Restrictive Housing And Administration Segregation Essay

Throughout history, changes have occurred all around us. More specifically, our correctional facilities. As community members commit crimes, our jails and prisons provide the deterrence, punishment, retribution and rehabilitation needed to become a successful member of the community again. When offenders enter into the correctional facilities, restrictive housing and administration segregation play a role in providing safety to inmates and to staff members. By looking at how restrictive housing and administration segregation was established, evolved, and how it plays a role in today’s society, we as citizens can learn about our correctional facilities and the tasks they use to keep inmates safe and correctional staff. Before understanding how the establishment of restrictive housing and administrative segregation came about it’s important to know the current names weren’t always what they were called. Restrictive housing was originally called “solitary confinement” or “segregation” and

This is when the prison population increased, creating prison crowding. The development of new street gangs began to expand inside prison system which led to disturbances then to riots which consumed the entire institutions. Lack of correctional staff began to draw thin when trying to control the inmate population. This is where restrictive housing came into play when needing to find a quick and effective solution to the disruptive inmates. At the same time, there was a transformation of how to handle and treat inmates with mental illnesses. Correctional systems “reported growing numbers of inmates with psychological disorders. Providing intensive mental health services within correctional facilities put additional strain on limited resources” (U.S Department of Justice). By putting these inmates into restrictive housing, the development of these mental illness become prominent and can even create more