Political Enviroment Case Study
Political Environment Case Study
CJA/444
October 8, 2012
Kendra Ownes-Johnson
Political Environment Case Study 1. How would you respond? Would you just capitulate and end some or all of these programs? Explain your answer.
I would first respond to the Governor by telling him that I felt it was ill advised to follow through with what he wanted me to. I would explain to him that with new generation jails, everyone is happier. I would go into as much detail as I could about the new generation jails and indicate that the traditional hands off philosophy and hardcore jail treatment in prison and jail was currently frowned upon. I would do whatever I could to ensure that the majority of my programs offered in the jails remained open, with the hope that 100% of the programs would still be available after my 1-month time frame were up.
2. Is there any room to negotiate with the governor? As a trade-off, would you offer to put in place some programs that are known to be tough on inmates? If so, what kind?
I feel that in this instance there is little room to negotiate. From the letter that I received from the new Governor, it sounds as though he has his mind set on what he wants to happen with the prisons and he has ordered it to take place; however, I would attempt to negotiate with him by advising him that we could be stricter on inmates who break rules. This could be done by taking away privileges or basic day-to-day conveniences. The prison staff could discipline the inmates by not allowing them to work for a certain amount of time so that they aren’t able to earn money for their books, they could take away time that they might have spent in the yard getting fresh air for a few days, and they could also place individual inmates into solitary confinement for certain period of time when rules are violated. I would explain to the Governor that we would need to remain cautious as to not result to cruel and unusual punishments or give the impression of
CJA/444
October 8, 2012
Kendra Ownes-Johnson
Political Environment Case Study 1. How would you respond? Would you just capitulate and end some or all of these programs? Explain your answer.
I would first respond to the Governor by telling him that I felt it was ill advised to follow through with what he wanted me to. I would explain to him that with new generation jails, everyone is happier. I would go into as much detail as I could about the new generation jails and indicate that the traditional hands off philosophy and hardcore jail treatment in prison and jail was currently frowned upon. I would do whatever I could to ensure that the majority of my programs offered in the jails remained open, with the hope that 100% of the programs would still be available after my 1-month time frame were up.
2. Is there any room to negotiate with the governor? As a trade-off, would you offer to put in place some programs that are known to be tough on inmates? If so, what kind?
I feel that in this instance there is little room to negotiate. From the letter that I received from the new Governor, it sounds as though he has his mind set on what he wants to happen with the prisons and he has ordered it to take place; however, I would attempt to negotiate with him by advising him that we could be stricter on inmates who break rules. This could be done by taking away privileges or basic day-to-day conveniences. The prison staff could discipline the inmates by not allowing them to work for a certain amount of time so that they aren’t able to earn money for their books, they could take away time that they might have spent in the yard getting fresh air for a few days, and they could also place individual inmates into solitary confinement for certain period of time when rules are violated. I would explain to the Governor that we would need to remain cautious as to not result to cruel and unusual punishments or give the impression of