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
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
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