Ethical Treatment of Prisoners
Ethical Treatment of Prisoners
Christina Rostar
SOC 120
Amber Espana
March 1, 2013
The issue of how prisoners should be treated is an ongoing issue that may never die down. Many believe that prisoners have lost their right to be treated ethically when they chose to break the law to the extent that they were removed from society. Others say that just because they are imprisoned they should still be treated ethically within their imprisonment. People’s opinion often changes from one side to the other once they are either a victim of a crime, or have a loved one do something that ends them up in prison. Perhaps it is best stated by Noel Lawrence, “Though inmates may not possess a strong moral fiber, the prison is a site of numerous ethical issues for guards, lawmakers and officials who run correctional systems. Every policy and procedure must balance the interests of the tax payer, the prison staff, and the incarcerated population. Not surprisingly, there is a substantive lack of consensus on proper standards for ethical issues in correctional systems. (Lawrence, N 2012)
Many people think that these prisoners should only get the bare minimum required in order for them to survive as they are there to be punished for committing a crime against society. They see it as their tax money going to support these people while they receive free food, clothing, and housing. Some may even argue that the prisoners get to enjoy the same things they would in free America only they do not have to lift a finger to obtain it. Tax payer money goes to things like the officers pay to maintain the facility 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, the Electricity to run the facility and the water. One problem that exists when people feel like this is inmates tend to be treated poorly or even abused because they are locked away from a society and even if their opinions and words reach the world outside of prison their words are less credible because most people tend to listen to someone in a
Christina Rostar
SOC 120
Amber Espana
March 1, 2013
The issue of how prisoners should be treated is an ongoing issue that may never die down. Many believe that prisoners have lost their right to be treated ethically when they chose to break the law to the extent that they were removed from society. Others say that just because they are imprisoned they should still be treated ethically within their imprisonment. People’s opinion often changes from one side to the other once they are either a victim of a crime, or have a loved one do something that ends them up in prison. Perhaps it is best stated by Noel Lawrence, “Though inmates may not possess a strong moral fiber, the prison is a site of numerous ethical issues for guards, lawmakers and officials who run correctional systems. Every policy and procedure must balance the interests of the tax payer, the prison staff, and the incarcerated population. Not surprisingly, there is a substantive lack of consensus on proper standards for ethical issues in correctional systems. (Lawrence, N 2012)
Many people think that these prisoners should only get the bare minimum required in order for them to survive as they are there to be punished for committing a crime against society. They see it as their tax money going to support these people while they receive free food, clothing, and housing. Some may even argue that the prisoners get to enjoy the same things they would in free America only they do not have to lift a finger to obtain it. Tax payer money goes to things like the officers pay to maintain the facility 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, the Electricity to run the facility and the water. One problem that exists when people feel like this is inmates tend to be treated poorly or even abused because they are locked away from a society and even if their opinions and words reach the world outside of prison their words are less credible because most people tend to listen to someone in a
References: Lawrence, N (2012) Ethical issues in correctional systems retrieved from: http://www.ehow.com/info_8161457_ethical-issues-correctional-systems.html Mosser, K (2010) Introduction to Ethics & Social Responsibility Retrieved from: http://content.ashford.edu/books/AUSOC120.10.2 Seidel, J (2009) Female inmate described rapes in lawsuit against state Detroit Free Press retrieved from: http://www.freep.com/article/20090106/NEWS06/901060369/Female-inmate-described-rapes-lawsuit-against-state STROUD, M. (2012). Punishing Methods. Nation, 294(19), 20-26. Retrieved from: http://web.ebscohost.com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=5&sid=7e62ae98-ad64-4b9a-97c9-038b78ba9630%40sessionmgr104&hid=123 Velasquez, M. (1996). Why ethics matters: A defense of ethics in business organizations. Business Ethics Quarterly, 6(2), 201-201. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/216325740?accountid=32521