Contraband In Prisons

The policies and procedures implemented to reduce or eliminate contraband in a correctional facility would vary depending on the type of criminals housed in each unit. However, before implementing new policies and procedures, one must make sure each facility is staff properly with skilled professionals. The results will lead to employing trained officers and psychiatrist that will understand the offender’s frame of mind. Unmistakably, the staff is the core of any successful criminal justice jail system. Mainly, so staff can recognize humanity in the offender, change the offender’s attitude towards crime and confiscate potential contraband efficiently. As a result, those trained professions are able to prevent further crimes or manipulation

Moreover, on average, 300 cell phones were discovered in the Texas institutions, 18 of these from inmates on death row (Burke & Owen, 2010). Electronic devices can become the worst type of restricted items due to the accessibility of social connections both inside and outside the prison environment (Burke & Owen, 2010). Inmates are able to use cell phones to threaten and/or intimidate witnesses and families, coordinate crimes and/or escapes and text other inmates, friends and/or family members (Burke & Owen, 2010). Similar to drugs and cigarettes, cell phones are smuggled in through friends and families and/or corrupt correctional officers (Burke & Owen, 2010). Cell phones are extremely expensive to buy on the black market. For instance, one corrupt correctional officer earned more than $100,000 by charging inmates between $100 to $400 dollars per a device (Burke & Owen, 2010). Not only are cell phones problematic to the prison environment and social dynamics, but also with regulating these items. Nevertheless, along with cigarettes and cell phones, gambling is rapidly expanding in the prison

currently has the highest imprisonment rate per capita of any country in the world, and although we have about four percent of the global population, we have twenty-two percent of all prisoners. However, it has not always been this way; as only three decades ago our prison population was one eighth of its current size. This unparalleled growth of the prison system has forced America to create a vast prison industry that has become increasingly reliant on private capital. This prison industrial complex has not only turned imprisonment into a profitable business but also reinforced racial disparities in America. The argument that capitalism in this context undermines our democratic values rests of three key points: Firstly, that drug enforcement is racially biased, secondly that private capital has become enmeshed in incarceration industry and thirdly that prison labor is becoming increasingly connected to the United States Economy.

Mass incarceration has been a huge social problem since the 1980s; it came hand in hand with the war on drugs. Elliott Currie, a professor of criminology and law, suggests that building more prisons, imposing longer sentences, and applying harsh punishments will not lower the incarceration rate. In his chapter on “Assessing the Prison Experiment,” he explained that the increase of crime rate is not the sole reason that mass incarceration occurs, and it was also because courts

The worsening prison conditions in the United States can be contributed to three things, one the “war on drugs”, government officials wanting to be “taught on crime” and private prisons. The “war on drugs, and the concept of being “taught on crime” has lead to the United States to becoming number one when it comes to the number of incarcerated individuals in America (Mauer M., pg.607). Private prison itself aroused due to the demand that being “taught on crime”, and the “war on drugs” created for more space to imprison people. The conflict between states/federal prisons because of private prisons has made prison condition worse.

Prison overcrowding in the United States is due to many reoccurring charges that is being sentenced to inmates that have been released and returning. As the increasing inmate population is a growing concern in the U.S, many law enforcement agencies and academic expert have analyzed data about the situation and are working to combat it. Research shows that Drugs are mainly to blame. Of the inmates in federal prison as of September 2011, more than half or 50.4% was serving sentences for drug offenses that were committed including simple offenses. Out of 24,366 related drug offenders, 6,336 were marijuana related offenders and 4,309 were Methamphetamine related offenders. This does not only show that more than half of the prisons are filled with drug offenders but it means that the cells are being used by people who are most likely addicted to the substance. When there are cells being wasted by people who do not or would rather not change their ways, then it is useless. Overpopulated drug offenders are the result in prison overcrowding in the United States. In this research paper I will be reviewing the main cause for overcrowding, what overcrowding causes, crime rates and costs, proposition AB 109, and potential solutions to the overcrowding of prison system.

The United States holds 5% of the world's population. But it has a quarter of the world's prisoners. Incarceration rates have increased by 400% from 1980 - 2009 and 41% of juveniles have been arrested by the time they’re 23. ()This growth is phenomenal compared to the 1960’s. This can only mean that mass incarceration fails to reduce crime. For decades now, the laws have been getting harsher and have caused the jails to become overwhelmed with people; especially in the United States. Up until the 1960’s, the United States has had a pretty stable prison population. In that time, we started to see an increase of drugs and violence in the United States . This resulted in huge increases in drug penalties; a move to mandatory minimum sentences;

From the beginning of the day Rusty was already on a rampage of negativity towards others. If we break down the laws he has broke: bringing contraband to a prison facility, invades prisoner’s cell with out a probable cause, clearly prisoners do not have the 4th amendment right however there was no reason for to destroy he things. By banding Brian from the law library unnecessary was keep him away from finding information against him so Brian can file a complaint. When Brue wife came to visit there was no type of warning for him to be treated the way he was by Rusty. As a rule, handshakes, embraces, and kisses (in great taste) are permitted at the starting and end of a visit. Staff may utmost contact for security reasons (to keep individuals from attempting to present booty) and to keep the meeting range efficient. This will lead to misconduct behavior and unreasonable power against prisoners. His wife still has her rights there was no reason why she had to be search for contraband.

As the privatization of prisons became more and more popular, especially due to their profitability, it’s not strange that prisons became an integrated part of the U.S. economy. The prison industrial complex, “a set of bureaucratic, political, and economic interests that encourage increased spending on imprisonment, regardless of the actual need”, developed to allow all sorts of financial implications related to the building and managing of a prison, which, in turn, yielded profitable sum

One can agree that promoting contraband for sustaining purposes will indeed escalate towards a more uncontrolled long-term issue. Yes, what is defined as contraband is the key question in order to prevent further hazards that may promote other types of crimes within the jails or prisons. On a large scale, inmates do not get what they desire, which is what leads to obtaining contraband in the first place. There are rules in place in the jails and prisons that does not allow any form of contraband that is not approved by jail officials. Therefore, inmates take it upon themselves to make or locate the desired items as a method of continuous deviance. Often, cigarette's are not permissible unless approved for trustees, good behavior inmate or lifers.

Bohn & Hanley (2011) expresses a clear dramatic increase in the number of people incarcerated in the United States since the early 1970’s, mostly because of drugs (pg. 365). Another notable fact reveals the increase of confinement is the rising charge in price per day to house prisoners; as well, keep jails and prison overcrowded to make more profit (Bohn & Hanley, 2011, pg.369). Although efforts to provide alternatives methods to long-term incarceration exists, the fact still remains that private sectors that own prisons and jails still depend on a high rate of imprisonment (Bohm & Hanley, 2011, pg. 370). Noticeably, the strategic approach taken is to build larger facilities to house more offenders, make more profit from their crimes and

Drug related offenses need guidelines of whom or what constitutes being sent to prison. Drug offenses should be separated into categories because of the magnitude in which they occur. The war on drugs has elevated incarceration rates dramatically. The government does not aim to create a system that will send individuals to prison in forms that will rehabilitate or punish the individual in an effective manner. These offenses can be divided into carrying a certain amount, caught under the influence, and distribution of drugs. It is my belief that if an individual abuses drugs then he/she deserves treatment rather than being sent to prison. This would be a more effective method because once they enter prison there are methods in which they

Some companies shockingly benefit from crime so with those benefits comes incentives to imprison more people no matter the crime despite violent crime rates being on a steady decline. In the twenty-five years since the passage of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, the United States penal population rose from around 300,000 to more than two million.(Alexander 6).

One must wonder if the "war on drugs" helps or hinders our American Criminal Justice System when you look at the overwhelming impact it has had on crowding issues within our prisons. At the present time there are over 1.5 million people in prison, 59.6 % for drug offenses alone.

In 2014, approximately 13 million people are injecting drugs worldwide, which is an alarming 0.3% of the entire adult population (UNAIDS, 2014). Injecting drugs often results in increased negative health consequences and may lead to the transmission of blood-borne viruses such as HIV. As of now, about 1.7 million, or 13% of the injected drug users are living with HIV (UNAIDS, 2014). Though featured in nearly every country, injected drug use is still treated as a crime and lead easily to incarceration (UNAIDS, 2014). This essay seeks to examine how incarceration fails as a method of illicit drug control and puts an already at-risk group in further peril.