Contraband Prison Staff

It is no secret that the issue on incarceration is ever apparent. This is mainly due to the underlying stigma of those convicted of said crime, which is especially hard to break out of, even for minorities who are constantly scrutinized on a daily basis for their racial background. Questions were made in the process, wondering almost exactly what had been the reason for the stigma and discrimination of former convicts. Reading the book; “Marked: Race, Crime and Finding Work in an Era of Mass Incarceration”, Devah Pager, the author of this book, goes into detail of the possible explanations by means of conducting experiments in order to find the answers. However, another question is in place; where the methods in which they used efficient enough to provide a clear answer? Though they had gone in the right direction, it is obvious that due to the nature of the experiments, that there was room for bias as well as a lack of accuracy. However, the researcher had

The world we live is constantly changing whether we are on the streets or in the prison system.

The incarcerated individuals within the correctional facilities in Canada make up one of the highest risk population groups for HIV and it continues to be a significant problem within the Canadian correctional facilities (Chu, Elliott, & Canadian HIV/AIDS network, 2009). Canadian prisoners make up a substantial chunk of the individuals infected with HIV as whole, inside and outside of the prison system (Chu, Peddle, & Canadian HIV-AIDS Legal Network, 2010). The HIV rate in Canadian prisons remains relatively stable, which is good news, however, there is not a whole lot done in order to help the individuals who are infected with HIV at the moment (Public health agency of Canada, 2012). During the years of 2009 and 2010 there were 13,500 incarcerated inmates and of that population roughly 2% were infected with HIV, this did not include the individuals who have not disclosed their HIV status to prison officials; or those who are HIV positive but have not been tested for the virus (Public health agency of Canada, 2012). An article written by Bonnycastle and Villebrun, (2011) found that the CSC infectious disease surveillance system estimates that 70% of prisoners remain unscreened for HIV, because the prisoners at the highest risk for the disease are more likely to forgo the testing. Drug use is prohibited within Canadian prisons, however, it still continues to be a problem with the inmates (Correctional service of Canada, 2015). Drug use is the biggest reason that inmates are

It might be quite improbable to eliminate contraband in the prisons for the reasons that currency can make ways through visitations, employees, and letters. Money is regarded dangerous, and inmates are granted a certain amount added to their accounts. It is dangerous as prisoners use it as a source of power to gain extra items like food, hygiene commodities, to pay other inmates, or even staff to carry out specific illegal acts for them. Money can also lead to gambling, drug transactions and death (Bohm & Haley, 2011).

“Contraband is commonly defined as goods prohibited by law from being imported and exported” (Bouchard, 2011, pg. 1). According to our text, “all societies have an economy, and most have a black market component” (Bohm & Haley, 2014, p. 394). Prisons have their own economy system, which also has its own black market known as the sub-rosa. Prisons have a high demand of alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, weapons, and gambling paraphernalia. In addition, cell phones have become one of the newer forms of contraband. Moreover, cell phones have caused an increase of violence and witness intimidation within penal facilities (Fitzgerald, 2010).

What would prisons be like without correctional officers? Imagine what life would be in prisons around a bunch of inmates, not having any protection from anyone, being around people who you know have killed, or have done other crimes. Correctional officers are not just helpful in prisons but also when transporting inmates from one place to another. With Correctional officers now in days they are a big help for our society. Without them we would not have any security when being in prison. Correctional officers are people just like us, they have families and other things just like anyone else would. It is a very risky job that many would never think of becoming an officers. Correctional officers are responsible for enforcing the law and

Building a prison obviously creates jobs, both for construction workers and correctional officers. King, Maurer and Huling name a number of requirements for construction workers employed at a prison. Besides being a member in a trade union (14), they usually need to have a very specific skill set. Most locals do not meet these two conditions, thus leaving only “low-skill and low-wage laborer jobs” (15) for them. According to Schlosser, the highly desirable jobs in corrections do not demand college education, often pay more than the county’s average salary, and provide “health benefits and a pension.” Therefore, he argues, less young people move away from their hometowns. However, studies show that the majority of correctional officials do

On an everyday basis men and women are sent to prison. These people get sent to prison because they have committed a crime or they are getting accused of committing a crime that they didn't commit. When they first arrive at the prison they get searched and they put all their belongings in a bag. Some facilities give the inmate a shower before they put them in their suit. Once the inmate is in the suit they are given a number. That number is what they go by in prison. You are no longer the name you use to be called, you’re just a number to every employer at that facility. Some people wonder why they don’t just call them by your name and why they have to have a number in prison. Once you walk into that prison as a prisoner everything

Candidates have used tools such as lies, misdirection, and emotional appeals to convince voters of a made-up reality. These tools only become powerful in the hands of men when they are used on those who lack the necessary knowledge to discern the validity and merits of such claims. In an era where information is easily available, it is disappointing to see such tools have a prevalence in our society. As it stands now, the media is the platform for which these politicians thrive. Making headlines with controversial comments, candidates manipulate information in order to appeal to the politically illiterate. Such candidates vow to remedy problems that do not exist. The propagation of such “realities” misconstrues the actual nature of the world, thus

You should be aware that there are only thirty-two states that practice and uphold the death penalty in the United States. Within the thirty-two state’s the two leading in execution’s are California and Texas. The most common contributing factor to inmates on death row is mental illness. Medical conditions known as mental illness comes in many different forms. There are categories that consist of insanity, intellectual Function, and mental illness. These categories effect behaviors that interfere with rational thought process and alter moods, feelings, and the ability to function on a daily basis. Mental illness’s such a Bi-Polar disorder, Post-traumatic-stress-disorder,

“Let me out! Let me out! I do not belong here,” says the predator in the cell. This is something correctional officers hear often. During duty they have many responsibilities and tasks they have to accomplish. The officer has to get everything done while being careful and not jeopardizing their safety. They run under a lot of stress trying to keep these criminals locked up and away from the civilians. Correctional officers put their life on the line in order to protect civilians and keep predators behind bars.

As the number of convicted felons in prisons increase daily, the government is constantly looking for methods to prevent released prisoners from going back to prison. A controversial plan that has taken the country by storm is a plan wanting to give the prisoners the opportunity to receive a college education while in jail. In “College for Criminals,” Bill Keller takes great advantage of statistics and comes off to the reader as knowledgeable and well-informed. The other article, “Let Prisoners Take College Courses,” by John J. Lennon, does a magnificent job of introducing the author to the reader as an honest and compassionate man. Among the two Op-Eds, the author John Lennon does a more effective job in convincing the reader to trust him

From a caseworker’s perspective, inmates can be difficult to treat effectively, especially if you are uncomfortable with the population. “The hierarchical structure and safety issues put prison workers under continuous daily pressure. They face a major challenge to handle their daily tasks while keeping emotions of anxiety, anger, and fear hidden so as not to interfere with their job performance.” (Ghaddar, Ronda, Nolasco, 504). Dealing with anger over the crimes committed by these people, the anxiety of trying to assist them in solving their issues, and the fear of them committing some form of violence towards you can be overwhelming to a caseworker. “Work ability is defined as ‘How good is the worker at present and in the near future and how able is he/she to do his/her work with respect to work demands, health, and mental resources.’” (Ghaddar et all, 503). In this study, scientists conducted a study in which the effectiveness (work ability) of a worker for prisons was put on an index (work ability index, WAI) and measured. This was done in order to determine if, after a certain age, social workers began to “burn out” when it comes to their ability to complete the emotionally and mentally taxing activities of being a resource for prisoners. According to this study, the following psychosocial factors were identified to interfere with performance of the worker: “high workload, emotional demands, needs to hide emotions, low control and influence, poor social support and

Imagine yourself locked in a miniature-size closet for years without electronics nor social communication- not even sunlight! The only time you are let outside your designated area is for about an hour to go outside to exercise or shower. Nevertheless, that is not the case for numerous prisoners. The majority of the time, prison guards totally fail to recall about the inmate or tend to have a neglecting state of mind when monitoring confinement inmates. Several of the prisoners who end up in isolated confinement are diagnosed with physical and emotional complications such as depression and anxiety. Prisoners over the time have trouble with socializing and interacting with other human beings. Furthermore, some officials often report some cases in which inmates held in these segregated facilities severely harm their own bodies or in some cases it goes as far as to committing suicide inside the prison area. In a study made in New York, it was concluded that inmates placed in isolation or solitary confinement are seven times more likely to commit an act of self-harm or suicide than an inmate in general population. Solitary confinement, besides being extremely expensive, it is a cruel form of punishment and it does not help anyone who convicted a crime or who seems dangerous around other inmates, become a better person. This method it’s so called a ‘disciplinary solution’ for prisoners to behave in an accordingly manner however, it instead provokes prisoners to act in a

Prisons are made up of several types of offenders, however within the prison populations, there are those offenders which make up the special needs category or those who are known for substance abuse. The reason why these special need inmates affect the jail and prison system, both on a federal and state level would be because of the specialized attention in which they require. If these prisoners are not given the proper attention that is needed for their disability, they can because a danger to not only themselves but to everyone around them; those who have a substance abuse related illness may even become sick and possibly die from lack of care for their addiction.