Custody & Current Control Methods of Inmates

Custody & Current Control Methods of Inmates

Kaplan University

 CJ-130

Introduction to Criminal Justice

Terry Campbell

2 June 2015

The primary job in a functional prison facility is making sure that both inmates and staff are protected.  Bartollas (2002), states that violence in the correctional system comes in a variety of ways, methods, and manners. Such violence could be inmate on inmate violence, riots, major disturbances, staff brutality against prisoners, assault of personnel by an offender, and self-inflicted cruelty. This violence can be separated into two categories,  either, interpersonal or group violence.

 Interpersonal violence can be defined as regular daily social order violent occurrences, this does not usually bring a change in the proper social order, however, collective violence normally does. Control and order in prison conditions do not mean the same. Social control is necessary to sustain order in a prison and positive inmate disciplinary fashions are imperative (Carlson & Garrett 2008).

Since legislature changes, the guards are no longer required to voice their views to the parole board. As a result,  the prisoners respect for the guards has declined.  There is no incentive to be on their best behavior anymore.  Before the rulings in Ruiz v. Estelle,  inmates were put to work in the prison as tenders, and this served to keep control along with providing the prisoners more incentives to behave.

Since the rate that inmate violence can get out of control,  the Department of Corrections (DOC),  try to provide increased humane conditions, increased efficient administrations, and also better screening and classifications of inmates. They also provide secure institutions similar to the supermax facilities for the problematical offenders to maintain order and control. (Bartollas, 2002)

The violent trends of offenders are one of the causes of prison violence today. These patterns are associated with four issues; lower class outlooks, youth, fear of being humiliated, and own individual violent history. Social anxiety issues also play a part in this situation.also found were  Racial tensions,  where there is at a minimum of one leader of each race in the groups. They then began to segregate themselves in the exercise yards, when dining, and in other areas of the facilities.

Violence can erupt over the simplest act of turning a channel on the television. (Bartollas, 2002) Ultimately, this led us to the current situation, which is that we have recognized prison gangs in forty state prisons that operate in the correctional system, and on the streets. They are a governing force every day in the life of prisoners. Most of these gangs,  such as the Mexican Mafia, the Aryan Brotherhood, the Bloods, and the Crips are extremely organized.

 Gang members ordinarily have codes of language and the leaders have a firm grasp as to what happens in both the correctional institution and on the streets. These leaders use their power to incite riots, create general disturbances and take hostages, or directing their members to protest to work or exit their cells. . The decision to join these gangs is high in a correctional facility because the inmates that are not affiliated with a gang are usually fair game for robbery, harassment, rape, and death.

 Gang negotiations between leaders express that each gang will not hurt each other’s members in that fashion. (Bartollas, 2002).  With the gang activity, the drug trade follows as a violence- inciting problem. According to Bartollas (2002), in 1996,  prisoner drug abuse was an alarming 42.6 % of the prison used illegal narcotics every day,  for 30 days,  before committing their crimes.  Thirty-five percent were high when committing the crime that they were in carcerated.

 Drugs in the prison in the 1970’s were a significant power means for inmate social control. No one desired to upset the movement of drugs to the prison. In 1975, a new administration began harsh changes in ideas about contraband, drugs, and on the number of searches conducted for these items. Today,  drug use in the correctional system remains a problem, however,  because of the shifts of intolerance; power gradually became more and more reliant on violence. As this increased,  the ratio of mutual respect between inmates and guards decreased this violence grew into larger problems such as staff assaults on prisoners and prisoner assault on officers.

Tensions are high,  due to underlying circumstances as well. Overcrowding leads more inmates in a cell, more assaults in defenseless spaces within the walls, disappointment about living conditions, no privacy, and fewer job and program space available per inmate. (Bartollas, 2002)  Some issues provoking violence in the correctional systems are outside of administrators and staff, such as overcrowding of facilities, the inactivity of prisoners due to lack of jobs, and funding for services and programs.

The public are unconcerned, and these days the fast growing numbers of offenders are more violent and hostile. Because of power valuation and the social issues, most of these prisoners cannot get past the idea that the only way to solve anything is through violence. According to Carlson and Garrett (2008), the means to keep order and discipline in an institution is to monitor the personnel for corruption. Also to carefully put hiring programs for those that keep good background, reference, and psychological checks.  During the hiring process, augment monetary control, and to promote “pure and ethical training”. These measures are for keeping the staff honest. Quality staff provides more efficient line staff to diffuse the eruptions of violence. Also, having a racial mix of personnel, helps to spread violence cause by all white team guarding a racially diverse population of inmates.