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Crime In Prison Research Paper

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Many citizens in the United States today have a common interest in crime. Whether it’s the criminals themselves or the prison facilities that house them, Americans wonder what drives a particular human being to such crime or what goes on inside a maximum security prison. “The American public appears to have an insatiable fascination with what goes on inside prisons. Moviegoers flock to see Hollywood films about prison life (e.g., Escape from Alcatraz, Murder in the First, and The Shawshank Redemption). The news media is quick to cover lurid stories about prisons, including prison disturbances...” (Wright). Consequently, a thought that flies under the radar is the reputations of these hardened convicts and how these reputations are what attract …show more content…

Both prisons were constructed on Islands, making them more unique and notorious than the common prisons found in agricultural and urban areas of counties and cities. When Alcatraz was first introduced to the public in 1859, it operated as a fort for Captain Joseph Stewart and 86 men of the United States Artillery following the Mexican-American War. “Recognizing that the cold water (53° F) and the swift currents surrounding the island made it an ideal site for a prison, eleven of the soldiers who arrived with Captain Stewart were incarcerated in a cell block in the guardhouse basement. Just two months later, another soldier, who was said to have been insane, was jailed with the others. Before long, other forts with less secure garrisons began to send their deserters, escapees, and other prisoners to the island,” (The Long History of Alcatraz Island). In addition to Alcatraz, Rikers Island also contains a prison that is dreaded by criminals who have the luxury of being incarcerated there. The facility, which sits between the Bronx and Queens, is cold, unsanitary, and an all-around miserable experience for hardened convicts. “As long as the City of New York has owned Rikers Island, since the 1880s, it has been a place for the unwanted. For a time, pigs were raised for slaughter there. Not long afterward, the island — ­conveniently …show more content…

Both Alcatraz and Rikers have become famous to America because of how they treat and house their inmates. Alcatraz became known for containing many of the most dangerous criminals in the United States. An example of one would be Robert Stroud, also known as the, “Birdman of Alcatraz.” “Alcatraz has a longstanding relationship with birds. Everybody knows that one of the most famous residents of the prison was the “Birdman of Alcatraz,” an inmate with a penchant for raising canaries. He gained worldwide fame from the eponymous movie starring Burt Lancaster. Robert Stroud , the real Birdman of Alcatraz, was quite different from his movie counterpart. Stroud was a violent repeat offender who killed two people and tried to kill a third...,” (10 Criminal Facts About the History of Alcatraz). Furthermore, another notable criminal who was incarcerated at Alcatraz was Alvin Karpis. Karpis is famous for being imprisoned on the Island the longest of any prisoner; he served his time for 26 of the 29 years that Alcatraz remained a maximum security prison(10 Criminal Facts About the History of Alcatraz). Following the closing of the prison, Karpis was transported elsewhere to serve out his remaining life sentence. Criminals who arrive at Alcatraz must have had a convincing reason to be there, meaning they must have committed a serious crime at another institution or be a repeated offender of a

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