III. Corrections in the U.S.
• Given a supply of convicted offenders, the
next question is: “What to do with them?”
• This means the Corrections component of
the CJ System, considering:
– What “corrections” in the U.S. involves
– How it is set up
– How it seems to work
– How it got this way
– What seem to be the current trend
What is the Range of Possible
Criminal Punishments?
Death
Imprisonment
(Incarceration)
Intermediate
Sanctions
Other possibilities?
-- Banishment
-- Corporal punishment
Probation
Fines
Suspended
Sentence
Corrections in the U.S.
• When we say a criminal offense is “corrected,”
what do we mean?
– People often mean different things by that term 
which leads a lot of confusion
• What is supposed to be “corrected”?
– The wrongful/harmful action?
– The offender who did the action?
– The victim of the harmful action?
• “Corrected” in what way?
– In what sense can a harm or wrong be corrected?
The Goals of Corrections – different
meanings of “correction”
a) Retribution
•
(justice/atonement/payment for wrong)
b) Deterrence
•
(psychological prevention of crime)
c) Incapacitation
•
(physical prevention of crime)
d) Rehabilitation/reforming
•
(changing the offender)
e) Restoration/restitution/reintegration
•
•
(repairing the damage)
(putting things back together)
Dominant focus of corrections in U.S.
= incarceration/confinement
• Use of imprisonment for punishment is an old
procedure (e.g., dungeons; slave galleys)
• But extensive use of imprisonment for criminals
is a more recent practice
• Through Middle Ages, reliance instead on:
– Corporal punishment & execution
– Fines and forfeiture
– Exile/banishment/transportation
– Slavery
– Public humiliation/shaming
– Inspiring fear and dread through brutality
Incarceration/Imprisonment (cont.)
• In Middle Ages, prisons mainly used to:
– Hold persons awaiting trial, punishment, or appeal
– Motivate persons to pay debts or agree to terms
– Incapacitate persons who couldn’t be executed
– Incapacitate mentally ill persons
– Achieve religious indoctrination
– Punish slaves (rather than common criminals)
• Also, use Prison for “problem populations”
– Workhouses & Poorhouses in 16th-18th centuries
– Contain, exploit, motivate the poor & unemployed
Incarceration/Imprisonment (cont.)
• Basic goals of punishment in Middle Ages:
– Retribution and atonement
– Deterrence
– Incapacitation
• The idea of Reformation/Rehabilitation
emerged in the 18th century
– Emphasis on reason & rationality
– Emphasis on human progress & improvement
– Twin influences of science and religion
Major names in the “enlightened” use of
Imprisonment to correct:
– Cesare Beccaria: elaborated theory of justice
as rational and human use of punishment
• Emphasize deterrence rather than retribution
• Emphasize loss of freedom over physical brutality
– John Howard: Prison reformer
• Emphasize humane conditions of imprisonment
• Emphasize that punishment should improve people
– Jeremy Bentham: Utilitarian philosopher/author
• Apply Utilitarian principles to punishment of crime &
apply rational logic to the design of prisons
Major eras in use of Imprisonment
– Penitentiary Movement (early 19th century)
 Religion-based reform (Quakers)
 Aim at moral reformation of offenders through:
– Determinate sentences
– Isolation and silence
– Labor and reflection
 New York and Pennsylvania Systems (1829-30)
– Cherry Hill/Eastern prison (Penn) – Segregate system
– Auburn prison (NY) – Congregate system
– Reformatory Movement (late 19th century)
 Creation of the “science” of penology
Incarceration/Imprisonment (cont.)
– Reformatory Movement (late 19th century)
 Penology-based reform (science-religion mixture)
 Aim at “scientific” reformation of offenders
through:
–Indeterminate sentences & parole
–Classification & security levels
–Work, education, and military discipline
 Zebulon Brockway and the Elmira Reformatory
(NY) as the acme of reformatory philosophy
– Rise of the “Big House” (early 20th century)
 The prison as a “modern” penal warehouse
The “Big House” Prison
Incarceration/Imprisonment (cont.)
– 20th century prison eras:
 Industrial prisons (1900-1930s) (new “big house”)
– Reformation through productive mass labor
– Prisons as productive/profitable
– Also prison farms & chain gangs as related variations
 Modern Rehabilitation-oriented prisons (1940-1980)
– Indeterminate sentences & parole
– Classification & security levels
– Labor, rehabilitation, and programming
 “Post-modern” Security-oriented prisons (1980-)
– Post-Martinson (“Martinson Report”) developments
– Technological advances
Incarceration/Imprisonment (cont.)
– “Post-modern” Security-oriented prisons (after
1980)
 New designs for prisons & jails
–1st generation: linear/intermittent supervision
(the old Big House model adapted)
 Radial design
 “Telephone Pole” design
–2nd generation: modular/indirect supervision
–3rd generation: modular/direct supervision
“Third Generation Prison/Jail Design
Incarceration/Imprisonment (cont.)
– “Post-modern” Security-oriented prisons (after
1980)
 New designs for prisons & jails
 New technologies
 New organization and philosophy (Corporate
models)
 Professionalization
 Privatization
 More conservative, punitive political context
– Much less emphasis on rehabilitation
– More emphasis on security, retribution, deterrence
Why the big changes after 1980?
1) Dramatic increase in prisoner population
– More determinate, mandatory, and punitive sentencing
– The “War on Drugs”
– Increased incarceration of women
2) Boom in construction of new prisons
– Need for greatly expanded capacity
– Need to replace old, outmoded, overcrowded facilities
– Increased competition for prison locations
3) Emergence of new technologies
– Construction and architecture (faster construction)
– Technology and security (better facilities & services)
4) Privatization of corrections
Emphasize importance of cycles
in correctional practices:
1) The seductive illusion of “the new”
– Strong attraction to what looks new and innovative
– Ignorance of history means that old ideas look new
(if they are old enough to be forgotten)
– Very few genuinely new ideas
2) Rediscovery & Reinvention of old ideas
– We are continually “rediscovering the wheel”
repackaged to look like a new program
– CJ/Corrections is ongoing “recycling operation”
•
e.g., boot camp programs, privatization, “getting
tougher” on juveniles, mandatory sentences, “3-strikes”
How much is prison used to punish
criminal offenders in the U.S.?
1) In 2005, over 2.3 million persons were in
prison or jail in the U.S. on a given day
(slightly under 1.5 million in prison)
2) Is that a lot? Compared to what?
 Higher or lower than it used to be?
 More or less than occurs in other countries?
(for some answers, consider the next two slides)
Notable features of prison use in U.S.:
1) Incarceration rate is 5 times higher than it used to be
(pre-1980) & higher than other countries
2) Persons are in prison for same amount of time
– No change in average sentence since 1920
– Some longer sentences but more people incarcerated for
lesser crimes and less early release
3) Imprisonment is used unevenly
– Large regional differences (highest in Southern states;
lowest in Northern states)
– Large racial disparities relative to population
(40% of prisoners = Black; 34% = white; 20% = Latino)
– Large gender disparities
(94% of prisoners = male; 6% of prisoners = female)
Rates of Imprisonment in State & Federal Prisons,
By Race/Ethnicity (per 100,000 population)
Rates of Imprisonment (Males)
3500
3145
per 100,000 population
3000
2500
2000
1500
1244
1000
500
471
0
White
Black
Hispanic
How to explain the large disparities?
1) Racial and gender discrimination = part of the
explanation
2) But also reflects differences in types (&
seriousness) of crimes committed and in
criminal records
3) Research shows that the best predictors of
sentencing (imprisonment) = offense
characteristics and prior record of offender
– However, race and gender by themselves still
explain part of the differences (which reflect extralegal influences on punishment)
Forms of incarceration in the U.S.
(clarifying the distinctions):
1) Lock-ups
2) Jails
3) Prisons
4) Alternative Institutions
– Farms and camps
– Halfway houses (community residential facilities)
– Medical/mental health facilities
Lock-up vs. Jail:
1) Lock-up
– Local (administered by police)
– Hold arrestees until transfer to jail
(detention only)
– Very short-term (24-48 hrs. maximum)
2) Jail
– County-level mostly
– Hold both pre-trial & convicted persons
(detention + correction functions)
– Also assorted others
– Separately assigned jail staff
Jail vs. Prison:
1) Jail
– County-level (mostly) by sheriff
– Both convicted & unconvicted persons
– Convictions for misdemeanor crimes (less
than 1 year confinement) (exceptions?)
– Few rehabilitative services & low priority
2) Prison
– State or federal level by separate
corrections department or system
– Contain only convicted persons (?)
– Incarceration for felony sentences
Public vs. Private Corrections:
1) Corrections can only occur legally under
governmental authority
2) In last 25 years, private companies have
entered corrections field
– About 7% of prisoners are now in private facilities
(6% of state & 14% of federal prisoners)
• How does privatization of prison work?
–
–
–
–
Construction & leasing of facility
Contracted management & operation of facility
Contracted services
Entire Institution
Public vs. Private Corrections:
3) What are the arguments about privatization of
corrections?
–
–
–
–
Cost and efficiency
Effectiveness and quality
Administrative flexibility and change
Accountability and Legal issues
4) Who are the players in privatized corrections?
– 14 companies in U.S.:
– Mostly in the South
– Also very involved in juvenile corrections
5) What does the research show?
State vs. Federal Corrections:
•
At state level, have 50 different correction systems,
with great variation across states
–
–
–
–
–
All felony imprisonments are state responsibility
Difficult to describe “average”, as states vary so much
Generally 3+1 security levels of prisons
Greater use of imprisonment in southern states
Greater use of privatized corrections in South
• At federal level, have one correction system
– Used only for federal felony imprisonments (FCIs)
– 5 security levels(?) (AdMax / High / Medium / Low /
minimum)
– Also: Federal Jails and Medical Centers
Men’s vs. Women’s Prisons:
• See the description in the book for male
prisons
• Note: female prison population is growing
faster than male, still only about 6% of all
prison inmates.
–
–
–
–
–
Women’s prison facilities are visibly different
Female offenders = different kinds of offenders
Most sentences for property or drug crimes
Inmate organization is very different
Female prisons generally have fewer programs