Prison

Part 1 of 9 in the series Fight Club

Fight Club was one of the most controversial and talked-about films of the 1990s. Some critics expressed concern that the film would incite copycat behavior, such as that seen after A Clockwork Orange debuted in Britain nearly three decades previously. Following Fight Club’s release, several fight clubs were reported to have started in the United States. — Wikipedia

“One in every 142 U.S. residents was in prison or jail [in 2002]” when inmate skin infections were a growing concern, writes Daniel Yee with the The Associated Press.¹ “The number of Americans under the control of the criminal justice system grew by 130,700 [in 2003] to reach a new high of nearly 6.9 million, according to a Justice Department report [released 26 July 2004], notes Fox Butterfield for The New York Times. “This is about 3.2 percent of the adult population in the United States, the report said, and the total includes people in jail and prison as well as those on probation and parole.” ² Of federal prisoners in 1994, the U.S. Department of Justice reported that about 50 percent “were being held for drug law violations” and “among state inmates, approximately 21 percent [we]re confined for drug offenses.” ³


via chartsbin.com

“The [New York Police Department's] stop-and-frisk practices raise serious concerns over racial profiling, illegal stops and privacy rights,” writes the New York Civil Liberties Union (NCLU):

An analysis by the NCLU revealed that innocent New Yorkers have been subjected to police stops and street interrogations more than 4 million times since 2002, and that black and Latino communities continue to be the overwhelming target of these tactics. Nearly nine out of 10 stopped-and-frisked New Yorkers have been completely innocent, according to the NYPD’s own reports.⁴

“Being arrested is no small thing,” writes Derek Snider for BBS News. “You are handcuffed, taken into custody, fingerprinted, mug shots taken, held until you can post bail, and pretty well guaranteed to receive a criminal record, jail time or not.” ⁵

“Those with one drug-possession offense are ineligible for federal college aid for one year after conviction,” note DrugScope. “A second drug-possession or first drug-sale conviction means ineligibility for two years. More convictions bar aid indefinitely, unless the offender undergoes drug rehabilitation.” ⁶

Snider continues:

Doing hard time is no laughing matter. It destroys lives. It exposes you to aggressive, violent criminals, abuse, diseases, and leaves you permanently changed. Incarceration is completely ineffective in controlling drug use. Drugs are more available as well as more appealing inside of prison. In fact, a marijuana using prisoner will likely turn to a harder drug because the drug test for marijuana use is much harder to beat.⁷

“Across the United States, thousands of children have been sentenced as adults and sent to adult prisons,” notes the Equal Justice Initiative website:

Over 2200 juveniles nationwide have been sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Children as young as 13 years old have been tried as adults and sentenced to die in prison, typically without any consideration of their age or circumstances of the offense.… Sadly, many states have ignored the crisis and dysfunction that creates child delinquency and instead have subjected kids to further victimization and abuse in the adult criminal justice system.⁸

“More than 12% of youths in juvenile prisons are sexually abused while in custody there, according to a Justice Department study out [7 January 2010],” reports USA Today. “And the vast majority of cases involve female staff and boys under their supervision”:

Sexual victimization of youths in custody “is one of those hidden closets of the system,” said Bart Lubow, director of the juvenile justice and strategy group for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, which advocates for children. The rates at the worst facilities are “so high they’re stunning,” he said. “I am, on the other hand, never surprised as people peel the layers of the youth corrections onion and expose more and more things that make you cry.” ⁹


Annie E. Casey Foundation

Pennsylvania’s top justice issued a final report Monday [8 April 2013] detailing how the judiciary responded to recommendations to address shortcomings in the juvenile justice system,” writes Robert Swift for thetimes-tribune.com news website:

The report by Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille describes nearly 60 changes to court rules governing state appellate and juvenile courts and other actions taken to expunge criminal records of juveniles, set a new code of conduct for judicial employees and provide for the compensation of victim restitution claims relating to the delinquent conduct of juvenile offenders.¹¹

“The changes were prompted by the “Kids for Cash” scandal in Luzerne County,” notes John Lash for The Juvenile Justice Information Exchange.¹² Swift continues:

This report is a response to the scandal that erupted in early 2009, when former county Judges Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. and Michael T. Conahan were charged with abuses relating to the sentencing of juvenile offenders in Luzerne County to a for-profit detention center. Mr. Ciavarella and Mr. Conahan are serving lengthy terms in federal prison for their role in the scandal.…

Key rules changes implemented by the court include requiring juveniles to have an attorney present at court delinquency hearings, prohibiting the use of restraints on a juvenile in the courtroom unless it’s for the safety of court personnel and the juvenile, establishing an extensive question-and-answer process with a judge before a juvenile can enter a plea agreement and creating an expedited appeal process when a juvenile is removed from his or her home as a sentence.

In many cases, the new court rules complement state laws added to the books in recent years.¹²

Lash points out that “the profit motive corrupts wherever it appears in connection to juvenile justice.… Corruption in government is nothing new or even uncommon, but it seems especially egregious when it involves the justice system, and downright intolerable when it impacts kids.” ¹³

“The Missouri Model of juvenile justice – often referred to as the “Missouri Miracle” – has become famous for its apparent success in giving kids who run afoul of the law a second chance,” writes Rina Palta for The Informant:

The state has closed down its youth prisons and moved towards a model focused on rehabilitation and therapy. Kids on probation there are now housed in small groups of 15-30 and their treatment is personalized, handled by attentive staff, and involves family and community members.¹⁴

It is expected of California inpatient rehab centers to welcome for treatment people from all walks of life.

The Seattle Foundation features the Post-Prison Education Program:

The goal of the Post-Prison Education Program is to dramatically reduce recidivism by harnessing the power of education. Education opens the door to a living wage, clean and sober housing, empowered and responsible living and strengthened families – the most important factors in breaking the cycle of poverty and crime.…

The Post-Prison Education Program (PPEP) has a documented rate of recidivism of less than two percent – as contrasted with the Washington State Department of Corrections’ rate of approximately 43%. The Program accomplishes what the State does not by meeting the legitimate frugal needs of former prisoners simultaneous to linking them with post-secondary education, building meaningful mentorship relationships, and delivering consequential support services whether they are housing, legal representation, mental health counseling, or tutoring. The Program’s success not only dramatically reduces recidivism but also ensures that the students finish their education, and go on to have stable jobs, strong families, and productive lives.¹⁵

¹ Daniel Yee (The Associated Press), “Inmate Skin Infections Becoming a Concern,” Yahoo! News, 17 October 2003 (retrieved: ~2004).

² Fox Butterfield (The New York Times), “Record 6.9 million people in criminal system,” San Francisco Chronicle, 26 July 2004, at http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Record-6-9-million-people-in-criminal-system-2738412.php (retrieved: 29 July 2012).

³ U.S. Department of Justice, Advance for Release: “Comparing Federal and State Prisoners,” 2 October 1994, at North Illinois University, at http://sun.soci.niu.edu/~critcrim/prisons/pris.fedstat (retrieved: ~2004).

⁴ “Stop-and-Frisk Campaign: About the Issue,” New York Civil Liberties Union, at http://www.nyclu.org/issues/racial-justice/stop-and-frisk-practices (retrieved: 19 December 2012).

⁵ Derek Snider, “ONDCP Claims ‘Joint’ Smokers Don’t go to Prison,” BBSNews, 7 Feb 2003 at http://bbsnews.net/bw2003-02-07c.html (retrieved: ~2004).

⁶ “Scholarship created for US students with drug use records,” DrugScope, 26 Mar 2002, at http://www.drugscope.org.uk/news_item.asp?a=1&intID=788 (retrieved: ~2004).

⁷ Snider, “ONDCP Claims.”

⁸ Children in Adult Prison, Equal Justice Initiative, at http://www.eji.org/eji/childrenprison (retrieved: 8 August 2012).

⁹ Martha T. Moore, “Study: Youths sexually abused in juvenile prisons,” 7 January 2010, USA Today, at http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-01-07-juvenile-prison-sexual-abuse_N.htm (retrieved: 8 August 2012).

¹⁰ Robert Swift, “Top court issues final juvenile justice report,” thetimes-tribune.com, 9 April 2013, at http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/top-court-issues-final-juvenile-justice-report-1.1470082 (retrieved: 14 April 2013).

¹¹ John Lash, “Prisons are no Place for Profit,” The Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, 12 April 2013, at http://jjie.org/prisons-no-place-for-profit/108831 (retrieved: 14 April 2013).

¹² Swift, “Top court,” (retrieved: 14 April 2013).

¹³ Lash, “Prisons are no Place.” (retrieved: 14 April 2013).

¹⁴ Rina Palta, “What can Missouri teach us about juvenile justice?” 17 February 2011, The Informant, at http://informant.kalwnews.org/2011/02/what-can-missouri-teach-us-about-juvenile-justice/ (retrieved: 8 August 2012); See also Rina Palta, “What can Missouri teach us about juvenile justice?” 17 February 2011, Community Justice Network for Youth, at http://www.cjny.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=297%3Awhat-can-missouri-teach-us-about-juvenile-justice&catid=6%3Anews-and-updates&Itemid=1 (retrieved: 8 August 2012).

¹⁵ Post-Prison Education Program, The Seattle Foundation, at http://www.seattlefoundation.org/npos/Pages/PostPrisonEducationProgram.aspx (retrieved: 16 May 2013).