Prison Overcrowding

The book About Prison by Michael G. Santos recounts his personal experience in the criminal justice system of the United States of America. First he explains the background of his situation. He was a normal kid growing up in a good family but he explains how he felt like he could not make a life for himself after high school by working for his father as a contractor (Santos, 2004, p.2). Seeking something more in life, Santos saw an opportunity to start selling cocaine with his high school friend…

conditions and behaviors due to confinement within correctional facilities allow for the easy transmission of communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, HIV, and hepatitis. Various surrounding factors foster the spread illness rapidly such as overcrowding, poor unhygienic conditions, absence of temperature control, inadequate ventilation, and overall poor health status of the population. Infectious diseases are not the only health issues facing this population chronic conditions, dental health,…

excited to have central heating and plumbing, especially because things could be so much worse. Towards the 1950’s, however, I would dislike the penitentiary because of the dated amenities and the presence of much nicer, more modern prisons. Obviously any stay at prison isn’t going to be “pleasant”, but staying at Eastern State during the early years would have been ideal (at least it was warm), drawn back by the Pennsylvania Plan of absolute silence. If I was sentenced at this time I would…

regarding this very subject around the state of Pennsylvania’s Motivational Boot Camp Program. The boot camp program had two primary focuses which was to reduce prison overcrowding and recidivism. In order to be eligible to be considered for this boot camp program, an offender must meet the following guidelines: “sentenced to prison not exceeding 2 years, under age 35, and no conviction of certain violent crimes or drug trafficking” (Kempinen &Kurlychek, 2003, p.586). Since this particular…

United States has the world largest prison populations Most of the inmates are not rapist murders or robbers but are drug addicts and sellers. Every year thousands of inmates are sentence to long prison terms for a variety of drug crimes. Most of the inmates are getting mandatory sentences because of laws that been put in place to curtail the use of drugs but they are not working and more and more people are going to prison for long term. The sale of illegal drugs in the US is extremely…

Whilst Norway is a particularly wealthy country, the reflection of wealth is implemented in the design and programs offered in Halden Prison in Norway. The Nordic approach to social philosophy accentuates enforcing and reinforcing moral norms, which prevents individuals from committing a crime. As a result, people in Norwegian countries generally would rather follow the moral norms than commit a criminal offense (Hinkkanen & Lappi-Seppala 2011). In the last 30 years, Norway has become one of the…

young girl whose whole life changed drastically in a blink of an eye. Angela Thompson was 17. Plans for her future. No previous criminal record. Stressed about paying for school, she was convinced to sell drugs. Caught and sentenced to 15 years in prison. In my honors class, we’ve been learning about systematic oppression and juvenile minorities being abused by the law. I personally don’t have a connection to to this but i live in a city where i see young people of color being treated…

$50 in today's money) – meant death by hanging. The British government began transporting criminals to overseas colonies in the 17th century. However transportation to the American colonies was declined, an alternative was needed to avoid further overcrowding…

Alternatives to Imprisonment There have been many people who have come forward and advocated for the fact that not every criminal needs to be thrown in prison. The reasons why people feel this way I believe are pretty clear. The biggest reason being the fact that money has to be sent in order to keep these people alive and when I say money; I mean a lot of money. There are states that are currently spending more money on prisoners rather than on children’s education. In a New York Times…

attempt to explore options available in lieu of traditional incarceration. It outlines the reasons for more liberal use of alternatives and the advantages to the use of them. This includes advantages in cost savings, advantages to society, and reducing prison population Alternatives to Incarceration Traditional incarceration is expensive and does very little to prepare an offender for reentry into their home environment and in the community. Alternatives to incarceration strengthen…