The Overcrowding, Gangs and Substance Abuse in Prisons

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The overcrowding issues in prisons, the gangs in prisons and the illegal drugs and substances. In this assignment, I will be discussing respectively in order on these three issues and what can be done to correct it. In additions, I will be discussing about what I would do to rectify these issues if I were in charge, I will be using my own ideas along with the researches from credible sources to support my ideas.

First, I would like to discuss about the overcrowding issues in prisons. Prison is not a good and enjoyable place to be in a first place however, more people are going to prison. This issue is not only threatening our correctional system, it is also threatening our economy as well. Our criminal justice system has been dealing with this issue in number of ways including, privatization of prison and increasing the uses of paroles and probations. One of the things that I would try to do is to prevent repeat offenders from coming back to prisons. According to (Wikoff, Linhorst & Morani, 2012.), “As of 1994, more than two-third of state prisoners were rearrested for one or more serious crimes within three years of release. Almost half of those released returned to prison during that time frame for parole violations or new convictions.” (p. 289). The reason I chose to tackle on the recidivisms is because I don’t believe in a lesser sentence and punishment. I believe that the punishment should fit the crime in order for the justice to be prevailed. If I were in charge, I would try to tackle and rectify this problem by promoting the jobs for them once they are out of the prison. I would create the incentive programs for the companies who are willing to hire the convicted whether by monetary incentives or tax exemptions.

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...problems that would continue and may become worsen in the future if we continue with the same methods and techniques that we have been using. Many people think that they can do better if they have such a power to reform and implement the laws and policies, in reality however, these issues are very complex in natures.

Works Cited

Drugs inside prison walls- Washington Times. (2010, January 27).

Retrieved April 18, 2014, from

http://www.washintontimes.com/news/2010/jan/27/drugs-inside-prison-walls/?page=all

Fleisher, M. S., & Decker, S. H. (2001). An Overview of the Challenge of Prison Gangs. Corrections Management Quarterly, 5(1), 1.

Wikoff, N., Linhorst, D. M., & Morani, N. (2012). Recidivism among Participants of a Reentry Program for Prisoners Released without Supervision. Social Work Research, 36(4), 289-299. doi:10.1093/swr/svs021

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