; meaning that while a person is incarcerated he cannot inflict crime on anyone outside the prison wall. Morris & Rothman (1995) bring up the theory of crime and the lifecycle. It is believed that “most serious crimes fluctuate with the life cycle: a tendency towards violence flourishes in males aged fifteen or sixteen, stays high in their twenties, wanes in their thirties and virtually disappears about thirty-five” (p. x). Given this they contend that there is not a clear understanding if prison actually offers reform or if it just simply waits for the person to mature enough to leave behind criminal behavior. This theory is challenged by Clinard, Quinney & Wildeman (2014) who report that it is meaningless to look at age when discussing criminal behavior given that people of all ages commit crimes. The do agree however that there is a decline in violent criminal behavior when adults reach middle …show more content…
While studies discuss that majority of older prisoners have difficulty upon release; it is important to not overlook the large amount who will die in prison. According to Loeb et. al. (2014) 1 in 10 state prisoners is serving a life sentence. If incarcerated in Pennsylvania, Iowa, Illinois. Maine, South Dakota, or Louisiana, where a life sentence means there is no possibility for parole, these individuals will undoubtedly die in prison. However, a life sentence is not the only precursor to dying behind the walls. Within the United States state correctional facilities 89% of prisoner deaths are due to chronic medical conditions (Loeb et. al., 2014). This high number can be attributed to individuals entering the system in poor health and/or accelerated aging related to the prison environment as well as lack of health accommodations in the