In the United States, prisons are seen as detention centers for criminals. From 1870 to 1970, the United States used case-by-case decision making to determine individual sentences for the punishment of criminals (Zhang 190-191). Back then, the goal of prisons was to use rehabilitation as the punishment for the offenders; however, in 1970, a large number of negative opinions about the rehabilitation process came to the surface. The rehabilitation was not making an affect on reducing recidivism from offenders, and if anything it was causing more cruelties by offenders (191). Because of these negative assessments of the rehabilitation process for offenders, state legislatures within states began reforming their ways of sentencing offenders. These new ways were taking away the individualization of sentencing, and using a general, structured sentencing scheme (191). These structured sentences caused an increase in prison population in the United States, which consequently, led to raised levels of in-prison violence.
The changes instilled in the prison systems changed the structure of prison sentencing and structures. For examples, J. Fred Giertz writes in Prison Overcrowding, “With the advent of more determinate sentences, states can no longer control either admissions or discharges (at least to the degree that they could in the past). This clearly has accentuated the problem of the misalignment of responsibilities between state and local governments and has precipitated the current overcrowding crisis.” With this being said, Giertz makes a point saying that the overcrowding in prisons may not only be because of a rise in crimes committed, but also because it is an uncontrollable consequence due to the new changes in the criminal justice system since the late 1970s. Prisons began to double cell the inmates (Giertz 3). Not only does this reduce the amount of very little privacy each inmate already receives, but it also puts two people together in a very small living environment.
As a result of overcrowded prisons and double-celling the inmates, it is hard to separate the inmates into organized groups of behavior and criminal acts. This control of grouping inmates would be beneficial to their attitude and rehabilitation changes; however, by not organizing the inmates, there would be more available prison space because matching the inmates with locations and other inmates in the prison would not be a determining factor (Giertz 6).
In addition to reforming the prison sentencing structure, prisons need to undergo severe reforms as well. The correctional facilities in the United States do not have sufficient safety, health care, and living conditions. Not only do prisoners lose their basic human rights and get isolated from society, but also they are placed in inhumane environments. Leah Cowdrey wrote in The Nation’s Health that among the most serious problems in the nation’s prisons and correctional facilities are problems dealing with medical care. In addition, Alan Berkman wrote in Prison Health: The Breaking Point that prisoners do not receive enough medical attention. In the 1980s, there was an HIV epidemic and since prisoners were tested, there was knowledge of who was positive. These prisoners stood out because guards would wear gloves when searching their cells. These patients were not always isolated; therefore, other inmates feared them and more violence began to break out because of fear or because of being feared (Berkman 1618).
From this article, The need for medical reform is clearly evident. Prisons need more medical attention in order to show any progress for struggling inmates. Even though are restricted from mostly all of their rights, it is important that they are kept healthy and alive. Many prisoners are poor and underprivileged; therefore, they cannot afford even the co-payments to begin to receive any medical care. In addition to lack of medical care for
sicknesses and diseases, mental illness is also lacking attention. At least 350,000 inmates have mental illnesses and do not receive proper treatments while in prison (21). The American Correctional Association requires that inmates take an assessment to spot mental health before entering prison; however, sometimes this is not enough because there is also the possibility of the inmates developing these mental illnesses in while in jail.
Violence is not only something that comes from people acting out because of mental illness, but also because of the lack of inmates respect for one another. People who are placed into prison are in a constant battle with one another and with the institution itself. In order to reduce prison violence, prison populations need to be reduced, family and fellow prisoners bonds need to be strengthened, and prisoners should be structured in cells according to behavioral traits or criminal acts (21). This becomes a problem because when these prisoners are released from jail, they still will not have any type of education. As stated earlier, re-entry into society is a large part in controlling recidivism. If criminals come out of prison and can continue on with their lives and have learned from their actions, then they will most likely no longer be considered a threat to society. On the contrary, if someone comes out of prison, still uneducated, and angrier than before, they would continue to be harmful to those in society because of their lack of education, mentally and morally, in prison.
The most important feature for creating a successful prison is that is therapeutic and not counterproductive. A tool that can assess this is the Correctional Program Assessment Inventory (CPAI) (8). The CPAI provides guidance on how to become a therapeutic prison center. These prisons should develop a mandate, clearly articulated goals among staff members and administrators, and a code of ethics. By having these three documents, the inmates of these therapeutic prisons will be more likely to meet the goals suggested, and therefore gain more from this experience (Smith 11).
Therapeutic prisons have the ability to place criminals in different programs according to their criminal behaviors (Smith 16). In rehabilitation centers, social groups are key to personal change. Prisoners who are treated with respect and like humans, in return treat staff and fellow inmates in that way. For this reason, therapeutic prisons are more effective than detention centers.After reviewing recidivism rates from both prisons as detention centers and rehabilitation centers, it is evident that rehabilitation centers are more effective for inmates. Inmates are exposed to relationships, education systems, and group therapies to increase their chances of having a smooth re-entry into society. Prisons, like detention centers, do not provide the hospitable feeling that rehabilitation centers do because of the harsh environments and cruelty. Prisons in the United States need to undergo severe reform before they could even begin to make changes in criminal’s lives and help them to reenter society. Rehabilitation centers allow criminals to have an adequate chance to reform their behaviors and be able to restructure their lives after prison. Detention centers set up criminals for failure and years of cruelty, while rehabilitation centers allow them to start over and reform their values and morals to become a successful citizen.