The Prison Experience: Living in and Leaving Prison

Chapter 16

25 before 1875

79 between 1875 - 1924

141 between 1925 - 1949

First built were Auburn and Elmira which are still used

When Were Prisons Built?

Finding a coping style

Loner

Joining a gang or group

Hustling to maintain some power

Being politically savvy

Adjusting to Prison Life

Black Power movement

Black and Latin inmates more organized

Racial polarity and tension is a dominant force

Groups form because of:

Religious or political affiliations

To combat discrimination

Previous street gang membership

The “New” Inmate Culture

Few institutions built before 1960

Four built between 1930 - 1950

Thirty-four built during 1980s

Women in Prison: Female Institutions

Overcrowding

Smaller than male institutions

Many are minimum security

Some similar to college dorms

Many lack treatment programs

Women in Prison: The Nature of Institutions

Female inmates are:

Young

Minority group members

Unmarried

Undereducated

Either unemployed or underemployed

Have had a troubled family lives

Are more likely than males to be convicted of a non-violent crime and be

incarcerated for a low-level involvement in a drug crime

Display psychological problems including serious psychopathology

Likely to have had a substance abuse problem

Female Inmates

Nonviolent to staff

Lack anti-authority inmate social code

Direct anger inward

Self-mutilation (“carving”)

Make-believe families

Women in Prison: The Female Subculture

Individual therapy

Group therapy

Educational training

Vocational training

Institutional Treatment Programs: General Types

Variety of problems:

Mental problems

Physical disability problems

Infectious diseases

Elderly

Special treatment programs and facilities may be needed

Special-Needs Inmates

A study of elderly inmates found:

The proportion of state and federal inmates 55 years of age and older is

steadily increasing. Those over 75 will increase if current sentencing

strategies remain in place.

Most were unmarried white males with children who did not graduate

from high school.

Most were likely to be incarcerated for violent crime, often against a

family member.

They are more likely to report one or more chronic health problems.

Most states and the Federal Bureau of Prisons have implemented

limited provisions to accommodate older inmates with special needs.

Elderly Inmates

First programs were educational

Most common opportunity is for a GED or HS diploma

Some provide college level education

Problems of delivery require innovative approaches to educational

programs

Education and Vocational Programs

Food services

Maintenance

Laundry

Agriculture

Basic Prison Industries

Inmates have trouble finding work after release

Training equipment is second-hand

Real purpose is prison upkeep and maintenance, not prisoner

preparation

Unions and others resent prison labor being dumped into the labor

pool after release

Criticisms of Vocational Programs

May supplement training/education

May live in institution at night, work in community during day

Some live and work in the community

Some community-based facilities also operate as a pre-release

center

While some critics want to end work release, the program is

supported by the ACLU

Work Release

Contract system

Convict lease system

State Use Model

Prison Industries

Organized labor unions oppose forced labor (unfair competition)

Sumners-Ashurst Act (1940): federal offense to transport interstate

commerce goods made in prison for private use

Demise of Prison Industries

Loss of good time

Solitary confinement

Suspension of privileges

Transfer to more secure facility

Prison Rules: Violation Penalties

Lack of funds, facilities and qualified personnel

Duality of correctional officers’ role

Treatment Problems

Inmate violence (inmate against inmate)

Average 70 incidents/year/institution

Homosexual rape

Non-sexual assault (shake down)

Prison riots (90% of all riots have taken place since 1952)

Inmate Conflict

Inmates are violence prone

Prisons convert people to violence - “survival mentality”

Prison mismanagement

Overcrowding

Causes of Prison Violence

There are two distinctive theories of the cause of collective violence:

The inmate-balance theory suggests that riots and other forms of

collective action occur when prison officials make an abrupt effort

to take control of the prison and limit freedoms.

The administrative-control theory of collective violence suggests

that it is explained by prison management, lack of strong security,

and inadequate control by prison officials.

Collective Violence in Prison

Ground penetrating radar

Heartbeat monitoring

Satellite monitoring

Pulsed radar

Sticky shocker

Backscatter imaging system for concealed weapons

Body scanning screening system

Contemporary Technocorrections

Personal health status monitor

All-in-one drug detection spray

Radar vital signs monitor/radar flashlight

Personal alarm location system

Others not yet in use include:

Angel chip

Noninvasive body cavity scanner (MRI)

Noninvasive drug detection

Contemporary Technocorrections (cont.)

The judicial policy of not interfering in the administrative affairs of

prisons

Justifications include:

Correctional administration was a technical matter best left to

experts rather than the courts

Society as a whole was apathetic to what went on in prisons

Prisoners’ complaints involved privileges rather than rights

Hands-off Doctrine

Inmates are entitled to have legal materials available

Inmates are entitled to have assistance in drawing up and filing

complaints

Prisoner Rights: Access to Courts and Legal Services

DeMallory v. Cullen (1988) – An untrained inmate paralegal is not

equivalent alternative to law library access.

Lindquist v. Idaho State Board of Corrections (1985) – Seven inmate

law clerks for a prison population of 950 was sufficient because they

had a great deal of experience.

Smith v. Wade (1983) – An inmate who has been raped can have

access to the state court to sue.

Bounds v. Smith (1977) – State correctional systems are obligated to

provide inmates with either adequate law libraries or the help of

people trained in the law.

Important Cases About the Access to Courts and Legal Services

Turner v. Safley (1987) – Prisoners do not have the right to receive mail from

one another.

Ramos v. Lamm (1980) – The institutional policy of refusing to deliver mail in a

language other than English is unconstitutional.

Procunier v. Martinez (1974) - Censorship of a prisoner’s mail is justified only

when:

(A) There exists substantial government interest in maintaining the

censorship to further prison security, order, and rehabilitation, and

(B) The restrictions are not greater or more stringent than is demanded by

security precautions.

Nolan v. Fitzpatrick (1971) – Prisoners may correspond with newspapers

unless their letters discuss escape plans or contain contraband or otherwise

objectionable material.

Important Cases in the Freedom of Press and Expression

First Amendment protection

Inmates have the right to assemble and pray

Religious symbols and practices may be restricted if they interfere

with security

Special privileges can be denied

Prisoner Rights: Freedom of Religion

Mumin v. Phelps (1988) – Inmates can be denied special privileges

to attend religious services if there is a legitimate penological

interest.

O’Lone v. Estate of Shabazz (1987) – Prison officials can assign

inmates work schedules that make it impossible for them to attend

religious services as long as no reasonable alternative exists.

Rahman v. Stephenson (1986) – A prisoner’s rights are not violated

if the administration refuses to use the prisoner’s religious name on

official records.

Important Cases About the Freedom of Religion

Past policy was to restrict medical rights through the “exceptional

circumstances doctrine”

Estelle v. Gamble

Use deliberate indifference standard to mandate inmate’s right to

medical care

Prisoner Rights: Medical Rights

Degrades human dignity

More severe than the offense

Shocks the conscience

Is deliberately indifferent to a person’s safety and well-being

Punishes people because of their status, such as race, religion, and

mental state

Is in flagrant disregard of due process of law, such as punishment

that is capriciously applied

Prisoner Rights: Cruel and Unusual Punishment

The most common means of release from prison

Approximately 15% serve the full sentence

Very few get commutations

Almost 7,000 escape each year

Parole

Usually independent state agency

Members are appointed

Usually no professional statutory qualifications for membership

Parole Boards

To select and place prisoners on parole

To supervise parolees in the community

To determine when parole is complete and discharge parolees

To determine if parole revocation should take place

Primary Functions of Parole Boards

Discretionary parole is made at a parole hearing.

Inmates rights at the hearing vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

Information considered by the parole board in making its decision includes:

Police reports of the crime

Presentence investigation report

Psychological testing and scores developed by prison mental health

professionals

Institutional reports of disciplinary actions, treatment and adjustment

Letters may be solicited from inmate’s family and friends

Victims may appear and make statements about losses they have

suffered

Parole Hearings

Rules fall into two categories:

General rules required of all parolees

Specific rules applied to an individual case

Rules may prohibit some types of behavior and demand others

Violation of rules may lead to parole being revoked

Conditions of Parole

What is recidivism? The definition can vary. Is it:

Those who commit another crime of any kind?

Those who commit the same type of crime?

Those whocommit crime within a certain time period?

Recidivism: A Traditional Measure of ParoleEffectiveness

The very nature of the prison experience may cause problems:

Dehumanizing

Separation from family and friends

Lifelong personal deficits

Return to neighborhoods and social interaction with others that

prompted law-violating behavior in the first place

The Fortune Society helps prisoners break the cycle of incarceration.

The Problems of Re-entry