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Prison Overcrowding

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Prison Overcrowding
Renee Walker
Colorado Technical University Online
Phase 3 Individual Project
CJUST685-1301B-01
Professor Christopher Marco
March 11, 2013

ABSTRACT A significant amount of people are being incarcerated in the United States than any other nation in the world. According to the Pew Center, it was reported that there were an astounding one in every 100 adults behind bars in 2008, and many belief it is because the criminal justice system has incarcered their way out for so long, that federal and state prisons and county jails are being bombarded with crisis levels of overcrowding (Alcohol Monitoring Systems, Inc., 2013). Researchers have also predicted that the situation will continue to get worse because operating budgets are severely being cut, and funding to build new facilities are null. Current projections revealed in 2011, that the United States prison population has increased a 13 percent, which is triple the growth of the entire population as a whole and the cost to support that increase be detrimental to the American taxpayers as well as local and state budgets in excess of $27.5 billion according to AMS (2013). This paper will attempt to explain the importance of prison overcrowding to the criminal justice system and discuss the various issues, problems and/or policies concerning prison overcrowding.

PRISON OVERCROWDING
A Review of the Literature Most aptly defined as a situation in which the number of people confined in prison is greater than the capacity of the prison to provide adequately for the physical and psychological needs of the confined persons is known as prison overcrowding. It is a feature of many systems of criminal justice throughout the world and can cause vital issues and concerns for “governments, communities, prisoners, and their families” according to (Griffiths, Murdoch, and Phil, 2009). Considered the most punitive country in the world, the United has the world’s



References: Alcohol Monitoring Systems, Inc. (AMS). (2013). Bursting at the Seams. Resource for Jail Overcrowding Solutions. Retrieved from http://jailovercrowding.com/index/the-problem. Carranz, E. (2001). Prison Overcrowding in Latin America and the Caribbean: Situation and Possible Responses. Retrieved from http://www.unicri.it/wwk/related. Cox, V., Paulus, P., & McCain, G. (1984). Prison crowding research: The relevance of prison housing standards and a general approach regarding crowding phenomena. American Psychologist, 39, 1148-1160. Dandurand, T. and Griffiths, C. T. (2006). Handbook on Restorative Justice Programmes. Vienna: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Retrieved from http://www.unodc.org. European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and In human or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. (2007). Report to the Georgian Government. Strasbourg: Council of Europe. Retrieved from http://www.cpt.coe.int/documents.pdf. Haney, C. (2006). The Wages of Prison Overcrowding: Harmful Psychological Consequences and Dysfunctional Correctional Reactions. Journal of Law & Policy, 22, pp. 265-293. Jehle, A., Miller, M., and Griffin, T. (2006). Policy Suggestions for Protecting Society from the Effects of Prison Overcrowding: Working Towards a Therapeutic Approach. Johnston, J.C. (1991). A Psychological perspective on the new design concepts for William Head Institution (British Columbia). Forum on Corrections Research, 3, 14-21. Nwapa, A. (2008). Building and Sustaining Change: Pretrial Detention Reform in Nigeria. In Justice Initiatives: Pretrial Detention. New York: Open Society Justice Initiative. Pp. 86-102. Retrieved from http://www.soro.org/initiatives/osji/articles. Office of National Drug Control Policy, (2011). Reforming the criminal justice system. Parole Reform. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.eji.org/eji/prisons/parolereform. Paulus, P., Cox, V., & McCain, G. (1978). Death rates, psychiatric commitments, blood pressure and perceived crowding as a function of institutional crowding Penal Reform International. (2007). Prison Overcrowding. Retrieved from http://www.penalreform.org/prison- overcrowding.html. Schonteich, M. (2008). The Scale and Consequences of Pretrial Detention Around the World. In Justice Initiatives: Pretrial Detention Snacken, S. (2006). Reductionist Penal Policy and European Human Rights Standards. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 12(2), pp. 143-164. Special Rapporteur. (2004). African Commission on Human and People’s Rights. Report. Mission to the Republic of South Africa. Retrieved from http://www.achpr.org/english/Mission. The John Howard Society of Alberta. (1996). Prison Overcrowding. Retrieved from http://www.johnhoward.ab.ca/pub/C42.htm. Walmsley, R. (2005). Prison Health Care and the Extent of Prison Overcrowding. International Journal of Prisoner Health. 1(1). pp. 9-12. [pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic]

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