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Private Prisons Executive Summary

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In the documentary film Private Prisons, provides insight on how two private prisons industries, Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) and Geo Group, generate revenue through mass incarceration. It is no surprise that the United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. The United States represents approximately 5% of the world’s population index and approximately 25% of the world’s prisoners due to expansion of the private prison industry complex (Private Prisons, 2013). The number of people incarcerated in private prions has grown exponentially over the past decades. To put into perspective, the number of individuals increased by 1600% between 1990 and 2005 (Private Prisons, 2003). Over the past few years, crime has been …show more content…

This paper will analysis how Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) and Geo Group have generated revenue and examine their relationship with the American Liberties Exchange Council (ALEC). Corrections Corporations of America The Corrections Corporations of America (CCA) is the first private prison industry that was established in 1983. Currently, this company is the largest operating private prison industry in the United States. This company oversees more than 65 correctional facilities and youth detention centers with approximately 90,000 beds in over19 states (Dayen, 2016). In the film, a commentator emphasized how the operations of the CCA could be potentially be affected by the governments relaxation in enforcing the laws, and leniency in convictions and parole …show more content…

This prison industry is the most discussed as it deals with corrections, juvenile detention centers, and mental health treatment. This prison oversees approximately 96 correctional facilities with approximately 73, 000 bed occupancies (Dayen, 2016). Similar to CCA, Geo Group wants to keep their industry thriving by keeping their occupancy rate high or their beds completely filled. Like the CCA, Geo Group has engaged in lobbying to keep their revenue flourishing, but not to the extent of CCA. As discussed in the video, Geo Group as well as the CCA have signed contracts with companies that ensure high occupancy rates. According to Dayen (2016), the federal contract comprises of approximately 44 percent of both Geo Group and CCA revenues. Basically, this contract ensures that majority of the beds are filled with inmates, if they already are not. This occupancy rate is expected to be amongst 90% to 100% (Private Prisons, 2013). This is really sad that there are actually contracts that must be adhered to regarding the occupancy rates of prisons, otherwise they have to pay for beds that are not filled. Companies rather build and fill private prisons with people rather than providing financial resources to invest in diversion and treatment programs, which is a more rehabilitative approach. The rather see more

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In chapter 13 of Corrections in America, the author describes the history of private-sector involvement in corrections and identifies its advantages. The author also describes how prison inmates were considered slaves of the state. Overall, this chapter compares gatekeepers and rainmakers. A private sector correctional facility is any prison, for-profit prison, detention center, is a facility in which juveniles and adults are physically restricted, housed, or interned by a nongovernmental organization which is constructed by a public-sector government agency.

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When CCA took over a prison in Hamilton County, Tennessee, it refused to provide the family hospitalization insurance that had previously been provided to employees under the management of the county. In addition, CCA replaced the existing retirement plan with a program that gave employees unreliable stock benefits. The minimal level of investment private facilities put into their employees is reflected in high rates of turnover and poor job performance. The Arizona Department of Corrections reported that “[staff at an Arizona private facility] are fairly ‘green’ across all shifts,” and “are not proficient with weapons” (“Banking on Bondage: Private Prisons and Mass

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Hi I agree with your cost assessment involving jailed inmates, but not as most people imagine prison cost. My concern is with the private corporations that profit from jailing US citizens, it is business model aimed at legally embezzling American taxpayer dollars, these corporations deploy few ethics in their day to day business practice. Being only concerned with keeping their facility at, or near capacity. Consequently, unsavory governing officials scramble to meet contractual “lockup quotas.” Taxpayers pay for any empty beds should crime rates fall under quota.

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The facility was to be owned and operated by Correctional Corporation of America. The group formed in response to this and because of the CCA owned prison in Youngstown that has had many questionable escapes and deaths. This purposive group formed in response to an enemy. So far, the group has mainly targeted the general public, the mass media, and other interest groups. They havent successfully targeted policy makers.

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Dating all the way back to 1852, private prisons, also known as for-profit prisons, developed a lasting relationship with the U.S. During this time, San Quentin became the first of its kind. Located in San Francisco, San Quentin was the first for-profit prison in the country. Amid the Reagan presidency, “The War on Drugs” was in full effect during the 1970s. Creating the prison population to skyrocket. This bread a whole new problem in regards to costs and space within these prisons .

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Months after publishing Bauer’s story, Mother Jones reported on the effects that their article had in the private prison community. The more significant of these changes include, an independent DOJ investigation of private prisons, a decision by the DOJ to stop using private prisons, etc. (Andrews). If Mother Jones had not pursued this story, it is fair to say that CCA and Winn Correctional Center would have gone on operating the way they had for years: understaffed and putting profit over humanity. The conditions at Winn were dangerous for the prisoners, as they were abusing and neglecting them.

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More Focus on Profits Prisons are responsible of providing care to and protecting human lives. While the residents in these institutions have committed crime, they still deserve to be treated ethically. But when money is brought into the situation, it turns these services into profit. Then, cost cutting will become an inevitable part of a business, and sacrifices will be made to the prisoners’ well-being in order to save some extra dollars. 2.

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It is a shocking truth that privatized prisons in America are getting paid for having a certain amount of inmates filling their beds. Between 1990 and 2009, the number of private prison inmates increased by more that 1600 percent and 65 percent of all private prison contracts pay private prisons a set amount of cash per prisoner. AZ, OK, LA and VA all have contracts that require 95% to 100% occupancy in private prisons at all times. When the prisons dont meet this percentage, they have to pay. Or in some corrupt and terrible situations the prisons pay members of authority to arrest and put people in their prisons so they dont have to pay and can get more money because their beds are full.

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The Immigration and Naturalization Service, now ICE, actually gave GEO its first private prison contract and gave CCA its first contract which led those two groups to be the most successful and largest private prison corporations/companies in the world (Mason, “Dollars and Detainees”). At the time GEO and CCA got their first contracts, USMS was contracting private companies to hold detainees in detention services which are usually used to hold illegal immigrants. The rate at which USMS and ICE held detainees in privately run facilities was actually higher than the rate at which state and federal prisoners were being held by private prisons in the last ten years (Mason, “Dollars and Detainees”). In 2010, the number of detainees held by ICE and USMS was about the same as the number federal level prisoners held by private prison facilities (Mason, “Dollars and Detainees”). Like private prisons are run by private corporations, the same ones that run private prisons.

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Private prisons run rampant with violence, they have much higher rates of inmate death due fights, beatings, lack of medical care, and general support. The case study Paying to be Locked Up by Reiter, Keramet, concluded that “Beatings and other forms of assault, the separation of children from their families, sexual violence against women, and denial of medical care have persisted for years in both CCA-run private prisons and immigration detention centers.” [Reiter], abuse in institutions where violence is commonplace is only to be expected, however not addressing life-threatening injuries, sexual assault and almost the complete denial to medical care is just some of the ways the for-profit private prisons save

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Kimberly, it is easy to see what side of the fence you are on. Nonetheless you raised some very real concerns and your discussion caused me to mull over the government role when it comes to private prisons. I’m sure the government has a hand in the way that private prisons are being maintained but how much. I would be highly surprised if private prisons were given free reign because the government in some sort of way regulates all businesses and private prisons are no exceptions. According to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) the government does have a hand in how private prisons are operated and nearly all facilities received some oversight from the contracting agency (McDonald & Patten, 2004).

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A lot of research has been put into the effects of imprisonment and the variables that influence how an offender adapts to confinement, what some of the consequences of confinement are. Some of the variables that contribute to how an offender will adapt and socialize in prison, would be how they were raised and socialized before prison, the environment that the prison creates for the offenders; and the influences that offenders face in prison and the Cliques that they associate with and the support they have from within the community. Prison conditions need to be modified as well as the practices of most prisons in the United States, integrating more programs that will prepare an offender for a successful reintegration into society, as well as to insure a successful long-term adjustment to parole.

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Kevin Wright in chapter nine discusses about private prisons and how they are no worse or better than public prisons. Private prisons were created to be more cost-efficiency, quality of care, and recidivism reduction compared to public prisons. Some studies show that private prisons are no more cost efficient than public prisons and do not provide better care either. Most of the private prisons promise have gone unfulfilled and been having issues related to ethical concerns and corruption cases because of the private money invested for profit. Some scholars are in fear that private prisons are going to get too big and are going to turn into a big business that will come with corruption and everything private prisons offer will not be the main

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They would not only cover basic contracting services but also completely manage and operate entire prisons. In the last three decades, states struggling financially to operate prisons turned to private companies for help under the auspice that private companies can operate prisons more efficiently and “eliminate wasteful bureaucracy that often characterizes government” (Brickner, et al, 2011). The assertion is that outsourcing the responsibility of running a prison to a private contractor, and states only paying based on occupancy, meant states could significantly reduce their costs. In 1984

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Labour in federal prisons was contracted out by UNICOR, previously known as Federal Prison Industries, a for-profit corporation run by the Bureau of Prisons. Majority of UNICOR’s products and services were on contract

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