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Reason in favor of using alternatives to incarceration
Does society influence us
Social influences on behaviour
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From the above discussion, it is evident that boot camps may not achieve the expected results. For instance, they do not reduce the rate of recidivism. Research by (Bottcher, 2005) indicates that boot camp graduates do not become any better than those inmates going through supervision in regular probations. In fact, there is more likelihood for boot camp graduates to be re-arrested more quickly than any other offenders. In addition, boot camps may not save the initiators in terms of money. Although they may enable some jurisdictions to save some amounts due to the fact that they take shorter periods of time, it has been found that the limitations outweigh the advantages gained from the program. For instance, boot camps are known for their intensive labor and more operational expenses (Van Noorden, 2014). Expert research by (Gallagher, 2014) asserted that the confrontational approach …show more content…
used in boot camps may not be appropriate.
This inappropriateness is because they employ a lot of humiliation and intimidation to inmates. Such practices make the program counterproductive for most inmates in the justice systems of juveniles. The bullying and aggressiveness among the inmates may cause problems such that the environment may not promote the development of the pro-social behavior. It may also hinder the development of compassion that the inmates really need to get. Boot camp program are not a quick fix for the behavior of juveniles. For instance, most of the youths are never ready to participate in other productive activities. According to research by Parkin (2014), juvenile boot camps cannot be effective since they do violate the principles most adolescents believe can help them in their development. For instance, they are fairness extremists.
Operating group programs successfully for adolescent groups may be difficult since most of them are moralistic and do not tolerate any unfair activities amongst them. In the occurrence of unfair practices they react to and they believe that group punishment is unfair. It is also the tendency of teenagers to reject any structures imposed on them. Although there are benefits beyond the limits, teenagers do not like being forced to stick on structures which they did not participate in their planning (Kitzinger's, 2006). For instance, authority problems in homes and schools arise from the fact that such institutions use some structures that are always rejected by the youths. However, teenagers want to be responsible for their own lives. Many youths who have had some experience in either physical or psychological abuse result to violence or substance abuse. Lastly, teenagers may alter their behavior to respond either positively or negatively to encouragements. Given the fact that youths may reject or accept encouragement and can react against punishment, imposed structures or unfairness, it may not be surprising to see them reject any assistance offered to them (Kitzinger's, 2006). The rejection mechanism may be a form of strength since it has helped them survive the adversities of racism and poverty. However, the rejection is only of help offered by mistrusted adults if they are considered punitive, unfair, and controlling. Such practices weaken the survival techniques employed by the youths and that has made them come the far they have. Conclusion The original idea that influenced the establishment of boot camps was to ensure that the population in need of correctional facilities acquired one. However, the idea of boot camps has been stained by negative occurrences like harassment, mental torture and physical abuse. The disturbing fact about these negativities is that it’s carried out by people who are supposed to be taking care of those seeking help. These tendencies have tainted the boot camps idea and they no longer seem to serve the purpose for their establishment. In the current generation, children tend to face a lot of struggles while growing up especially if they lack a role model figure they can look up to or if they lack a strong support system. This has lead to teenagers developing a negative attitude towards any form of correctional service. Therefore, once there, they assume they are not understood and tend to become violent and non-committed to change. Therefore, boot camps do not reduce the rate or occurrence of crimes.
In doing so it showed how powerless and mentally damage these children were. It is not by far an excuse for their actions. But is does show how these children were seeking for the love and acceptance of someone, anyone. This led them down path of destruction. This program is a huge success and has 74 percent rate of recidivism (Hubner, 2005, xxi). This is due to the fact that they are treated like human being and children. Their lives at the school revolves around the concept of resocialization, from lodging, to their therapy sessions, to their schools, to their vocational programs, to recreation program which is football (Hubner, 2005, xxi). This allows the youths to learn and grow from their actions in an area where they are being
Teenagers and children are expected, in these programs, to think about their futures and the long-term consequences of their actions. However, teenagers are “…impulsive, and think short term, especially when it comes to punishment.” (Sullivan). This creates a disconnect between what the facilitators of the program intend, and how the participants perceive the experience. This disconnect is formed because the participants do not see “beaten down losers”, as an adult would, they instead see “strong, muscular adults”
The current criminal justice system is expensive to maintain. In North America the cost to house one prisoner is upwards of eighty to two hundred dollars a day (Morris, 2000). The bulk of this is devoted to paying guards and security (Morris, 2000). In contrast with this, community oriented programming as halfway houses cost less than the prison alternative. Community programming costs five to twenty five dollars a day, and halfway houses although more expensive than community programs still remain cheaper than prison (Morris, 2000). Tabibi (2015c) states that approximately ninety percent of those housed in prison are non-violent offenders. The treatment of offenders in the current system is understood to be unjust. By this, Morris (2000) explains that we consistently see an overrepresentation of indigenous and black people in the penal system. Corporate crimes are largely omitted, while street crimes are emphasized (Morris, 2000). This disproportionately targets marginalized populations (homeless, drug addicted and the poor) (Tabibi, 2015c). The current system is immoral in that the caging of people is highly depersonalized and troubling (Tabibi, 2015c). This is considered to be a barbaric practice of the past, however it is still frequently used in North America (Morris, 2000). Another moral consideration is with the labelling of youth as offenders in the criminal justice system (Morris, 2000). Morris (2000) argues that we should see youth crimes as a social failure, not as an individual level failure. Next, Morris (2000) classifies prisons as a failure. Recidivism rates are consistently higher for prisons than for other alternatives (Morris, 2000). The reason for this is that prisons breed crime. A school for crime is created when a person is removed from society and labeled; they become isolated, angry
In 1814 Francis Scott Key described America as “the land of the free and the home of the brave.” Does that still hold true today? The United States has less than 5% of the world’s population, yet houses roughly a quarter of the world’s prisoners. That means it has 751 people in jail for every 100,000 in population. If you only count adults one in every 100 Americans is locked up. In 2012 the U.S. spent 677,856,000 billion dollars on national defense, that’s nearly 7.5 times the amount spent on education. If more money was spent on education there would be a better chance that people won’t end up incarcerated. About half of the prisoners in the United States are sentenced for non-violent crimes. The population of federal prisons has increased
Juvenile delinquency is a relatively new phenomenon. For this reason, society’s reactions and solutions to the problem of delinquency are also modern developments. The United States developed the first youth court in 1899 and is now home to many new and formerly untested methods of juvenile rehabilitation and correction. One of many unique programs within the Juvenile Justice system, boot camps are institutions designed to keep delinquent juveniles out of traditional incarceration facilities and still provide a structured method of punishment and rehabilitation. Boot camps developed in the early 1990s and quickly proliferated throughout the nation. Specifically, they are “…short-term residential programs modeled after military basic training facilities” (Meade & Steiner, 2010). Designed with the goal of reducing recidivism and preventing violent offenses, boot camps target non-violent individuals under the age of 18 and typically exclude already violent offenders. In theory, boot camps apprehend juveniles while they are committing minor delinquency and prevent more-serious crime by “giving the juvenile offender a more optimistic, community oriented outlook” (Ravenell, 2002). Fundamentally, boot camps have four central purposes; rehabilitation, punishment, deterrence, and cost control (Muscar, 2008).
It is to no surprise that America has a large amount of its people incarcerated for a variety of reasons. One must ask themselves how we can help these individuals get back on track. The answer is America’s most powerful weapon known to man; an education. This is an annotated bibliography for research on the effects of education in the prison system and if these effects are worth taxpayer’s money.
Although putting juveniles into institutions, for many juvenile offenders occurred in the first decades of the 1900s, extensive use of probation for juveniles existed as well. As it does today, probation gave a middle ground nature for judges connecting release and placement in an institution. By 1927, trial programs for juvenile offenders existed in approximately every state. In the 1940s and 1950s, reformers attempted to improve the conditions found in most juvenile institutions. Alternatives to institutions emerged, such as forestry and probation camps. These camps provided a prearranged setting for male juvenile offenders, while emphasizing learning and occupational skills. Though, the efficiency of these options as alternatives to incarceration was dubious since they were not obtainable to the worst offenders. Yet, these changes marked the start of formal, community-based instruction that would turn out to be more extensive in following decades.
The correctional system is based on helping offenders become part of society and not commit any crimes. Many prisons begin the correcting criminals since they are inside the jails, but many prisons do not. Prisons provide prisoners with jobs inside the prison where they get very little pay close to nothing and many have programs that will help them advance their education or get their high school diploma. There are various programs prisons provide to prisoners to help them get a job or have a skill when they are released from prison. In contrast, prisons that do not provide programs or help to prisoners rehabilitate and enter society again will be more likely to commit another crime and go back to jail. The Shawshank Redemption prison did not
The recent media obsession with the scared straight program, juvenile boot camps and other scare tactics has lead to the question as to whether they actually are beneficial or not in treating adolescent criminal recidivism. On television programs like Maury (Pauvich) the answer to treating the troubled young girls who are brought to the show is boot camp. Those in charge take these girls to prisons, dangerous streets at night and often morgues to make a visual argument as to where they will end up as a result of the path they've taken. They also go through a rigorous run with drill sergeants to break down their egos. Of course it only last one day as opposed to any length of time a judge would sentence, but they get a small taste of it. Without surprise, at the end of every program of this nature, all the girls are rehabilitated and promise to go back to school, quit drugs, stealing, prostituting, and stop the abusive behavior.
...(2004). Applying the principles of effective intervention to juvenile correctional programs. Corrections Today, 66(7), 26-29. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=4bd9d7f2-8ac5-42c6-a100-a2443eda9cbf@sessionmgr4002&vid=1&hid=4213
“The Pros and Cons of Sending Your Child to a Boot Camp for Naughty Kids.” Teen Boot Camps. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Mar. 2014. .
Not everyone loves the ideas of alternatives to prison because alternatives to prison seem to work only when there is a limited number of cases that adhere to the sentence, However, when places like California is spending more money on their prison systems than on actual education, alternatives to prison seem to be the best choice (David, 2006).
This paper explores the benefits provided by educational programs in jails and prisons. Included are the reasons inmates need education in order to successfully reenter society once they are released and use the knowledge and skills they have learned to obtain a job in order to support themselves and their families. Also examined in the paper are the financial benefits of incorporating educational programs instead of cutting them, as well as the effect these programs play on the recidivism rate. Lastly is a focus on understanding the importance of education and job training, even though the recipients are criminals.
One of the most important recommendations made by Feld is returning to the rehabilitative premise of juvenile courts. The juvenile court system was originally created to emphasize rehabilitation as opposed to punishment. In addition, the courts were meant to provide a way of protecting children from the harshness of the adult court, which emphasized obtaining guilt and punishing the individual (Hickey, 2010). The dichotomies of “treatment-punishment” and “child-adult” have been skewed and have resulted in a ch...
In addition to the failings of juvenile education, the entire system of juvenile incarceration is rife with deeply embedded abuses that cause harm both to offenders and the public. While I can't provide an exhaustive list of further resources, an article close to home is quite informative and provocative. This article, written by an NYU Law Professor, should give you a lot to think about.