The Life of an Inmate 12

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Chapter 14:

Behind Bars: The Life

of an Inmate


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Prison Culture

Goffman suggested that prison culturesare unique because prisons are total

institutions that encompass every aspectof an inmates life.

Inmates develop their own language, or

argot, create their own economy andestablish methods of determining power.


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Prison Culture

The ailing prison population Substance abuse and addiction

Poor health Mental illness

The aging prison population

40% of inmate over 45 have serious medicalproblems

Medical parole


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Prison Culture

Adapting to Prison Culture:

Doing time Jailing

Gleaning

Disorganized criminals


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Prison Violence

Violence in prison exists because:

It establishes the prison hierarchy

It provides a deterrent against beingvictimized

It enhances self-image

In the case of rape, it gives sexual relief

It is a means of acquiring material goods


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Prison Violence

Riots:

Situations in which a number of prisoners

are beyond institutional control for asignificant amount of time.

Relatively rare in the correctional system.

Notable riots include Attica Prison in 1971.


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Prison Violence

Prison Gangs/Security Threat Groups (STGs):

Racial and ethnic identity is often primary focus

Prison gangs engage in a wide variety of illegalactivities

Prison gangs are often extensions of street gangs

About 2/3 of prison have anti-gang personnel inplace


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Prison Violence

Prison Rape:

Due to the nature of the inmate victimization,accurate data is difficult to gather

The Prison Elimination Act (2003)

Victims of prison rape are often at the bottom of

the social hierarchy in prisons, and suffer bothphysical and mental trauma from theirvictimization


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Inside a Womens Prison

Characteristics of Female Inmates:

Most are racial or ethnic minorities between the

ages of 30 and 39 Most are incarcerated for nonviolent drug or

property offenses

Distinguishing characteristic of female inmates is

a history of abuse Female inmates have an increased likelihood of

health problems when they are incarcerated


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Inside a Womens Prison

Motherhood in Prison More than 1.3 million children have mothers

in prisonViolence in Womens Prisons

Compared to mens prisons, women exhibit

low levels of physical violence Sexual violence and prison staff

The Pseudo Family


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Correctional Officers and Discipline

Six general categories among correctional

officers:

Block officers Work detail officers

Industrial shop and school officers

Yard officers Tower guards

Administrative building assignments


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Discipline:

Inmates receive manual outlining

prohibited behavior

Correctional officers have a discretionranging from warning to loss of privileges.

Correctional officers may be required touse force


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Whitley v. Albers(1986), court findsexcessive force by correctional officers

violates the 8th amendment In general, courts find legitimate security

interests justify the use of force against

inmates Hudson v. McMillan(1992), the malicious

and sadistic standard


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Scenarios involving legitimate security

interests include:

Acting in self-defense

Acting to protect a third person

Upholding the rules of the institution Preventing crimes

Preventing escape attempts


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Protecting Prisoner Rights

Inmates do not have the same guaranteed

rights as other Americans Prior to 1964 (Cooper v. Pate), courts

adopted a hands-off policy

In the 1960s inmates began to insist ontheir constitutional rights and theprisoners rights movement began.


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Protecting Prisoner Rights

Wolff v. McDonald(1974) grants inmates:

A fair hearing

Written notice of the hearing at least 24hours in advance

An opportunity to speak at the hearing

An opportunity to call witnessesA written statement detailing the final

decision and the reasons behind it


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Parole and Release from Prison

Parole is based on three concepts:

Grace

Contract of consent

Custody


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Other forms of Release:

Mandatory release Pardon

Furlough


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Basic Roles of the Parole Board:

To decide which inmates should be given parole

To determine the conditions of parole

To discharge the offender when the conditionsof parole have been met

To determine whether or not parole privilegesshould be revoked when a violation occurs.


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The Parole Hearing

5-7 parole board members

Hearings are relatively short

Parole guidelines attempt to measure riskof recidivism

In some states the parole board mustprovide their reasoning in writing


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The Goals ofTruth-in-Sentencing:

To restore truth to the sentencingprocess

To increase the percentage of the

sentence that is actually served To better control the use of prison space


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Parole:

An agreement between the offender and

the state that establishes conditions bywhich the offender will be released

Conditions of parole

Work release programs

Halfway houses


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Parole Revocation:

Maximum expirationdate

Technical violations

Morrisey v. Brewer

(1972)


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Reentry into Society

Barriers to Reentry:

Challenges of releasesuch as finding housingand employment

Threat of relapse existsas offenders may besocialized to prison life

and react inappropriatelyto stresses in the outsideworld.


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Reentry programs:

Specifically focus on the transition fromprison to the community

Involve a treatment curriculum that

continues after release


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Recidivism:

Persons who have offended in the past

are likely to offend in the future The risk of reoffending declines as the

amount of time since the last offenseincreases.

Those in disadvantaged neighborhoodsrecidivate at a greater rate


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The Special Case of Sex Offenders

Sex Offender Notification Laws:

Megans LawActive notification

Passive notification

The controversy surrounding notification


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Conditions of release for sex offenders:

No contact with children under 16

Must continue psychiatric treatment Must have permission to change residence

Stay a certain distance from schools and parks

Cannot own toys that may be used to lurechildren

Cannot have a job that involves children


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Issues with notification laws:

Are notification laws a form ofpunishment?

Do notification laws violate due process

rights?


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Getting Tougher with Sex Offenders:

Tougher laws Civil confinement

The Life of an Inmate 12

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