Special Needs For Prison Offenders Essay

More often than not, if John Q. Public is asked the purpose or goals of our American correctional system the reply is incapacitation, retribution, deterrence, and rehabilitation. However, what we are really asking for our corrections system to do is to secure and supervise the individuals cast out of society through the judicial process regardless of their individual needs and abilities. The purpose of this particular study is focused on the management of special needs inmates and the burdens incurred at various levels. For this study, special needs populations are defined as prisoners who exhibit unique physical, mental, social, and programmatic needs that distinguish them from other prisoners and to whom jail and prison management and staff have to respond in nontraditional and innovative ways (Schmalleger & Smykla 2013). The special needs populations included individuals suffering from mental illness, drug and alcohol abuse and dependency, the elderly, sufferers of chronic and communicable diseases, and physical disabilities.

Inmates have been placed here for both short and long term sentences. Segregation has a significant impact on inmates with preexisting mental illnesses. According to Arrigo and Bullock?s (2008) research, ?the extreme isolation that was characteristics of the early prisons?ultimately resulted in serious physical and psychological consequences for convicts.? The SHU has become the way prisons control troublesome inmates. Solitary inmates are only out of their cells for weekly showers and recreation time, but they are still heavily restrained. These inmates have no contact with the general population including dining and religious gatherings. This method of isolation leaves no remove for communication with other

Given the number of incarcerated inmates who suffer from some form of mental illness, there are growing concerns and questions in the medical field about treatment of the mentally ill in the prison system. When a person with a mental illness commits a crime or break the law, they are immediately taken to jail or sent off to prison instead of being evaluated and placed in a hospital or other mental health facility. “I have always wondered if the number of mentally ill inmates increased since deinstitutionalization” Since prison main focus is on the crimes inmates are incarcerated; the actual treatment needed for the mentally ill is secondary. Mentally ill prisoners on the surface may appear to be just difficult inmates depending on the

Although several educational programs are widely available, many inmates are unable to take advantage of them, do not complete them, or lack follow up in the form of ongoing support services once released from the correctional system. The following table displays this concern: Table 2. national and state data on inmate participation and completion . Approximate Numbers 1993-2007: Institution Type Total Number of Inmates System 165,000 167,717 Number of Inmates Enrolled in Education Programs 54,000 87,624 Rate of Attendance, At Completion of Course 50% 60% Rate of Completion

Throughout the years, the United States criminal justice system has been constantly incarcerating individuals who endure from a severe mental illness. People who suffer from serious mental illness are doubtlessly to be discovered in prison. There is a significant amount of mentally ill offenders that are placed in the state and federal institutions. The mentally ill are overpopulating the prisons. The criminal justice system is a deficiency for those who can profit more from the help of mental health treatment center or psychiatric hospital by sending individuals to correctional facilities or prisons. Today’s jails and prisons are being labeled as the new mental health hospitals for the mentally ill offenders. Commonly in today’s society, it generally takes other individuals who are willing to educate and support the mentally ill person into becoming successful in life.

“It’s really clear that the most effective way to turn a nonviolent person into a violent one is to send them to prison,” says Harvard University criminologist James Gilligan. The American prison system takes nonviolent offenders and makes them live side-by-side with hardened killers. The very nature of prison, no matter people view it, produces an environment that is inevitably harmful to its residents.

This service allows those offenders rejoining the community, access to rehabilitative programs such as counseling, job aids, medical services, and education to name a few.

Older prisoners are considered to be a special needs population according to the Handbook on Prisoners with Special Needs, created by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime. Special needs groups have detailed guidelines to aid in the appropriate treatment of special needs groups such as older prisoners, but these guidelines are not typically enforced. One major issue aging prisoners face is that prisons are not structurally designed to accommodate people with limited mobility and other disabilities. Issues with mobility and disability are often unavoidable results of the aging process. Outside

The minimum security is federal prison camps adjacent to other federal prisons near military bases. Male prisoners who need only minimum security are set up in camps and those who will be transitioned [Passive voice] back into society and served their sentence will be set-up in a halfway house.

The idea of sympathetic release of ill and elderly prisoners is not new. In 1994, Professor Russell published consideration of medical parole and compassionate release programs of district and fifty states of Columbia. Only three

Those prisoners who exhibit unique physical, mental, social, and programmatic needs and to whom jail and prison management staff have to respond in non- traditional ways.

Mentally ill, elderly, and female inmates are faced with more than normal circumstances in the correctional facilities that they are housed in. These circumstances add more stress on to the administrators’ job. The administrators are faced with challenges such as the following: failing health, aggression, strict monitoring and observation, counseling services, and providing the proper health care inmates. They have to ensure that the accommodations and adjustments that are enforced are aligned with the

Distinctive strategies can similarly be made to oblige phenomenal prerequisites prisoners, for instance, position in an administration correctional facility for those liable offenders who may be difficult to secure in the Michigan system. Attempts are furthermore made to arrange the individual to an association that offers programming that can meet the prisoner's unprecedented needs, for instance, substance abuse, sex liable gathering managing, basic guideline or expert get ready. Appropriate grouping is urgent to the productive and safe operation of any jail office. Guilty parties are, diverse and have an assortment of behavioral styles and treatment needs, in shifting conditions of emotional wellness. Since numerous detainees are incongruent

It came to my attention there are a lot of incidents of assaults on staff by inmates. There are a lot of safety concerns that the Human resource department have. A few of the guards has raised fear for their safety. Prison officials can’t do their job effectively if they are being hurt on the job. I recommend that the officers should carry something more than mace, to control combative inmates. I conduct a meeting with all of the prison guards, prison staff and the city Mayor Blasio about the unsafe working conditions ate the Department of Corrections. I am the investigation unit Department manager and I handle all of these

Prisons have many policies set in place to help aid inmates’ with adjusting to prison life. No matter what policies are set in place to help aid inmates they will always have a hard time especially for first timers. According to Frank Schmalleger and John Ortiz Smykla (2009) new inmates face major problems because of the loss of liberty, lack of material possessions, the depravation of materials and services, the lack of heterosexual relationships, and feeling unsecured. I think that inmates can be helped with the adjustment process by initiating and enforcing a program to deal with such issues. I think I would eliminate policies that are designed to make prison life unpleasant and concentrate more on policies that help inmates progress in their educational and rehabilitation programs. One policy that is very important to inmates is to feel safe in their prison environment. As a result there have been many debates on the rights of the inmates. I think the most important policy I would enforce is educational programs that will