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A better path forward for criminal justice: Changing prisons to help people change

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Christy visher and christy visher professor - university of delaware john eason john eason associate professor - university of wisconsin.

17 min read

Below is the third chapter from “A Better Path Forward for Criminal Justice,” a report by the Brookings-AEI Working Group on Criminal Justice Reform. You can access other chapters from the report here .

Prison culture and environment are essential to public health and safety. While much of the policy debate and public attention of prisons focuses on private facilities, roughly 83 percent of the more than 1,600 U.S. facilities are owned and operated by states. 1 This suggest that states are an essential unit of analysis in understanding the far-reaching effects of imprisonment and the site of potential solutions. Policy change within institutions has to begin at the state level through the departments of corrections. For example, California has rebranded their state corrections division and renamed it the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. For many, these are not only name changes but shifts in policy and practice. In this chapter, we rethink the treatment environment of the prison by highlighting strategies for developing cognitive behavioral communities in prison—immersive cognitive communities. This new approach promotes new ways of thinking and behaving for both incarcerated persons and correctional staff. Behavior change requires changing thinking patterns and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based strategy that can be utilized in the prison setting. We focus on short-, medium-, and long-term recommendations to begin implementing this model and initiate reforms for the organizational structure of prisons.

Level Setting

The U.S. has seen a steady decline in the federal and state prison population over the last eleven years, with a 2019 population of about 1.4 million men and women incarcerated at year-end, hitting its lowest level since 1995. 2 With the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, criminal justice reformers have urged a continued focus on reducing prison populations and many states are permitting early releases of nonviolent offenders and even closing prisons. Thus, we are likely to see a dramatic reduction in the prison population when the data are tabulated for 2020.

However, it is undeniable that the U.S. will continue to use incarceration as a sanction for criminal behavior at a much higher rate than in other Western countries, in part because of our higher rate of violent offenses. Consequently, a majority of people incarcerated in the U.S. are serving a prison sentence for a violent offense (58 percent). The most serious offense for the remainder is property offenses (16 percent), drug offenses (13 percent), or other offenses (13 percent; generally, weapons, driving offenses, and supervision violations). 3 Moreover, the majority of people in U.S. prisons have been previously incarcerated. The prison population is largely drawn from the most disadvantaged part of the nation’s population: mostly men under age 40, disproportionately minority, with inadequate education. Prisoners often carry additional deficits of drug and alcohol addictions, mental and physical illnesses, and lack of work experience. 4

According to data compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, the average sentence length in state courts for those sentenced to confinement in a state prison is about 4 years and the average time served is about 2.5 years. Those sentenced for a violent offense typically serve about 4.7 years with persons sentenced for murder or manslaughter serving an average of 15 years before their release. 5 Thus, it is important to consider the conditions of prison life in understanding how individuals rejoin society at the conclusion of their sentence. Are they prepared to be valuable community members? What lessons have they learned during their confinement that may help them turn their life around? Will they be successful in avoiding a return to prison? What is the most successful path for helping returning citizens reintegrate into their communities?

Regrettably, prison life is often fraught with difficulty. Being sentenced to incarceration can be traumatic, leading to mental health disorders and difficulty rejoining society. Incarcerated individuals must adjust to the deprivation of liberty, separation from family and social supports, and a loss of personal control over all aspects of one’s life. In prison, individuals face a loss of self-worth, loneliness, high levels of uncertainty and fear, and idleness for long periods of time. Imprisonment disrupts the routines of daily life and has been described as “disorienting” and a “shock to the system”. 6 Further, some researchers have described the existence of a “convict code” in prison that governs behavior and interactions with norms of prison life including mind your own business, no snitching, be tough, and don’t get too close with correctional staff. While these strategies can assist incarcerated persons in surviving prison, these tools are less helpful in ensuring successful reintegration.

Thus, the entire prison experience can jeopardize the personal characteristics required to be effective partners, parents, and employees once they are released. Coupled with the lack of vocational training, education, and reentry programs, individuals face a variety of challenges to reintegrating into their communities. Successful reintegration will not only improve public safety but forces us to reconsider public safety as essential to public health.

Despite the toll of difficult conditions of prison, people who are incarcerated believe that they can be successful citizens. In surveys and interviews with men and women in prison, the majority express hope for their future. Most were employed before their incarceration and have family that will help them get back on their feet. Many have children that they were supporting and want to reconnect with. They realize that finding a job may be hard, but they believe they will be able to avoid the actions that got them into trouble, principally committing crimes and using illegal substances. 7 Research also shows that most individuals with criminal records, especially those convicted of violent crimes, were often victims themselves. This complicates the “victim”-“offender” binary that dominates the popular discourse about crime. By moving beyond this binary, we propose cognitive behavioral therapy, among a host of therapeutic approaches, as part of a broader restorative approach.

Despite having histories of associating with other people who commit crimes and use illegal drugs, incarcerated individuals have pro-social family and friends in their lives. They also may have some personality characteristics that make it difficult to resist involvement in criminal behavior, including impulsivity, lack of self-control, anger/defiance, and weak problem-solving and coping skills. Psychologists have concluded that the primary individual characteristics influencing criminal behavior are thinking patterns that foster criminal activity, associating with other people who engage in criminal activity, personality patterns that support criminal activity, and a history of engaging in criminal activity. 8 While the context constrains individual behavior and choices, the motivation for incarcerated individuals to change their behavior is rooted in their value of family and other positive relationships. However, most prison environments pose significant challenges for incarcerated individuals to develop motivation to make positive changes. Interpersonal relationships in prison are difficult as there is often a culture of mistrust and suspicion coupled with a profound absence of empathy. Despite these challenges, cognitive behavioral interventions can provide a successful path for reintegration.

Many psychologists believe that changing unwanted or negative behaviors requires changing thinking patterns since thoughts and feelings affect behaviors. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) emerged as a psycho-social intervention that helps people learn how to identify and change destructive or disturbing thought patterns that have a negative influence on behavior and emotions. It focuses on challenging and changing unhelpful cognitive distortions and behaviors, improving emotional regulation, and developing personal coping strategies that target solving current problems. 9 In most cases, CBT is a gradual process that helps a person take incremental steps towards a behavior change. CBT has been directed at a wide range of conditions including various addictions (smoking, alcohol, and drug use), eating disorders, phobias, and problems dealing with stress or anxiety. CBT programs help people identify negative thoughts, practice skills for use in real-world situations, and learn problem-solving skills. For example, a person with a substance use disorder might start practicing new coping skills and rehearsing ways to avoid or deal with a high-risk situation that could trigger a relapse.

Since criminal behavior is driven partly by certain thinking patterns that predispose individuals to commit crimes or engage in illegal activities, CBT helps people with criminal records change their attitudes and gives them tools to avoid risky situations. Cognitive behavioral therapy is a comprehensive and time-consuming treatment, typically, requiring intensive group sessions over many months with individualized homework assignments. Evaluations of CBT programs for justice-involved people found that cognitive restructuring treatment was significantly effective in reducing criminal behavior, with those receiving CBT showing recidivism reductions of 20 to 30 percent compared to control groups. 10 Thus, the widespread implementation of cognitive behavioral therapy as part of correctional programming could lead to fewer rearrests and lower likelihood of reincarceration after release. CBT can also be used to mitigate prison culture and thus help reintegrate returning citizens back into their communities.

Thus, the widespread implementation of cognitive behavioral therapy as part of correctional programming could lead to fewer rearrests and lower likelihood of reincarceration after release.

Even the most robust CBT program that meets three hours per week leaves 165 hours a week in which the participant is enmeshed in the typical prison environment. Such an arrangement is bound to dilute the therapy’s impact. To counter these negative influences, the new idea is to connect CBT programming in prison with the old idea of therapeutic communities. Therapeutic communities—either in prison or the community—were established as a self-help substance use rehabilitation approach and instituted the idea that separating the target population from the general population would allow a pro-social community to develop and thereby discourage antisocial cognitions and behaviors. The therapeutic community model relies heavily on participant leadership and requires participants to intervene in arguments and guide treatment groups. Inside prisons, therapeutic communities are a separate housing unit that fosters a rehabilitative environment.

Cognitive Communities in prison would be an immersive experience in cognitive behavioral therapy involving cognitive restructuring, anti-criminal modeling, skill building, problem-solving, and emotion management. These communities would promote new ways of thinking and behaving among its participants around the clock, from breakfast in the morning through residents’ daily routines, including formal CBT sessions, to the evening meal and post-dinner activities. Blending the best aspects of therapeutic communities with CBT principles would lead to Cognitive Communities with several key elements: a separate physical space, community participation in daily activities, reinforcement of pro-social behavior, use of teachable moments, and structured programs. This cultural shift in prison organization provides a foundation for restorative justice practices in prisons.

Accordingly, our recommendations include:

Short-Term Reforms

Create Transforming Prisons Act

Accelerate decarceration begun during pandemic.

Medium-Term Reforms

Encourage Rehabilitative Focus in State Prisons

Foster greater use of community sanctions.

Long-Term Reforms

Embrace Rehabilitative/Restorative Community Justice Models

Encourage collaborations between corrections agencies and researchers, short-term reforms.

To begin transforming prisons to help prisons and people change, a new funding opportunity for state departments of correction is needed. We propose the Transforming Prisons Act (funded through the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance) which would permit states to apply for funds to support innovative programs and practices that would improve prison conditions both for the people who live in prisons and work in prisons. This dual approach would begin to transform prisons into a more just and humane experience for both groups. These new funds could support broad implementation of Cognitive Communities by training the group facilitators and the correctional staff assigned to the specialized prison units. Funds could also be used to broaden other therapeutic programming to support individuals in improving pro-social behaviors through parenting classes, family engagement workshops, anger management, and artistic programming. One example is the California Transformative Arts which promotes self-awareness and improves mental health through artistic expression. Together, these programs could mark a rehabilitative turn in corrections.

While we work to change policies and practices to make prisons more humane, we also need to work towards decarceration. The COVID-19 crisis has enabled innovations in diverting and improving efforts to reintegrate returning citizens in the U.S. During the pandemic, many states took bold steps in implementing early release for older incarcerated persons especially those with health disorders. Research shows that returning citizens of advanced age and with poor health conditions are far less likely to commit crime after release. This set of circumstances makes continued diversion and reintegration of this population a much wiser investment than incarceration.

MEDIUM-TERM REFORMS

In direct response to calls to abolish prisons and defund the police, state prisons should move away from focusing on incapacitation to rehabilitation. To assist in this change, federal funds should be tied to embracing a rehabilitative mission to transform prisons. This transformation should be rooted in evidence-based therapeutic programming, documenting impacts on both incarcerated individuals and corrections staff. Prison good-time policies should be revisited so that incarcerated individuals receive substantial credit for participating in intensive programming such as Cognitive Communities. With a backdrop of an energized rehabilitative philosophy, states should be supported in their efforts to implement innovative models and programming to improve the reintegration of returning citizens and change the organizational structure of their prisons.

In direct response to calls to abolish prisons and defund the police, state prisons should move away from focusing on incapacitation to rehabilitation.

As the country with the highest incarceration rate in the world, current U.S. incarceration policies and practices are costly for families, communities, and state budgets. Openly punitive incarceration policies make it exceedingly difficult for incarcerated individuals to successfully reintegrate into communities as residents, family members, and employees. A long-term policy goal in the U.S. must be to reduce our over-reliance on incarceration through shorter prison terms, increased reliance on community sanctions, and closing prisons. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed that decarceration poses minimal risk to community safety. Given this steady decline in the prison population and decline in prison building in the U.S. since 2000, we encourage other types of development in rural communities to loosen the grip of prisons in these areas. Alternative development for rural communities is important because the most disadvantaged rural communities are both senders of prisoners and receivers of prisons with roughly 70 percent of prison facilities located in rural communities.

LONG-TERM REFORMS

Public safety and public health goals can be achieved through Community Justice Centers—these are sites that act as a diversion preference for individuals who may be in a personal crisis due to mental health conditions, substance use, or family trauma. Recent research demonstrates that using social or public health services to intervene in such situations can lead to better outcomes for communities than involving the criminal justice system. To be clear, many situations can be improved by crisis intervention expertise specializing in de-escalation rather than involving the justice system which may have competing objectives. Community Justice Centers are nongovernmental organizations that divert individuals in crisis away from law enforcement and the justice system. Such diversion also helps ease the social work burden on the justice system that it is often ill-equipped to handle.

Researchers and corrections agencies need to develop working relationships to permit the study of innovative organizational approaches. In the past, the National Institute of Justice created a researcher-practitioner partnership program , whereby local researchers worked with criminal justice practitioners (generally, law enforcement) to develop research projects that would benefit local criminal justice agencies and test innovative solutions to local problems. A similar program could be announced to help researchers assist corrections agencies and officials in identifying research projects that could address problems facing prisons and prison officials (e.g., safety, staff burnout, and prisoner grievance procedures).

Recommendations for Future Research

Some existing jail and prison correctional systems are implementing broad organization changes, including immersive faith-based correctional programs, jail-based 60- to 90-day reentry programs to prepare individuals for their transition to the community, Scandinavian and other European models to change prison culture, and an innovative Cognitive Community approach operating in several correctional facilities in Virginia. However, these efforts have not been rigorously evaluated. New models could be developed and tested widely, preferably through randomized controlled trials, and funded by the research arm of the Department of Justice, the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), or various private funders, including Arnold Ventures.

Correctional agencies in some states may be ready to implement the Cognitive Community model using a separate section of a prison or smaller facility not in use. Funding is needed to evaluate these pilot efforts, assess fidelity to the model standards, identify challenges faced in implementing the model, and propose any modifications to improve the proposed Cognitive Community model. Full-scale rigorous tests of the Cognitive Community model are needed which would randomly assign eligible inmates to the Cognitive Community environment or to continue to carry out their sentence in a regular prison setting. Ideally, these studies would observe the implementation of the program, assess intermediate outcomes while participants are enrolled in the program, follow participants upon release and examine post-release experiences in the post-release CBT program, and then assess a set of reentry outcomes at several intervals for at least one year after release.

Prison culture and environment are essential to community public health and safety. Incarcerated individuals have difficulty successfully reintegrating into their communities after release because the environment in most U.S. prisons is not conducive to positive change. Normalizing prison environments with evidence-based programming, including cognitive behavioral therapy, education, and personal development, will help incarcerated individuals lead successful lives in the community as family members, employees, and community residents. States need to move towards less reliance on incarceration and more attention to community justice models.

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History and evolution of correctional systems.

This article explores the intricate history and evolution of correctional systems in the United States, spanning from the early colonial era to contemporary times. Beginning with the roots of punishment in colonial America, the narrative delves into the emergence of the penitentiary system and its subsequent influence on the shaping of correctional philosophy. Examining pivotal moments such as the Progressive Era reforms and the Great Depression, the article analyzes how these historical contexts molded the trajectory of American corrections. A critical exploration of 20th-century challenges, including the impact of the War on Drugs and mass incarceration, sets the stage for an examination of contemporary trends and innovations, such as evidence-based practices and alternatives to incarceration. The article concludes by reflecting on the ongoing evolution of correctional systems, acknowledging both the strides made in rehabilitation and the persisting challenges in achieving a balanced and just approach to criminal justice. In adherence to the APA style, in-text citations substantiate key assertions and provide readers with access to scholarly sources.

Introduction

Correctional systems represent a crucial facet of the criminal justice process, encompassing a spectrum of institutions and practices designed to address and rehabilitate individuals involved in criminal activities. This article delves into the multifaceted history and evolution of correctional systems in the United States, offering a scholarly exploration of the intricate developments that have shaped this integral component of the criminal justice landscape. To comprehend the contemporary state of correctional systems, it is imperative to scrutinize their historical roots and trace the trajectory of their evolution. This introduction aims to define correctional systems, emphasizing their role in society, and underscores the significance of studying their history. A concise overview of the developmental milestones in corrections in the United States sets the stage for a comprehensive analysis of the various epochs that have influenced the present state of American correctional philosophy. The article’s purpose is to provide readers with a nuanced understanding of the forces and ideologies that have molded correctional systems, while its scope extends from the colonial era to contemporary times, encompassing pivotal reform movements, challenges, and innovative trends within the field.

Historical Roots of Correctional Systems

The roots of correctional systems in the United States trace back to the early forms of punishment in colonial America. During this era, punishment predominantly manifested through corporal penalties and public shaming, reflecting a society where physical retribution served as a deterrent. The utilitarian philosophy, emphasizing the greatest good for the greatest number, influenced these early approaches to punishment.

The transformational shift towards more systematic correctional practices began with the emergence of the penitentiary system. Inspired by Enlightenment ideals and the reformist movement, the notion of rehabilitation gained prominence. This era saw the establishment of two influential models: the Pennsylvania and Auburn systems. The Pennsylvania model focused on solitary confinement and reflection, while the Auburn model incorporated congregate labor in silence.

The 19th century witnessed a substantial growth in prison populations, a phenomenon propelled by urbanization and industrialization. The surge in crime rates, coupled with societal changes, led to an increased reliance on imprisonment as a method of punishment. However, this period also brought to light challenges such as overcrowding and inadequate living conditions within burgeoning prison facilities. As correctional systems grappled with these issues, the stage was set for further developments and reforms in the evolving landscape of American corrections.

Reform Movements and Progressive Era

The reform movements of the 19th and early 20th centuries mark a pivotal period in the evolution of correctional systems in the United States, notably influenced by the contrasting Auburn and Pennsylvania models. The Auburn system, emphasizing congregate labor and enforced silence, left an indelible mark on the landscape of prison labor. This model, with its focus on productivity, laid the groundwork for the emergence of modern penitentiaries where labor played a central role in the rehabilitative process.

The Progressive Era, spanning the late 19th to early 20th century, brought about substantial reforms in correctional philosophies. Departing from the punitive measures of previous eras, rehabilitation emerged as a guiding principle. This shift in ideology aimed at addressing the root causes of criminal behavior rather than merely punishing offenders. Educational and vocational programs gained prominence within prisons as tools for reform, reflecting a broader societal belief in the transformative power of education.

A significant development during this era was the rise of parole and probation as alternatives to traditional incarceration. The indeterminate sentence, allowing for flexibility in the duration of imprisonment based on an individual’s progress and behavior, became a cornerstone of Progressive Era reforms. Parole boards were established to assess inmates’ readiness for reintegration into society, fostering a more individualized approach to criminal justice.

The intertwining of these reforms not only reshaped the physical structures of correctional facilities but also redefined the overarching goals of the criminal justice system. Rehabilitation and reintegration took precedence over mere punishment, reflecting a progressive vision that sought to address the complex interplay of social, economic, and psychological factors contributing to criminal behavior. The legacy of these reforms continues to influence contemporary correctional practices, laying the groundwork for ongoing debates about the balance between punishment and rehabilitation in the criminal justice system.

Challenges and Transformations in the 20th Century

The 20th century witnessed a series of challenges and transformations that significantly impacted the landscape of correctional systems in the United States. The Great Depression, a defining economic downturn of the 1930s, had profound implications for corrections as financial constraints led to severe cutbacks in funding. This period saw a decline in rehabilitation efforts, with correctional facilities struggling to meet basic needs, thereby affecting the overall effectiveness of the system.

The introduction of the Medical Model in the mid-20th century marked a paradigm shift in correctional philosophy. This model, emphasizing the diagnosis and treatment of offenders as patients, influenced the design of treatment programs within prisons. The focus shifted from punishment to rehabilitation, with an increased emphasis on addressing underlying psychological and behavioral issues contributing to criminal behavior.

Deinstitutionalization emerged as another transformative force in the 20th century. The movement aimed to reduce the reliance on large, centralized institutions, advocating for community-based treatment and support. However, the unintended consequence of deinstitutionalization was the strain it placed on the prison population. Individuals with mental health issues, lacking adequate community support, often found themselves within the criminal justice system, contributing to the challenge of overcrowded prisons.

The latter half of the century saw the initiation of the War on Drugs, a socio-political campaign that led to a significant increase in incarceration rates. The punitive measures associated with this campaign contributed to the rise of mass incarceration, raising questions about the efficacy of such approaches in addressing the root causes of drug-related offenses.

Criticism of correctional systems intensified, with a particular focus on issues of racial disparity. The disproportionate impact of law enforcement policies on minority communities became a focal point, highlighting systemic inequalities within the criminal justice system. This period also witnessed a heated debate between proponents of rehabilitation and those advocating for a more punitive approach to justice, reflecting ongoing tensions within the field.

The challenges and transformations of the 20th century laid the groundwork for the complexities and controversies surrounding modern correctional systems. The intersection of economic factors, shifting philosophies, and social issues set the stage for a reevaluation of the goals and methods of incarceration, prompting a renewed focus on addressing systemic shortcomings and promoting justice within the criminal justice system.

Contemporary Trends and Innovations

The turn of the 21st century has witnessed a dynamic shift in correctional paradigms, marked by the emergence of contemporary trends and innovative approaches that seek to address the shortcomings of traditional correctional systems. One notable trend is the widespread adoption of evidence-based practices, emphasizing the integration of scientifically validated methods into correctional interventions. This shift reflects a commitment to programs and strategies proven to be effective in reducing recidivism and promoting rehabilitation, thereby aligning with broader efforts to enhance the overall efficacy of the criminal justice system.

Technological advancements have played a pivotal role in reshaping correctional management. From surveillance technologies to electronic monitoring systems, these innovations have enhanced the efficiency and security of correctional facilities. Additionally, advancements in data analytics and artificial intelligence are increasingly being leveraged to assess risk factors, tailor rehabilitation programs, and optimize resource allocation within correctional systems.

A significant contemporary focus is placed on reentry programs and community corrections, acknowledging that successful reintegration into society is a key component of effective correctional practices. Programs designed to facilitate a smooth transition from incarceration to community life, including job training, counseling, and support networks, aim to reduce the likelihood of reoffending and contribute to the overall well-being of the individuals involved.

The recognition of alternatives to traditional incarceration has gained momentum, fostering a more nuanced approach to criminal justice. Drug courts, mental health courts, and restorative justice programs exemplify this trend, diverting individuals away from punitive measures and towards rehabilitative interventions tailored to address specific needs. Drug courts, for instance, aim to treat underlying substance abuse issues rather than imposing lengthy sentences, reflecting a paradigm shift towards a more therapeutic approach.

However, the contemporary landscape of correctional systems is not without challenges and debates. Persistent issues such as overcrowding, the impact of mandatory minimum sentences, and questions surrounding the privatization of prisons continue to be subjects of intense discussion. Moreover, the ongoing debate between punitive measures and rehabilitative approaches underscores the complex balancing act that correctional systems must navigate in the pursuit of justice.

As the field of corrections evolves, these contemporary trends and innovations provide a glimpse into a future where evidence-based practices, technological advancements, and a holistic understanding of rehabilitation and reentry form the foundation of a more effective and humane criminal justice system. The ongoing dialogue surrounding these issues reflects the dynamic nature of correctional systems and their continued efforts to adapt to the complex challenges of the modern era.

In retrospect, the journey through the history and evolution of correctional systems in the United States reveals a tapestry woven with key historical developments that have shaped the contemporary landscape of criminal justice. From the early forms of punishment in colonial America to the emergence of the penitentiary system, the influence of the Auburn and Pennsylvania models, and the transformative reforms of the Progressive Era, each epoch reflects a response to societal needs and evolving philosophies.

The 20th century presented its own set of challenges and transformations, from the impact of the Great Depression to the adoption of the Medical Model, deinstitutionalization, and the complexities brought about by the War on Drugs. The criticism of correctional systems and the debates surrounding issues of racial disparity and the dichotomy between rehabilitation and punishment underscored the ongoing struggle to strike a balance between justice, punishment, and societal reintegration.

Contemporary trends and innovations, such as evidence-based practices, technological advancements, and the emphasis on reentry programs and alternatives to incarceration, signify a dynamic shift toward a more nuanced and rehabilitative approach. Yet, amid these positive strides, challenges persist, and debates about the fundamental principles of corrections endure.

The ongoing evolution of correctional systems beckons a reflection on the future of corrections in the United States. As we navigate an era marked by advancements in technology, a renewed emphasis on evidence-based strategies, and a growing recognition of the importance of community reintegration, the future holds the promise of a more responsive and effective criminal justice system. The intersection of historical context, contemporary challenges, and evolving philosophies invites scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to engage in a continued dialogue that seeks not only to understand the past but also to shape a future where corrections serve as a catalyst for rehabilitation, justice, and societal well-being. In this dynamic landscape, the evolution of correctional systems remains an ongoing narrative, inviting further exploration and commitment to the principles that underpin the pursuit of a just and equitable society.

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Analysis & Opinion

Oversight of Prisons and Jails Must Get Better, Faster

A new Brennan Center resource tracks progress on prison and jail oversight reform.

Accurate Crime Data

Even before Covid-19 began to infiltrate jails and prisons, America’s correctional facilities were places where disease spreads quickly. Inhumane conditions such as lack of hot water and working plumbing are also common, and assaults are often expected.

Better oversight was already badly needed. The pandemic added an additional layer of danger to these facilities through both the spread of the deadly virus and the skyrocketing number of staff who called out sick due to illness or a fear of working inside facilities.

Our jails and prisons are closed institutions, which makes it difficult for those who don’t live or work there to have a true sense of what the conditions behind bars are like. A new Brennan Center resource explores the landscape of prison and jail oversight reform since 2018. In it, we shed light on activity over the last five years to improve transparency and accountability. It highlights progress in strengthening correctional oversight as well as failed attempts to improve monitoring of conditions inside these institutions.

The United States dominates the world in the sheer number of people behind bars: a staggering 2.2 million. Despite our status as the world’s No. 1 incarcerator, the organizations making up our nation’s piecemeal network of independent agencies that conduct correctional oversight are few and far between. Terrible conditions of confinement in America’s prisons and jails continue to persist, and the nation is in dire need of more preventative and independent correctional oversight to rein these abuses in. Our current patchwork of oversight provides insufficient coverage.

Last year, 16 people died in the custody of New York City’s Department of Corrections, 15 of them at the Rikers Island Jail Complex — notorious for overcrowding and deplorable conditions. People detained at Rikers during the pandemic have reported such intolerable conditions as cooked mice being served with their food, no pillows or blankets , and sleeping in feces . Last year, correctional officers sued the jail over their working conditions, describing Rikers as “hell.”

In September, Ross MacDonald, the chief medical officer for New York City’s jails, requested state or federal assistance in a letter to the New York City Council, writing, “In 2021 we have witnessed a collapse in basic jail operations, such that today I do not believe the City is capable of safely managing the custody of those it is charged with incarcerating in its jails, nor maintaining the safety of those who work there.”

New York is one of the nation’s few cities that has an independent oversight agency, the Board of Correction, which continues to find problems with how the city Department of Corrections reported serious incidents and injuries that took place behind bars. The Board of Correction stepped in to create a computerized tracking system and conducted training for those who work in the jails about how to complete these injury reports. Yet this type of intervention — while sorely needed across the country — is rare.

While oversight of our nation’s correctional institutions is just the first step in fixing the inhumanity so many of those in custody suffer, it provides a valuable tool to identify unconstitutional practices, unacceptable conditions, and violations of state, local, and federal law. As Columbia Law professor Robert Ferguson wrote in his seminal book, Inferno: An Anatomy of American Punishment , “The suffering of the convicted is carefully arranged to take place somewhere out of sight.”

The dire state of affairs at Rikers Island and correctional institutions around the country — as well as the scarcity of access that makes even discerning correctional conditions so difficult — make the need for expanded oversight abundantly clear. While ongoing movements to increase oversight are promising, it is essential that they materialize into real progress.

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Correctional Officer Safety and Wellness — What We Learned from the Research Literature

Correctional officers play a pivotal role within the prison system. Yet, working as a correctional officer brings with it stressful and dangerous conditions that are unique to this line of work. Research has shown that correctional officers experience high stress levels, burnout, and a variety of other mental health-related consequences as a result of their jobs.

Together, the negative physical and mental health outcomes for correctional officers can have harmful effects on the wider prison institution. Staffing shortages and officers missing work create a dangerous cycle where low officer-to-incarcerated person ratios and high turnover in staffing threaten a correctional facility’s ability to implement appropriate security mandates.

The dangers that correctional officers face are explored in an NIJ-supported paper that analyzes existing research. In drafting this paper, the authors identified risks officers confront in their work environment, assessed the officers’ perspectives regarding workplace risk, noted key limitations in literature related to this topic, and recommended policies designed to enhance officer well-being.

As documented by the research on institution-related dangers, officers in today’s correctional environments are being asked to accomplish more with fewer resources, which elevates their mental health risks. For prison facilities to operate efficiently, it’s important that they be staffed with officers who are physically and mentally sound and able to respond to the numerous challenges that this line of work presents.

The authors identified three broad categories of dangers correctional officers confront: work-related, institution-related, and psycho-social dangers. These categories cover everything from gangs and contraband, to demanding work obligations, to work and family conflicts.

Each category is associated with a number of negative outcomes for correctional officers and corrections agencies, including negative health effects such as higher stress levels and injuries. Diminished work performance, burnout, and absenteeism among officers, for example, can lead to higher incarcerated person-to-officer ratios and reduced security levels within entire penitentiaries.

This research also shows that correctional officers are aware of the dangers they face. Even low-level security and juvenile detention facility officers expressed some degree of concern about their general safety and wellness. Across a range of facilities, officers reported that they think they were (or are) at higher risk for injury and other negative outcomes as a result of their jobs. These perceptions could also contribute to consequences such as stress, burnout, and turnover.

Finally, researchers found that various policies and programs have been introduced across prison facilities with the specific purpose of enhancing officer well-being. However, few of these programs have been subjected to rigorous scientific evaluation, thus limiting the understanding of their effectiveness.

According to the authors, in general, the health and safety concerns of correctional officers have been largely neglected by correctional researchers, administrative officials, and prison systems. This is a crucial area of focus given the important role that officers play in maintaining order in correctional facilities.

The authors state that improvement of correctional officer health starts by changing the mindset of administrative officials and other stakeholders in the corrections field. Administrative officials are encouraged to consider policy interventions designed to minimize the injury risk connected to dangers such as contraband, incarcerated persons with mental illness, and gangs.

Policies that could be implemented (if a facility has not already done so) include:

Heightened intake procedures to identify problematic incarcerated persons.
Improved communication channels between correctional line staff so they can discuss potentially threatening persons convicted of a crime and what can be done to handle them.
Separation of gang members to limit their ability to correspond with one another.
Ensuring that officers always have backup support when dealing with troublesome persons who have been convicted of a crime.
Instruction and training for officers on mediation tactics that de-escalate volatile situations.
Provision of additional therapeutic services for persons convicted of a crime who have mental disorders.

The implementation of such policies, targeted at decreasing and addressing dangers in correctional environments, could have the dual benefits of enhancing officer wellness and establishing wider institutional order.

About This Article

This article is based on the paper Correctional Officer Safety and Wellness Literature Synthesis (pdf, 36 pages) by Frank Valentino Ferdik, University of West Florida, and Hayden P. Smith, University of South Carolina.

Cite this Article

Correctional Facilities Essay

Introduction In the United States of America, prisoners forfeit essential rights if they are found to have been involved in terrorist activities. The forfeiture of citizenship rights provides law enforcement authorities with an opportunity to investigate suspects further and identify their accomplices and any planned terrorist plots. In spite of the provision, law enforcement authorities in New York could use correctional facilities to rehabilitate terror suspects to investigate the effectiveness of terrorist networks. Instead, most of the terrorists are introduced into the general population to interact freely with members of the public. Lowery et al. (2019) state that the department of homeland security needs to capitalize on correctional facilities to preempt further terrorist attacks (Meehan et al. 2018, p.6). Accordingly, correctional facilities should be fully exploited by law enforcement authorities to reduce the number of Islamic and right-wing terror attacks within the United States.

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Discussion Radical Islamic Terror Attacks Homeland security investigators working to collect information in correctional centers have played a key role in preventing Islamic terrorist attacks within the United States of America. In spite of the influence of the Islamic state and its rise to power, the department of homeland security has created several strategies to collect intelligence from correctional centers. Jackson et al. (2015, p.42) observe that the “Current Issues in Corrections Survey included in its assessment several specific needs related to contraband, monitoring inmate activity within institutions, and inmate classification concerns”. This demonstrates that there have been efforts by the department of homeland security have been instrumental in monitoring Muslim Americans in correctional centers who are considered to be potential terrorist threats while combating the Islamic State (ISIS). Consequently, the department has been successful in reducing the number of terrorists who are considered to be Islamic State sympathizers. “With regard to the sharing of intelligence, for example, the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) currently operates these units across the country that work with other federal, state, and local entities to support investigations, as it became clear that prison-based intelligence can positively affect operations on the street” (Meehan et al. 2018, p.4). To effectively perform their tasks and their responsibilities, the department of homeland security has trained their staff in multiple languages to decode potential terrorist attacks.

Notably, the information gathered by the department of homeland security in correctional centers has been instrumental in identifying terrorist leaders in the Middle East (Amirault & Bouchard, 2017, p.3). Coordination among interstate agencies to collect information in correctional centers has been pivotal in preventing terrorists from establishing a safe haven in the United States. Meehan et al. (2018) argue that the department of homeland security has worked with airport coordination agencies to improve aviation security. Intelligence programs have also been introduced to preempt terrorist attacks in the country by interrogating suspects in correctional centers (Jackson et al. 2015, p.62). The progress that has been recorded by the department of homeland security has been aided by legislation allowing the agency to monitor the communication of terrorist prisoners to detect attacks before they are executed.

Right Wing Terror Attacks In the recent past, right-wing terror attacks within the United States of America have been on the rise. As a matter of fact, right-wing terror attacks have been associated with polarizing issues such as immigration and radical Islam. Counterterrorism efforts have been made possible by making a provision for the department of homeland security to obtain information from inmates in correctional facilities. Though the first amendment states that prisoners can communicate freely, the department of homeland security can monitor communication channels such as incoming mails for the incarcerated individuals in correctional centers.

In spite of the rising numbers of right-wing terrorist attacks, the department of homeland security has been able to launch investigations to identify terror suspects in correctional centers. In the process, correctional facilities have been used to investigate suspects and charge them for the crimes preferred against them (Meehan et al. 2018, p.7). Correctional facilities have been instrumental in allowing the department of homeland security to leverage small crimes and violations such as drug laws and gun laws to prevent cases of violence. Lowery et al. (2019) posit that the focus of the department of homeland security continues to be shifted to reduce the number of shootings, bombings and other acts of violence that have been introduced to propagate the right-wing agenda.

A Republican, Mitchell Adkins was also apprehended and sent to a correctional facility to investigate the motives of his attack. The arrest was crucial to preempt a right wing attack on democrats in the Transylvania University in Lexington (Lowery et al. 2019).

How The Constitutional Rights Forfeited By Prisoners And Inmates Can Aid In Homeland Security Article 490 of the NY Penal Law detectives can gather information to foil terrorist attacks or to gather intelligence on planned terrorist attacks. Article 490 of the NY Penal Law S 490.25 gives a guideline to law enforcement officers to guide them on the acts of terrorism that should be investigated in interrogating suspects in correctional facilities. Article 490 of the NY Penal Law S 490.10 also applies to investigations in correctional centers to ascertain whether a threat of terrorism exists (Article 490 | New York State Penal Law). The constitution of the United States has several provisions for its citizens. However, prisoners forfeit their constitutional rights as they are often held after committing a crime (The US constitution, 2006). In spite of the fact that inmates do not have the constitutional right to exercise freedom of movement and speech, the department of homeland security has not capitalized on the situation of inmates to expand their investigations. However, the department can capitalize on incarcerated terrorist suspects to reduce the number of terrorist attacks in society. Meehan et al. (2018, p.9) suggest that the department of homeland security places legal restraints on inmates to prevent them from coordinating further terrorist attacks. Federal laws have provided law enforcement authorities with a legislative framework to act against terror suspects and those who are suspected of aiding terrorists (Jackson et al., 2015, p.35). Effectively, the department of homeland security can use existing legislation to preempt attacks planned by right-wing and Islamic terror groups.

Additionally, the department of homeland security can take advantage of the forfeiture of citizen rights to use electronic surveillance on the inmates’ relatives (The US constitution, 2006). The use of electronic surveillance and coordination with intelligence agencies will assist the department in foiling terrorist attacks and investigating the sources of financing that the inmates rely on to perpetrate violence. Meehan et al. (2018, p.10) argue that since inmates cannot claim the freedom of speech and a right to privacy, surveillance equipment can be introduced to monitor inmates’ behavior. In the past, investigations have revealed that surveillance on inmates and visitors can yield critical information to prevent terror attacks (Amirault & Bouchard, 2017, p.2).

One of the rights that the inmates forfeit by committing a crime is the freedom of movement (The US constitution, 2006). By being denied the freedom of movement when incarcerated, law enforcement agencies are free to launch investigations by conducting property searches. In the process, the department of homeland security could collect critical information to interrogate suspects to prevent further terrorist attacks (New York State, 1978). A limitation in the freedom of movement is also important to monitor suspects in a closed environment to identify their close family members and their friends. Jackson et al. (2015, p.35) outlines that monitoring the suspects could preempt terrorist attacks particularly when the suspects are dangerous, and also prompt the department of homeland security to increase its search network thereby pre-empting any potential terrorist attacks.

By the same token, inmates who have been arrested for right-wing terror activities or those arrested for participating in Islamic radicalization forfeit their rights through a limitation in the freedom of communication (The US constitution, 2006). The department of homeland security has the right to breach the first amendment rights of inmates to monitor their communication. The communication by inmates to family members and close acquaintances could be monitored to ascertain whether there is any implicating evidence in the interpersonal communication (New York State, 1978). Reading emails could also be done by the department of homeland security which evaluates the communication transmitted to the inmates to ascertain whether there is evidence of a terrorist attack. Meehan et al. (2018, p.11) have shown that screening outgoing communication could also be used by the department of homeland security to preempt further attacks. Presumably, law enforcement agencies who capitalize on the condition of inmates to launch investigations have a significant advantage in understanding terror attacks and preventing them before they occur.

The United States’ constitution provides that every citizen has a right to fair treatment to live in an environment that is free of segregation. Through the forfeiture of first amendment rights, it is possible for the department of homeland security to segregate a terror suspect (The US constitution, 2006). Terror suspects could be put in isolation cells where their behavior is monitored, and officials from the department of homeland security get an opportunity to conduct interviews with the identified suspects. Jackson et al. (2015, p.35) have shown that segregation and discrimination could also be used by law enforcement officers operating under the constitution to ensure that they can separate suspects that are considered to be a danger to society (New York State, 1978). The benefit of the incarceration process is that it prevents inmates from interacting with other inmates and potentially radicalizing or recruiting them to join right-wing terrorist activities. The segregation and the discrimination of suspects is appropriate to dismantle terrorist organizations particularly if the suspect is an influential leader (Jackson et al. 2015, p.33). Therefore, correctional facilities could be used as an asset for law enforcement agencies to preempt attacks by separating terrorist group leaders.

At the same time, law enforcement authorities could use correctional facilities as a platform for detaining terror suspects until they are charged in a court of law (The US constitution, 2006). Law enforcement agencies can coordinate with the department of homeland security and state governments to establish correctional facilities for detaining radicalized terrorists until they are charged in a court of law. The detention process is critical in maintaining law and order in society and reducing the number of terrorist attacks instituted by the right-wing and left-wing groups. Meehan et al. (2018, p.3) have shown that by detaining the suspects, law enforcement agencies can interview them on multiple occasions to corroborate information collected in the investigative process. The detention process also allows law enforcement agencies to investigate the motives of the terrorist attack to formulate preventative strategies for future attacks. By detaining terror suspects in correctional centers, the government reduces congestion in the regular correctional facilities (New York State, 1978). In the same manner, detention and correctional facilities are an asset that could be used by law enforcement agencies to categorize terrorist attacks and to investigate the motives of terrorists (Meehan et al. 2018, p.4). After interrogating suspects, law enforcement agencies collect additional information to apprehend accomplices and stop other terrorist plots. The collection of data could then be used to indict suspects and to broaden the investigation to prevent future terrorist attacks. Therefore, correctional facilities are an asset to law enforcement authorities as they provide them with physical space to detain right wing or left wing terror suspects.

In the same way, correctional facilities can be used by law enforcement agencies to protect terrorist suspects who have decided to cooperate with law enforcement agencies in exchange of reduced sentences. Since the witness protection program is expensive to run, correctional facilities could be used to protect suspects and provide them with the security required to persuade them to divulge details about their terrorist organizations. Meehan et al. (2018, p.5) asserts that the protection offered by law enforcement agencies is essential as it could motivate terror suspects to participate in the investigative process to prevent terrorist plots. Arguably, using correctional facilities as a suspect protection program is beneficial to law enforcement agencies to protect their informants (New York State, 1978). In many cases, terrorist suspects who are released into society could decide to retreat to their terror organizations. Suspects who divulge critical operation details could backtrack the efforts of law enforcement agencies thereby making it difficult for them to prevent terrorist attacks. However, it is necessary for correctional facilities to be used as detention and monitoring centers to investigate the consistency of information provided by terrorist suspects.

Correctional facilities could also be used as an asset for the rehabilitation of radicalized terrorists within the United States of America. Law enforcement agencies have the opportunity to use correctional facilities as rehabilitation institutions where they recruit professionals to counsel terror suspects with the aim of rehabilitating them back to society (New York State, 1978). Educational programs could also be created to investigate the motivations of terror suspects to equip them with the requisite skills required to earn additional income. Granted, converting correctional facilities into rehabilitation centers will reduce the number of right-wing terrorists motivated by xenophobia, racism and sexual discrimination (New York, 1974). Programs created by law enforcement authorities could be designed to encourage inmates to adopt an ideological change for them to be released into society (New York, 1978). At the same time, correctional facilities could also be used by law enforcement authorities as a rehabilitation center for terrorists that subscribe to Islamic radicalism. Imams and Sheikhs could be called into the rehabilitation centers and correctional facilities to reorient radical terrorists and reintegrate them into society.

Conclusion The department of homeland security in the United States of America should take full advantage of the forfeiture of citizen rights to improve its law enforcement efforts. Communication should be monitored and terror suspects put under surveillance to collect more information on further terrorist ploys. Law enforcement authorities also have the right to segregate the suspects and interrogate them repeatedly to corroborate information obtained in their investigative processes. The full exploitation of correctional facilities will allow law enforcement agencies to prevent terrorist attacks in the country and guarantee public security within the United States of America. Correctional facilities should also be used as training centers where law enforcement authorities investigate the source of right-wing and left-wing terrorist attacks.

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References Amirault, J., & Bouchard, M. (2017). Timing is everything: The role of contextual and terrorism-specific factors in the sentencing outcomes of terrorist offenders. European journal of criminology, 14(3), 269-289. Article 490 | New York State Penal Law | Terrorism | NY Laws. Retrieved from http://ypdcrime.com/penal.law/article490.htm Jackson, B. A., Russo, J., Hollywood, J. S., Silberglitt, R., & Woods, D. (2015). Fostering innovation in community and institutional corrections: Identifying high-priority technology and other needs for the US corrections sector. Rand Corporation. Lowery, Kindy, K. & Tran, A. (2019) In the United States, right-wing violence is on the rise. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/in-the-united-states-right-wing-violence-is-on-the-rise/2018/11/25/61f7f24a-deb4-11e8-85df-7a6b4d25cfbb_story.html?utm_term=.e477ab25f823 Meehan, N., Kelly, C. E., & McClary, M. (2018). The snitching hour: investigations and interviewing in a county jail. Security Journal, 1-20. New York (N.Y.). (1978). Minimum standards for New York City correctional facilities. New York: The Board. New York (State). (1974). Correction law of New York and extracts of other New York laws for correction and probation officers. Binghamton: Gould Publications. The US constitution. (2006). Philadelphia, Pa: Running.

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Press Release Massachusetts Department of Correction Selects VitalCore Health Strategies as New Independent Health Care Partner

Massachusetts Department of Correction

Media Contact for Massachusetts Department of Correction Selects VitalCore Health Strategies as New Independent Health Care Partner

Scott j. croteau, acting director of media relations.

Milford — Today, the Massachusetts Department of Correction (DOC) announced the selection of a new independent health care partner to deliver comprehensive patient health care services for residents living at 10 state correctional facilities. After an extensive procurement process, VitalCore Health Strategies , a national leader in correctional healthcare, was chosen for a 5-year contract with the DOC based on the organization’s demonstrated ability to provide innovative and comprehensive correctional health care with a steadfast commitment to enhancing the quality of service for incarcerated patients.

The procurement process began in February 2023 when DOC sought the expertise of ForHealth Consulting at UMass Chan Medical School to develop a Request for Proposal designed to meet the evolving and complex needs of DOC’s incarcerated population. In collaboration with ForHealth, DOC developed a robust RFR, released in November 2023, that included extensive demographic information about the incarcerated population to ensure bidders could develop and structure proposals tailored to fit the needs of the 10 facilities.

A procurement review team thoroughly evaluated submissions from all bidders and determined VitalCore will offer the best value for Massachusetts taxpayers.

“In correctional settings, the success of the rehabilitative mission relies on a system’s ability to provide quality and compassionate care. The Massachusetts Department of Correction’s new partnership with VitalCore reflects their deep commitment to delivering holistic healthcare to incarcerated individuals,” said Secretary of Public Safety and Security Terrence Reidy . “I commend the DOC and UMass Chan ForHealth team for their thoughtful approach to identifying an independent healthcare partner who can meet the complex needs of incarcerated patients and shares Massachusetts’ vision for achieving high standards of care.”

“Recognizing the wide-ranging needs of incarcerated individuals, we selected VitalCore with confidence in their ability to deliver important services across our state correctional system,” said Interim DOC Commissioner Shawn Jenkins. “The expertise of our partners at ForHealth informed our approach to enhancing our service delivery model in ways that will improve outcomes for those entrusted to our care.”

“We are excited to collaborate and partner with the Massachusetts Department of Correction. Our mission is to prioritize the dignity and health of all under custodial care by delivering the highest standards of quality medical and behavioral health care, guided by evidence-based and trauma-informed best practices that result in positive clinical experiences for incarcerated patients,” said Viola Riggin, CEO of VitalCore Health Strategies . “ We share the same goals as the DOC to provide quality patient care, and we will demonstrate our passion for this work in our daily services.”

As part of the five-year, $770 million agreement, VitalCore will facilitate medical, dental, mental, and behavioral health, substance use assessment, and sex offender treatment and evaluation services at 10 state correctional facilities. VitalCore will introduce new evidence-based practices and innovations to enhance the quality of care, including implementing a secure Telehealth system, an after-hours crisis hotline, and the eventual goal of an online patient portal accessible to incarcerated individuals through their DOC-issued personal tablets. The new provider will also bring renewed focus to medical staff recruitment and retention, geriatric care, and comprehensive wellness and pain management programs.

The contract allows for two extensions with up to two years per extension.

VitalCore will serve the following state correctional facilities:

VitalCore replaces DOC’s previous healthcare provider, Wellpath, LLC, whose contract at the abovementioned correctional facilities ends on June 30, 2024.

The Department maintains a separate, facility-specific contract with Wellpath Recovery Solutions for Bridgewater State Hospital (BSH). DOC anticipates the next procurement process for BSH health care services will begin early next year.

In addition, a procurement process is now underway for a facility-specific contract for the Massachusetts Alcohol and Substance Abuse Center (MASAC) in Plymouth, with an anticipated start date of July 2024.

About VitalCore Health Strategies

VitalCore was founded in January 2015 as Viola Riggin LLC and rebranded as VitalCore in 2018. VitalCore Health Strategies’ focus on values and improving the quality of life for patients is redefining correctional healthcare and healthcare in other institutionalized settings.

Based in Topeka, Kansas, VitalCore provides health and mental health services in carceral settings nationwide. VitalCore currently serves 136 facilities providing care to 80,000 incarcerated individuals in 17 states.

VitalCore’s patient-first approach ensures safe, high-quality care aimed at optimizing outcomes and mitigating risk. VitalCore prioritizes preventive care, outcomes-based behavioral services, evidence-based practice, and medical care that treats the whole patient, recognizing that preventative medicine leads to healthier patients, fewer risks, and lower costs.

Learn more, about VitalCore Health Strategies here .

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Bay State Correctional Center to serve as Mass. emergency shelter, officials say

Published: May. 12, 2024, 5:34 p.m.

Families sleeping at Boston's Logan Airport on Monday, March 11, 2024. Luis Fieldman

Susannah Sudborough | [email protected]

Massachusetts state officials plan to use a former Norfolk prison as a temporary emergency shelter site for families experiencing homelessness as they attempt to deal with an overflowing shelter system, according to Gov. Maura Healey’s Office.

The site is expected to serve about 140 families on the state shelter system’s waitlist — many of whom are currently staying at Logan Airport each night, the office said in an email to MassLive. Over half the families receiving emergency shelter assistance are newly-arrived immigrants.

Read more: How migrants sleeping at Logan Airport spend their days and nights

Bay State — a former minimum-security prison — was decommissioned in 2015, but the facility is still in good condition, Scott Rice, the state’s emergency assistance director, said in a statement to MassLive. The families will have access to full bathrooms, a cafeteria, a gym and a large common room, he said.

The site will be set up with play areas for children, as well as classroom spaces for adults to take job training, english second language and housing search classes, Rice said. Additionally, the razor wire on the fence surrounding the facility will be removed, and the former prison’s gates will be left open so that the families can come and go as they please.

Read more: Mass. shelter system could run out of money within days, top Dem warns

The site will be staffed at all times by a contracted service provider, according to Healey’s office. Transportation services allowing the families to go on and off site will also be made available.

The families will be subject to the state’s 30-day emergency overflow shelter stay limit, according to Healey’s office. The limit requires people staying in certain shelters to reapply to stay there every 30 days to prove they meet certain requirements, according to WBUR .

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Two killed, many injured Friday in 'group disturbance' at Lawton prison

The Lawton Correctional and Rehabilitation Facility is Oklahoma's only remaining private prison.

Two inmates were killed and more than 30 others were injured Friday during a group fight at the Lawton Correction and Rehabilitation Center, The Oklahoman has learned. Corrections officials said at least two of the inmates sustained serious injuries and were transported to the hospital − one via medi-flight and one via ground vehicle.

"We had a group disturbance at LCRF which resulted in multiple inmates injured and two deaths," Corrections Department Spokesperson Kay Thompson said in an email. "It’s unknown at this time how many had minor injuries that were treated at the facility."

The incident, which is currently being investigated by the corrections department's inspector general, was described as a "group disturbance" by Thompson. She said visitation at the facility was cancelled this weekend.

"This was an operational error by the prison," Thompson said.

Emily Barnes, founder of criminal justice advocacy group Hooked on Justice, said the incident involved two gangs who were supposed to have been kept separate. One of the gangs, she said, was let into the yard which started the fight.

Earlier this year, Thompson said the DOC had expanded its Contraband Interdiction Unit to keep items such as cellphones and drugs from entering facilities. She said the department works with the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control to help fight drug operations on the streets, which reduces the number of drugs in the facilities.

She said the department's strategy was working and DOC has seen "a significant decrease in violence" between security threat groups. Earlier this year, she said the department is making data-driven decisions to decrease the violence inside the facilities.

Thompson said the department's operations team is working closely with The Geo Group to understand how it occurred and what corrective actions need to be taken. "ODOC is always concerned for the health and safety of those in our care and those incarcerated in contracted facilities," she said.

The Geo Group said they were aware of the incident and one officer sustained minor injuries during the incident. "The health and safety of all those in our care has always been our number one priority, and we have zero tolerance for any acts of violence," a spokesperson said.

Thompson said the number of violent incidents had decreased in state prisons since October, after the department revised its misconduct policy and took strategic moves to house certain security threat groups together, which reduces the violence between gangs.

Barnes said she was first notified from inmates the facility was on lockdown on Friday evening. She said inmates didn’t eat until about 1 a.m. because of the lockdown. Barnes said people inside the facility told her they think the fight was deliberate because the two gangs are not supposed to share the same space.

“This is considered a mini riot because it was more than 30 people involved and more than 30 people hurt,” Barnes said. “DOC is letting this stuff go on, and something needs to be done.”

The incident drew a harsh rebuke from state Rep. Justin Humphrey, who heads the House Criminal Justice and Corrections Committee. Humphrey has been critical of the management of the corrections system and previously has called for policy changes to better protect both DOC staff and inmates.

"I am very disappointed that the Department of Corrections has ignored the overwhelming evidence that our prison system is primed for disaster," Humphrey said. "I have been publicly warning how the violence in Oklahoma prisons has been escalating. Just this week we have a prior report of a stabbing at Lawton, a stabbing at Hinton resulting in death and a stabbing at Holdenville. Now we have a report of a possible riot with reports of multiple injuries and possible three deaths. I hope the governor and our legislators will take notice and take proper actions to prevent more lives from (being) lost."

Humphrey said it was time for state officials to declare a state of emergency within the corrections system.

The killings are the latest in a number of violent incidents at the Lawton facility, which is owned by The Geo Group. Last October, inmate Raymond Bailey was attacked and killed at the LCRC. Bailey's body, which wasn't discovered for hours , was found in a garbage bin covered by a plastic bag with four small milk cartons tossed on top.

Both the Lawton Correctional Facility and the Allen Gamble Correctional Center in Holdenville (formerly Davis Correctional Center) reported eight homicides during the past five years, those numbers are the highest in the state system − which continues to struggle with inmate violence.

Records obtained from the corrections department show at least 29 inmates died by homicide from 2019 to 2023. Corrections Department officials said Saturday they were waiting for the medical examiner’s office to determine the official cause of death for another 28 inmates who died in 2023.

Homicide is the fourth-leading cause of inmate death in Oklahoma prisons, excluding executions.

Corrections Department officials previously said that staffing levels aren't causing prison violence. They attribute homicides and injuries to gang activity and contraband, something they say they are working hard to reduce. Those efforts include revised policies and procedures, new technology, regular sweeps of inmate cells, and separating rival gang members have eased the risk and located weapons, drugs and cellphones.

Two inmates dead after group disturbance at Lawton prison, facility locked down

by DeAngelo Marquise Vaxter

Oklahoma prison disturbance leaves multiple inmates injured (KSWO)

LAWTON, OK (KOKH) — The Oklahoma Department of Corrections (ODOC) is investigating an incident involving several inmates at a prison in Lawton.

According to ODOC, there was a group disturbance at the Lawton Correctional Facility, resulting in deaths and injuries.

ODOC said two inmates died as a result of the disturbance.

The facility is locked down and will remain on lockdown until further notice.

ODOC said more information will be released as it becomes available.

95 men, women sue state of Illinois alleging 'severe' sexual abuse at youth centers

A lawsuit has been filed on behalf of 95 men and women who claim they were sexually abused while housed at youth centers throughout Illinois.

The complaint accuses the state of Illinois, the Illinois Department of Corrections and the Department of Juvenile Justice (IDJJ) of failing to protect the plaintiffs from adult employees sexually abusing them.

"The state of Illinois has caused and permitted a culture of sexual abuse to flourish unabated in its IYC facilities," the complaint says. "Upon information and belief, the State of Illinois is aware (and has for decades been aware) that the conditions identified above as connected to sexual abuse and conditions of juvenile detention facilities were and are endemic to all IYC facilities"

The 95 plaintiffs were housed at Illinois youth centers in Chicago, Murphysboro, Valley View, Joliet, Kewanee, Warrenville, St. Charles, Pere Marquette, and Harrisburg, according to the suit filed in the Illinois Court of Claims. The plaintiffs, who are now adults, all suffered the alleged sexual abuse from 1996 to 2017 when they were between the ages of 12 and 17 years old.

USA TODAY reached out to the Illinois Department of Corrections and the Illinois Attorney General's office for comment but did not receive a response.

Youth center staff sexually abused the plaintiffs, complaint says

The sexual abusers were correctional officers, counselors, supervisors, sergeants, nurses, therapists, a chaplain and other Illinois youth center staff, the complaint alleges. Multiple plaintiffs alleged "severe abuse" by the same abusers, the suit continued.

"The very people that were entrusted with keeping our clients safe when they were children at these youth centers, were the ones that were perpetrating the sexual abuse," Jerome Block, an attorney for the plaintiffs, told USA TODAY on Tuesday during an interview. "This is long-term institutionalized sexual abuse that took place for more than 20 years."

Block said many of his clients were raped and forced to perform oral sex and other sexual acts.

"All of our clients were sexually assaulted in one way or another," the attorney said. "Many of our clients reported the sexual abuse and nothing was done. Our clients were often threatened or incentivized with contraband, such as cigarettes or other privileges... Overall this shows that the Illinois juvenile justice system is broken."

In June 2013, the Department of Justice's National Survey of Youth in Custody reported Illinois "was among the four worst states in the nation for sexual abuse in juvenile detention facilities," according to the complaint.

Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice 'aware of the lawsuit'

In a statement emailed to USA TODAY, the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice said it is aware of the lawsuit "related to allegations under prior administrations."

"Although the Department is unable to comment on active litigation, IDJJ takes seriously the safety of youth in the care of the Department," the statement read.

"All allegations of staff misconduct are immediately and thoroughly investigated in partnership with the Department of Corrections, the Illinois State Police and the Department of Children and Family Services," the statement continued.

The IDJJ has also "enacted policies and protocols to ensure the safety of youth and staff and identify any possible instances of misconduct," according to the statement.

"IDJJ protocols comply with both state and federal safety standards and IDJJ completes ongoing policy and protocol evaluations," the statement said. "All staff working in IDJJ facilities undergo background checks and training, along with participating in ongoing professional development."

'They're able to stand together'

Block said he and his co-counsel are preparing for additional complaints as they represent hundreds of people who were sexually abused at Illinois youth centers. The 95 women and men are a part of the first complaint, but the attorney said additional groups of plaintiffs will be filing suits in the coming months.

"It's my privilege and honor to support our clients through this process," Block said. "Many of them have held this trauma inside all of their lives."

All the plaintiffs "feel empowered" since they're able to seek some form of accountability, according to Block.

"They're able to stand together with other people who suffered similar sexual abuse after really living alone with this much of their lives," the attorney said.

Each plaintiff is demanding individual judgments of $2 million, which is the "jurisdictional maximum," the complaint says.

Correction: The original photo previously attached to the story is of the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center in Chicago, Illinois. This facility is not a part of the lawsuit filed by the 95 men and women accusing Illinois youth centers of not preventing sexual abuse.

Two dead, numerous injured after ‘operational error’ at Lawton Correctional Facility

LAWTON, Okla. (KSWO) - Two inmates died and numerous inmates were reportedly hurt after what is being called a group disturbance took place at the Lawton Correctional Facility, Friday, May 10.

In a letter sent to news agencies by the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, an operational error allowed for the incident to happen. The letter further stated the incident was related to security threat groups, or gangs.

The Geo Group, who operates the prison, also told news agencies that the deaths and numerous injuries took place due to an inmate-on-inmate assault.

The Oklahoma Department of Corrections is currently investigating the incident.

7News Video Journalist Tyler McClelland was at the scene and got video of the med flight leaving the facility. You can view the footage above.

Escaped Caddo Co. inmates put county on high alert, search underway

UPDATE: Escaped Caddo Co. inmates put county on high alert, found, arrested

Investigators say they received a call about a police chase in Lawton that started this morning.

Car Chase allegedly starts after disagreement at funeral, ends at Medicine Park gas station

Riley Strain's disappearance caught the attention of national news and social media.

Riley Strain’s toxicology report is complete, medical examiner says

Marlow Outlaws win state Baseball title, bring back trophy, joy to hometown

Lawton’s 50th annual ‘Arts for All’ event gets underway

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Ramón Fonseca, Cofounder of Law Firm at Center of Panama Papers, Dies

Mr. Fonseca died while awaiting the verdict in his trial for money laundering tied to the 2016 scandal exposed by a massive leak of documents from his firm.

A man wearing a dark suit, white shirt and red tie sits behind a desk with his legs crossed, and a bookshelf behind him.

By Leila Miller

Ramón Fonseca, who co-founded the law firm at the heart of the Panama Papers leak, died Wednesday night, his lawyer confirmed, while awaiting the verdict in his money-laundering trial in Panama.

Mr. Fonseca, 71, died after complications from pneumonia, his daughter, Raquel Fonseca, told the Spanish news agency EFE .

Both Mr. Fonseca and Jürgen Mossack, who together founded the Mossack Fonseca firm, stood trial in Panama last month in relation to an explosive investigation published in 2016 by a coalition of news outlets that looked at 11.5 million confidential documents from the firm. The files, leaked by an anonymous source, identified international politicians , business leaders, criminals and celebrities involved in webs of suspicious financial transactions that concealed their wealth and avoided taxes.

During the trial, which began April 8 and lasted 10 days, prosecutors alleged that the firm had created shell companies with the purpose of hiding money that came from illicit activities. A total of 29 people — former employees of the now-shuttered firm and alleged conspirators — were accused of money laundering.

Since the beginning of the scandal, Mr. Fonseca and Mr. Mossack maintained their innocence. In an interview shortly after the Panama Papers exposé broke, Mr. Fonseca said that the firm had carefully vetted its clients but that it was similar to a car factory that “is not responsible for what is done with the car” after it is sold.

Mr. Fonseca studied at the London School of Economics and later worked for several years at the United Nations in Geneva. He told The New York Times that he had been “trying to save the world.”

In 1986, he and Mr. Mossack merged their small law firms into one that would be focused on secretive offshore banking. He also became a famous novelist, twice winning a prestigious Panamanian literary prize, and served as an adviser to President Juan Carlos Varela.

The Panama Papers investigation began with a message from an anonymous whistle-blower to Süddeutsche Zeitung, a German newspaper, asking if it was interested in data. The outlet decided to share the massive leak with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in Washington, D.C., which put together a team of hundreds of reporters from more than 100 news organizations around the world.

The leaked files covered nearly 215,000 offshore entities and more than 14,000 banks, law firms and middlemen that worked with Mossack Fonseca. The stories by the journalism partnership began rolling out in April 2016, leading the prime ministers of Iceland and Pakistan to step down.

But in Panama, some saw the firm’s owners as victims. The country’s bar association at the time came to its defense, saying that the leak was an attempt to attack the country’s reputation.

In 2017, Mossack and Fonseca were arrested in Panama on money-laundering charges relating to a scandal in Brazil known as Lava Jato, or Car Wash, a bribery scheme involving the state-controlled oil company Petrobras. They were released on bail from prison after several months. Their firm, which at one point had more than 600 employees, closed in 2018, insisting that it hadn’t broken the law.

In the Panama Papers trial, prosecutors alleged that the firm managed shell companies with the aim of moving off-the-books money from the German electronics company Siemens that was tied to illegal payments. They also accused the firm of being involved in illicit activity connected to Argentina.

It is unclear when the judge will hand down verdicts. She is also expected to issue a decision on a trial that took place last summer in the Lava Jato case that also implicated the firm.

Mr. Fonseca had been hospitalized throughout the Panama Papers trial. His daughter told EFE that the scandal had caused his health to deteriorate.

“All of this political persecution, all of the injustices greatly affected his physical health,” she said.

40 Facts About Elektrostal

Written by Lanette Mayes

Modified & Updated: 10 May 2024

Reviewed by Jessica Corbett

Elektrostal is a vibrant city located in the Moscow Oblast region of Russia. With a rich history, stunning architecture, and a thriving community, Elektrostal is a city that has much to offer. Whether you are a history buff, nature enthusiast, or simply curious about different cultures, Elektrostal is sure to captivate you.

This article will provide you with 40 fascinating facts about Elektrostal, giving you a better understanding of why this city is worth exploring. From its origins as an industrial hub to its modern-day charm, we will delve into the various aspects that make Elektrostal a unique and must-visit destination.

So, join us as we uncover the hidden treasures of Elektrostal and discover what makes this city a true gem in the heart of Russia.

Key Takeaways:

Elektrostal, known as the “Motor City of Russia,” is a vibrant and growing city with a rich industrial history, offering diverse cultural experiences and a strong commitment to environmental sustainability.
With its convenient location near Moscow, Elektrostal provides a picturesque landscape, vibrant nightlife, and a range of recreational activities, making it an ideal destination for residents and visitors alike.

Known as the “Motor City of Russia.”

Elektrostal, a city located in the Moscow Oblast region of Russia, earned the nickname “Motor City” due to its significant involvement in the automotive industry.

Home to the Elektrostal Metallurgical Plant.

Elektrostal is renowned for its metallurgical plant, which has been producing high-quality steel and alloys since its establishment in 1916.

Boasts a rich industrial heritage.

Elektrostal has a long history of industrial development, contributing to the growth and progress of the region.

Founded in 1916.

The city of Elektrostal was founded in 1916 as a result of the construction of the Elektrostal Metallurgical Plant.

Located approximately 50 kilometers east of Moscow.

Elektrostal is situated in close proximity to the Russian capital, making it easily accessible for both residents and visitors.

Known for its vibrant cultural scene.

Elektrostal is home to several cultural institutions, including museums, theaters, and art galleries that showcase the city’s rich artistic heritage.

A popular destination for nature lovers.

Surrounded by picturesque landscapes and forests, Elektrostal offers ample opportunities for outdoor activities such as hiking, camping, and birdwatching.

Hosts the annual Elektrostal City Day celebrations.

Every year, Elektrostal organizes festive events and activities to celebrate its founding, bringing together residents and visitors in a spirit of unity and joy.

Has a population of approximately 160,000 people.

Elektrostal is home to a diverse and vibrant community of around 160,000 residents, contributing to its dynamic atmosphere.

Boasts excellent education facilities.

The city is known for its well-established educational institutions, providing quality education to students of all ages.

A center for scientific research and innovation.

Elektrostal serves as an important hub for scientific research, particularly in the fields of metallurgy, materials science, and engineering.

Surrounded by picturesque lakes.

The city is blessed with numerous beautiful lakes, offering scenic views and recreational opportunities for locals and visitors alike.

Well-connected transportation system.

Elektrostal benefits from an efficient transportation network, including highways, railways, and public transportation options, ensuring convenient travel within and beyond the city.

Famous for its traditional Russian cuisine.

Food enthusiasts can indulge in authentic Russian dishes at numerous restaurants and cafes scattered throughout Elektrostal.

Home to notable architectural landmarks.

Elektrostal boasts impressive architecture, including the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord and the Elektrostal Palace of Culture.

Offers a wide range of recreational facilities.

Residents and visitors can enjoy various recreational activities, such as sports complexes, swimming pools, and fitness centers, enhancing the overall quality of life.

Provides a high standard of healthcare.

Elektrostal is equipped with modern medical facilities, ensuring residents have access to quality healthcare services.

Home to the Elektrostal History Museum.

The Elektrostal History Museum showcases the city’s fascinating past through exhibitions and displays.

A hub for sports enthusiasts.

Elektrostal is passionate about sports, with numerous stadiums, arenas, and sports clubs offering opportunities for athletes and spectators.

Celebrates diverse cultural festivals.

Throughout the year, Elektrostal hosts a variety of cultural festivals, celebrating different ethnicities, traditions, and art forms.

Electric power played a significant role in its early development.

Elektrostal owes its name and initial growth to the establishment of electric power stations and the utilization of electricity in the industrial sector.

Boasts a thriving economy.

The city’s strong industrial base, coupled with its strategic location near Moscow, has contributed to Elektrostal’s prosperous economic status.

Houses the Elektrostal Drama Theater.

The Elektrostal Drama Theater is a cultural centerpiece, attracting theater enthusiasts from far and wide.

Popular destination for winter sports.

Elektrostal’s proximity to ski resorts and winter sport facilities makes it a favorite destination for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter activities.

Promotes environmental sustainability.

Elektrostal prioritizes environmental protection and sustainability, implementing initiatives to reduce pollution and preserve natural resources.

Home to renowned educational institutions.

Elektrostal is known for its prestigious schools and universities, offering a wide range of academic programs to students.

Committed to cultural preservation.

The city values its cultural heritage and takes active steps to preserve and promote traditional customs, crafts, and arts.

Hosts an annual International Film Festival.

The Elektrostal International Film Festival attracts filmmakers and cinema enthusiasts from around the world, showcasing a diverse range of films.

Encourages entrepreneurship and innovation.

Elektrostal supports aspiring entrepreneurs and fosters a culture of innovation, providing opportunities for startups and business development.

Offers a range of housing options.

Elektrostal provides diverse housing options, including apartments, houses, and residential complexes, catering to different lifestyles and budgets.

Home to notable sports teams.

Elektrostal is proud of its sports legacy, with several successful sports teams competing at regional and national levels.

Boasts a vibrant nightlife scene.

Residents and visitors can enjoy a lively nightlife in Elektrostal, with numerous bars, clubs, and entertainment venues.

Promotes cultural exchange and international relations.

Elektrostal actively engages in international partnerships, cultural exchanges, and diplomatic collaborations to foster global connections.

Surrounded by beautiful nature reserves.

Nearby nature reserves, such as the Barybino Forest and Luchinskoye Lake, offer opportunities for nature enthusiasts to explore and appreciate the region’s biodiversity.

Commemorates historical events.

The city pays tribute to significant historical events through memorials, monuments, and exhibitions, ensuring the preservation of collective memory.

Promotes sports and youth development.

Elektrostal invests in sports infrastructure and programs to encourage youth participation, health, and physical fitness.

Hosts annual cultural and artistic festivals.

Throughout the year, Elektrostal celebrates its cultural diversity through festivals dedicated to music, dance, art, and theater.

Provides a picturesque landscape for photography enthusiasts.

The city’s scenic beauty, architectural landmarks, and natural surroundings make it a paradise for photographers.

Connects to Moscow via a direct train line.

The convenient train connection between Elektrostal and Moscow makes commuting between the two cities effortless.

A city with a bright future.

Elektrostal continues to grow and develop, aiming to become a model city in terms of infrastructure, sustainability, and quality of life for its residents.

In conclusion, Elektrostal is a fascinating city with a rich history and a vibrant present. From its origins as a center of steel production to its modern-day status as a hub for education and industry, Elektrostal has plenty to offer both residents and visitors. With its beautiful parks, cultural attractions, and proximity to Moscow, there is no shortage of things to see and do in this dynamic city. Whether you’re interested in exploring its historical landmarks, enjoying outdoor activities, or immersing yourself in the local culture, Elektrostal has something for everyone. So, next time you find yourself in the Moscow region, don’t miss the opportunity to discover the hidden gems of Elektrostal.

Q: What is the population of Elektrostal?

A: As of the latest data, the population of Elektrostal is approximately XXXX.

Q: How far is Elektrostal from Moscow?

A: Elektrostal is located approximately XX kilometers away from Moscow.

Q: Are there any famous landmarks in Elektrostal?

A: Yes, Elektrostal is home to several notable landmarks, including XXXX and XXXX.

Q: What industries are prominent in Elektrostal?

A: Elektrostal is known for its steel production industry and is also a center for engineering and manufacturing.

Q: Are there any universities or educational institutions in Elektrostal?

A: Yes, Elektrostal is home to XXXX University and several other educational institutions.

Q: What are some popular outdoor activities in Elektrostal?

A: Elektrostal offers several outdoor activities, such as hiking, cycling, and picnicking in its beautiful parks.

Q: Is Elektrostal well-connected in terms of transportation?

A: Yes, Elektrostal has good transportation links, including trains and buses, making it easily accessible from nearby cities.

Q: Are there any annual events or festivals in Elektrostal?

A: Yes, Elektrostal hosts various events and festivals throughout the year, including XXXX and XXXX.

Elektrostal's fascinating history, vibrant culture, and promising future make it a city worth exploring. For more captivating facts about cities around the world, discover the unique characteristics that define each city . Uncover the hidden gems of Moscow Oblast through our in-depth look at Kolomna. Lastly, dive into the rich industrial heritage of Teesside, a thriving industrial center with its own story to tell.

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Our commitment to delivering trustworthy and engaging content is at the heart of what we do. Each fact on our site is contributed by real users like you, bringing a wealth of diverse insights and information. To ensure the highest standards of accuracy and reliability, our dedicated editors meticulously review each submission. This process guarantees that the facts we share are not only fascinating but also credible. Trust in our commitment to quality and authenticity as you explore and learn with us.

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Correctional Facilities: Baltimore City Jail’ Case Essay

The contemporary corrections facilities are experiencing a wide variety of problems. Some of these issues negatively affect the prison inmates while the other ones are likely to create an impact on the population of the country as well.

Among the most commonly discussed subjects concerning the difficulties the prisons of the world are undergoing are violence among the inmates (including such internal criminal activities as gangs, drug dealership, assault, and racism), mental health or health care in general, high density of the imprisoned population, and corruption. The latter issue is the focus of the present paper that reviews and analyzes an article with the corresponding subject matter.

The article selected for this paper was found on a well-known news portal of the National Public Radio (NPR) called “Md. Governor Orders Closure of ‘Deplorable’ Baltimore City Jail” and written by Bill Chappell. It was posted on the 30 th of July this year and is less than two months old. The article elaborates on the scandalous shut down of a Detention Center in Baltimore that was the responsibility of the state government (Chappell, 2015).

The facility has been announced as heavily corrupted back in 2013. The author emphasized that the imprisoned population basically was in charge of the Detention Center daily practicing such criminal activities as smuggling, drug dealing, and contraband; besides, the incarceration personnel was found in agreement with the prisoners (Chappell, 2015).

After the Federal probe had revealed this disgraceful state of the Detention Center, twenty-five corrections officers and personnel of the prison were interrogated and indicted (13 of them were female) (Chappell, 2015). Apart from the corrupt incarceration personnel, the Center also had such issues as poor health care (both mental and medical), as well as dangerous physical conditions. The building of the Detention Center dates back to the times of the American Civil War.

Analyzing the information provided in the article one will notice that the corrections facilities rarely have just one issue. Typically, the problems of such facilities are complex, multiple, and interconnected. The utter failure of leadership and management of the Detention Center led to such shocking consequences. First of all, the prison was either underfinanced or the money assigned to the health care needs of the inmates was stolen.

An investigation could address the errors of the Center leadership and the state government. Further, the overtaking of the facility by the incarcerated individuals and gangs is an outcome of the weak internal leadership that did not only overlook the incidents of the cooperation between the prisoners and the corrections personnel, but also failed to address such cases and exclude the corrupt individuals from the Detention Center officer team.

One may say that the criminals and the prison workers might have kept their relations in secrecy, but this was not the case since the 2013 federal probe discovered that an incarcerated gang leader who goes by the name Tavon White, had children with four women employed as the corrections officers at the Center, and two of these females had the name of the criminal tattooed on their bodies (Chappell, 2015).

After the revelation of the latter fact, it becomes harder to protect the personnel of the Detention Center since the connection between the female officers and an imprisoned gang leader should have been quite obvious, yet all of them continued to work at the Center. Unfortunately, the relations and cooperation between the criminals and the corrections officers and prison leaders are not rare in the contemporary world.

The United States of America is not the only country to face this issue. Around two months ago, one of the highest-security prisons in Mexico had experienced a shameful incident when one of the most dangerous convicts, a drug lord called Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán managed to escape (Partlow, 2015).

The most impressive news is that he escaped through a set of tunnels that must have required large excavation equipment, excellent knowledge of the prison building plan, and months of work. The correction officers seem to have completely overlooked all of those operations, and this signifies a high level of corruption of the prison and its leaders.

Leadership failure is the root cause of the corruption issues in the corrections facilities. The federal and state governments could address this problem assigned objective checking procedures on the regular basis. Such measures could target the loyalty of the personnel, the quality of the conditions the inmates live in, the financing of the incarceration organizations among other factors that contribute to the criminal activities help by the convicts during the imprisonment.

Reference List

Chappell, B. (2015). Md. Governor Orders Closure Of ‘Deplorable’ Baltimore City Jail . Web.

Partlow, J. (2015). Prison break shines spotlight on Mexico’s corruption woes . Web.

Chicago (A-D)
Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2024, February 23). Correctional Facilities: Baltimore City Jail' Case. https://ivypanda.com/essays/correctional-facilities-baltimore-city-jail-case/

"Correctional Facilities: Baltimore City Jail' Case." IvyPanda , 23 Feb. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/correctional-facilities-baltimore-city-jail-case/.

IvyPanda . (2024) 'Correctional Facilities: Baltimore City Jail' Case'. 23 February.

IvyPanda . 2024. "Correctional Facilities: Baltimore City Jail' Case." February 23, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/correctional-facilities-baltimore-city-jail-case/.

1. IvyPanda . "Correctional Facilities: Baltimore City Jail' Case." February 23, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/correctional-facilities-baltimore-city-jail-case/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Correctional Facilities: Baltimore City Jail' Case." February 23, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/correctional-facilities-baltimore-city-jail-case/.

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A better path forward for criminal justice: Changing prisons to help people change

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Correctional Facilities Essay

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40 Facts About Elektrostal

Key Takeaways:

Known as the “Motor City of Russia.”

Home to the Elektrostal Metallurgical Plant.

Boasts a rich industrial heritage.

Founded in 1916.

Located approximately 50 kilometers east of Moscow.

Known for its vibrant cultural scene.

A popular destination for nature lovers.

Hosts the annual Elektrostal City Day celebrations.

Has a population of approximately 160,000 people.

Boasts excellent education facilities.

A center for scientific research and innovation.

Surrounded by picturesque lakes.

Well-connected transportation system.

Famous for its traditional Russian cuisine.

Home to notable architectural landmarks.

Offers a wide range of recreational facilities.

Provides a high standard of healthcare.

Home to the Elektrostal History Museum.

A hub for sports enthusiasts.

Celebrates diverse cultural festivals.

Electric power played a significant role in its early development.

Boasts a thriving economy.

Houses the Elektrostal Drama Theater.

Popular destination for winter sports.

Promotes environmental sustainability.

Home to renowned educational institutions.