Ethical Arguments against Privatization of Prisons
Prisons were once privately controlled and operated as for profit organizations at
no cost to the state. The government was under pressure from the public, pressure
raised from tales of horrific treatment of prisoners. Tales of cruelty to prisoners with
abuse ranging from malnourishment, frequent physical abuse, and overcrowding led to
investigations that brought truth to the rumors. Due to the unethical treatment of
prisoners, the government was pressured to step in and assume control of the prison
systems.
“Can private operators of prisons be trusted to run prisons for less without
sacrificing the “quality of service”; and accountability, i.e., what oversight mechanisms
will assure that society’s interest comes before those of managing corporations?”
(Smith, 1993). With the potential cost of prison programs such as counseling, the
possibility of furthering education of prisoners, and vocational training for prisoners,
would a corporation trying to maximize profit continue these programs? While some
would argue that these programs are not necessary and should not be afforded to
people who have committed crimes, they are vital to the rehabilitation of prisoners that
are willing to change. Would the corporation be as apt to rehabilitate a criminal if the
chances of repeat offenses are decreased by the provided programs? The private
corporations would have less incentive to provide programs that could be detrimental to
their profit maximization model. Providing a nutritional meal for prisoners is a
considerable expense for prison officials. If faced with the task of selecting a new
source of food for the prison and they have two choices, a company that provides a
meal that has all of the requirements of a healthy meal for $3.75/meal and a company
that provides a meal with considerably less nutritional value for $2.75/meal. The
corporation concerned with profits is more likely to try to get more meals for less money
at the detriment of the nutrition of the prison population.
The corporations profit which in some way are affected by the number of beds
filled in the prison. Without proper oversight, this could easily lead to the same
conditions; such as, overcrowding and malnourishment that forced private prisons to
relinquish control to the government. Under U.S. law, the government is forced to
disclose all aspects of operations of the prison system. Private organizations or
corporations are not bound by the same laws that hold the government accountable.
Ethical treatment of prisoners is a key argument in the advocates of privatization
of prisons. In 1993, records showed that private prisons had fewer incidences of
violence, riots, and escapes than did state penitentiaries. However, what are the
guards like, how are they trained, what are the restrictions placed on them about
physical and mental restraint? Can we draw the same comparisons between the
guards at the private prisons and the state run facilities and the protection offered
overseas by the Army or a private protection organization like KBR or formerly Kellogg,
Brown, and Root? The soldiers of the Army are held to the high public standards set by
the military, whereas, the employees of the private corporation are held only to the
private standards of KBR. KBR has had their share of questions about their ethics and
treatment of the people of the Middle East. They have been sued for allegations of
slavery, human trafficking, bribery, and receiving kickbacks. Greed can possibly lead
the best operated companies astray from their core values and challenge their internal
ethics. In the prison systems, without access to the happenings behind closed doors,
we cannot determine if the prisoners are being treated fairly or with the dignity of a
human being.
Wikipedia defines profiteering as “the act of making a profit by methods
considered unethical.” While running a prison is not unethical, making a profit off of
punishing criminals is. Should a corporation make a profit off a child that has been
abused by a pedophile, a wife that has been beaten by her husband, or a serial
murderer such as Jeffery Dahmer?
Bibliography
Smith, P. (1993). Private Prisons: Profits of Crime . Covert Action Quarterly , 7.