The argument for:◦Privatization as an ideology◦Control government spending◦Better service for less money◦Can implement changes quicker than the state

Private Prisons

The argument against:◦Research shows they:

◦Monitoring does not seem to work

Private Prisons

The philosophical argument:◦For-profit punishment (a.k.a. making a profit off crime)

◦Do private prisons show the same symbolism as state prisons?

◦Connection between corporations and policy creation

Private Prisons

◦Emphasizes security, discipline, and order

◦Security and housekeeping

◦Maintaining offenders’ ties to family and community

Models of Incarceration

Fulfill goals related to keeping inmates, using them for labor, and serving them through treatment

Individual staff members not equipped to perform all functions

Custodial employees are most numerous

All employees responsible to warden

Prison Organization

“Big houses” common during first half of 20th century◦Walled prison with large, tiered cell blocks, a yard, shops, and industrial workshops

◦Isolated from society◦Generally orderly (for a prison)◦Generally provided food, housing, and hygiene

◦Birth of the inmate/prisoner code

The rise of the prison

The “old” version◦ ◦

◦ The “right” guy

The inmate code

The “new” version (Carceral)◦“You are a prisoner, they are the guards; never forget this” (103)

◦Con Rule #1 – Don’t tell◦Con Rule #2 – Do your own time◦Con Rule #3 – Always spin staff◦Con Rule #4 – Show no feeling

The inmate code

The “new” version (Carceral)◦“You are a prisoner, they are the guards; never forget this” (103)

◦Con Rule #5 – Keep up the image◦Con Rule #6 – Get or be got◦Con Rule #7 – Pay your debts◦Con Rule #8 – Steal from the state, not from other prisoners

The inmate code

The “real” version (Carceral)◦#1 – Snitching must have a purpose◦#2 – Manipulate◦#3 – If you can get away with it, don’t pay your debt

◦#4 – Gossip◦#5 – Steal whatever you can

The inmate code

How the new and the old blend How the code influences the level of violence

Different code for different statuses within the prisoner culture.

The inmate code

During 1960s and 1970s, rehabilitation model rose to prominence◦ ◦ ◦

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The rise of the prison

What quality of life should be maintained in the prison?◦

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The fundamental question

Carceral says the following 7 things are required:

The fundamental question

What quality of life should be maintained in the prison?◦Order◦Amenities◦ ◦

The fundamental question

Cooper v. Pate (1964)◦Imposed civil liability on persons who

deprive prisoners of their rights◦Inmates could challenge conditions of

confinement Reasonableness of prison conditions and regulations◦Compelling state interest◦Least restrictive alternative◦Clear and present danger

Prisoners’ Rights

Freedom of speech, press, assembly, petition, and religion

Procunier v. Martinez (1974) – permits censorship of mail to maintain security

Turner v. Safley (1987) – upheld ban on correspondence between inmates in different institutions

Have upheld prisoners’ rights to meals consistent with religious dietary laws, to correspond with religious leaders, to possess religious literature, and to assemble for services

First Amendment

Prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures

Typically not extended to prisoners Hudson v. Palmer (1984) – upheld right of prison officials to search cells and confiscate materials

Fourth Amendment

Prohibits cruel and unusual punishment Chapman v. Rhodes (1977) – crowding

alone does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment

Tests to determine whether conditions are unconstitutional◦ Whether punishment shocks the conscience of

civilized society◦ Whether punishment is unnecessarily cruel◦ Whether punishment goes beyond legitimate

penal aims

Eighth Amendment

No state may deprive citizen of life, liberty, or property without due process of law

Due process◦ Wolff v. McDonnell (1974) – basic procedural

rights must be present when decisions are made about disciplining of inmates

Equal protection◦ Lee v. Washington (1968) – racial discrimination

may not be official policy within prison walls◦ Pargo v. Elliott (1995) – identical treatment not

required for men and women

Fourteenth Amendment

However, violence in the prisons was on the rise…

Relaxed rules lead to:◦ ◦ ◦

Focus of corrections has shifted to crime control◦

The rise of the prison

Total institution, defined◦

Defects of total power◦

Limitation on rewards and punishments officials can use◦

◦

Prison as a “total institution”

Exchange relationships between officers and inmates◦

Strength of inmate leadership◦

It’s tough running a prison…

Sociodemographic and Offense Characteristics of State Prison Inmates

Men in their late 20s and early 30s Have less than a high school education

Disproportionately members of minority groups

Recidivists and those convicted of violent crimes

The Rise of “state-raised convicts”

Inmate Characteristics

Inmate code ◦

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Prisonization ◦

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The Nature of Convict Society

Importation model◦

◦ Deprivation model

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The Nature of Convict Society