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Overcrowding Prisons

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This research paper will provide information on the overcrowding issues that America’s prison system is facing; and the first sign that this was becoming a disaster waiting to happen; was back in the 70’s. The United States has the highest incarceration rate than any other nation in the world. There will be examples giving of the many different causes of this growing population; factors that greatly increases one’s odds of going to prison; and how it could be minimized; the War on Drugs, another major factor in the increase of overcrowding prisons. The elderly are a contributor to the overcrowding prisons; and the consideration of their early release; women; nonviolent offenders; and minorities; also a major factor in overcrowding prisons.
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This article, written by Alfred Blumstein, focuses on the issue of prison population. Blumstein indicates that the dramatic rise is not a result of one sole factor, but rather a result of several. These several factors include imprisonment policies becoming increasingly politicized, the changing of the age composition of the country’s population most likely due to the baby boom after World War II, and the extreme overrepresentation of blacks in prisons. Blumstein states that this overrepresentation cannot be completely due to racial discrimination by authorities, but most likely due to blacks’ “differential involvement in those kinds of crime for which prison sentences are often imposed” (Blumstein, 1988, p. 231). Finally, Blumstein proposes three approaches to alleviate the issue of prison overcrowding.

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What are the traditional and practical approaches for the agency’s dealing with the problem? Traditionally, the courts have been rather lenient and have allowed many of the members of the VBBC gang to plead guilty to lesser charges, rather than go to trial and risk wasting time and resources not getting a conviction. There have however, been a few instances where specialized agencies such as the ATF and DEA have collected sufficient intelligence to raid and seize evidence which has resulted, on two separate occasions, members of the VBBC being arrested and later convicted on felony charges. Results of the traditional agency approach? Allowing members of the VBBC gang to plead guilty to lesser charges, has resulted in a number of negative

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In 2012, statistics showed that prisons were overcrowded by 41 percent, the highest since 2004. Overcrowded prisons can become highly ineffective as space becomes limited and the amount of inmates to monitor increases. This means more jobs that are necessary for guards which then equals more tax money invested into the penal system. CNN provides information acquired by the United States census which shows how much money is spent on students compared to prisoners per year separated by states. The lowest amount provided per prisoner is in Kentucky where each prisoner costs around $12,000 whereas each student costs a little under $10,000.

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221 Words | 1 Pages

According to an article by Henry J. Steadman in regards to overcrowding of prisons in the state of California, he advised that several judges created a panel to solve the issues of overcrowding. The article advises that the judges came up with four options as a solution to overcrowding that include the following: early release, diversion of technical parole violators to community based sanctions or local jails, similar alternate sanctions for low-risk offenders, and expansion of rehabilitation programming in prisons and communities (Steadman, 2011). The early release of inmates with more minor offenses would be productive to preventing overcrowding because it would free up beds in the prison. Diversion of technical parole violators to community

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687 Words | 3 Pages

The Corrections “explosion” in the United States refers to the increase in incarcerated individuals since the 1970s. This surge resulted in overcrowded jails and prisons. This essay will examine the events leading up to the corrections explosion. The effectiveness of suspended sentences and probation in reducing the burden on overcrowded jails and prisons will be discussed. The institutional and societal consequences of high rates of incarceration will be addressed.

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Overcrowding in prisons should not be considered cruel and unusual because they are not being harmfully affected enough for it to make a difference in their lives. This is definitely not as bad as the electric chair or other forms of cruel and unusual punishment. The Dictionary definition of cruel and unusual punishment is “torture, deliberately degrading punishment, or punishment that is too severe for the crime committed.” Let’s look between the lines of this definition.

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Topic: Prison overcrowding General Purpose: To inform Specific Purpose: At the end of my speech, the audience will be able to identify and describe the key reasons and issues of prison overcrowding. Introduction Attention Getter Imagine being locked up in a confined space with little to no air conditioning, concrete walls, concrete floors, poor sanitation, rowdy peers, no soft comforts of a home, and a lack of the everyday basic needs.

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Thesis: It is very important for the sake of Americans tax dollars that we change the way that prisons are run and increase the productivity of inmates so when they are released from jail they are ready to be a productive member in society and have the confidence to achieve new goals. Introduction: Day after day, millions of inmates sit in jail doing nothing productive with their lives. We are paying to house inmates that may not even have a good reason to be there. For example, drug offenders are being kept with murderers and other violent offenders.

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Overcrowding in prisons should not be considered cruel and unusual because they are not being harmfully affected enough for it to violate the legal standard of cruel and unusual punishment. It should not be considered cruel and unusual, because being in prison is a punishment and “Punishment is justice for the unjust. ”-Saint Augustine The general Supreme Court definition of cruel and unusual punishment is “Such punishment as would amount to torture or barbarity, any cruel and degrading punishment not known to the Common Law, or any fine, penalty, confinement, or treatment that is so disproportionate to the offense as to shock the moral sense of the community.”

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(Western, Bruce, 2008). Reducing the number of non-violent offenders in our prisons and jails by half would lower this bill by $16.9 billion per year, with the largest share of these savings accruing to financially squeezed state and local governments. Every indication is that these savings could be achieved without any appreciable deterioration in public safety. This report first documents the high and rising rates of incarceration in the United States, comparing the U.S. prison and jail population to the rest of the world and to our own historical experience.

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Prison Overcrowding and the Death Penalty There are 2.3 million people incarcerated in prison or jail in the United States of America. The United States of America has the highest incarceration of any country in the world. One out of five people in prison is in there for drug crimes (Rabuy, 2017). Prison overcrowding is inhumane and unnecessary to protect society from offenders.

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According to a Washington Post article written by Jerome G. Miller, The US has the highest incarceration rate of any democratic country. US Prisons hold more than 2.4 million inmates, or 1% of the US population. Based on the percentage of the population in Prison, the United States incarcerates five times more people than Britain, nine times more than Germany, and 12 times more than Japan (Miller). These high incarceration rates are coupled with high recidivism rates, which lead to prisons being overcrowded. The majority of criminals in prison will be released.

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Another way to fix overcrowding prisons is to educate parolees that are being released back into society. Having better reeducation systems for parolees will teach them how to become a better citizen. After being educated as a good citizen they will become more productive to the community and society. In 2005 the Bureau of Justice Statistics gathered data with results being 400,000 individuals on parole in 30 states ended up recidivating (BJS). If we focus on giving these parolees a better chance to survive outside of jail with reeducation programs and more advanced monitoring while on parole the recidivism rates would go down decreasing the amount of prison overcrowding.

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Overcrowding in prisons is something that the U.S. struggles with. The increasing number of people being incarcerated is making the over-crowding problem more prevalent. Over-crowding in prisons has been a growing concern over the years. It creates many dismal effects on the conditions of the officers, the building its self, and the inmates. The U.S. currently incarcerates approximately 1 in 100 adults.

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Over 2 million people are currently being held in United States prisons, and while the U.S. may only hold 5% of the world’s population, it houses 25% of its prisoners. In the past few years, America’s prison system has fallen under public scrutiny for it’s rising incarceration rate and poor statistics. Many Americans have recently taken notice of the country’s disproportionate prisoner ratio, realized it’s the worst on the planet, and called for the immediate reformation of the failing system. The war on drugs and racial profiling are some of the largest concerns, and many people, some ordinary citizens and others important government figures, are attempting to bring change to one of the country 's lowest aspects.

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