Health Negligence within the Prison System due to Overcrowding

In California, prison overcrowding has become so extreme prisoners have taken the issue to Federal Court. Current inmates issued lawsuits claiming suffering from physical and mental illnesses due to inferior health care caused by overcrowding. The inmates request the court to limit California’s 33 prisons to a population of 104,000, which would mean a release of 52,000 prisoners. The inmates’ arguments began last Tuesday, November 18, 2008, gaining the support of the California Correctional Peace Officers Association (CCPOA), which have many prison guards appearing as witnesses on their behalf. Attorney Gregg Adam acknowledged, “overcrowding increases violence behind bars, spreads illnesses and has a dehumanizing effect on correctional staff.” http://www.sfgate.com/cgibin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/19/BAAV147D2S.DTL

Gary Benson, one of the most compelling witnesses for the inmates, was a guard working in a medical triage unit at Folsom State Prison. Benson admitted, “as many as 50 inmates at a time typically wait two to five hours inside a 12 by 20 foot holding area for medical or mental health treatment. He claimed he also regularly sees inmates in communal showers with bleeding, oozing, staph infections. Benson said he contracted an antibiotic-resistant staph infection in July 2006. Inmates with the infections are not segregated and such diseases often spread in the prison.” http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=6305853

Another guard, Brenda Gibbons who works at Salinas Valley State Prison stated that “suicidal inmates were kept overnight in cages the size of telephone booths until crisis cells became available.” http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=6305853

The states main arguments were that California spends $14,000 a year per inmate on health care, a great deal more than the national average. They also argue that California has significantly enlarged medical staffing in prisons since 2006.

This is a very intriguing case because the courts are becoming involved in trying to solve the overcrowding and health care catastrophe inside of California’s prisons. If the courts rule in favor of the inmates it would cause 52,000 prisoners to be released to county jails, treatment centers or parole. If this were to happen there would be an outcry from the Republican Party and those who support being “tough on crime.”

This case signifies how truly unhealthy and horrific conditions inside California’s prisons have become. The prisoners are not the only people who suffer from these conditions, as the dire conditions have adversely affected the staff as well. The conditions are drastically wearing on correctional officers who do not feel as safe or as in control in the institutions as they used to. This problem is made very apparent in this case because the CCPOA support the prisoners’ claims.

With minimal progress being made in reducing population and making the prisons safer, this case may bring about the drastic change that is needed in the California prison systems. Although I do believe that people should serve time for their wrongdoings and violations of the law, I don’t believe that they should have to be forced to live in inhumane conditions. Hard working correctional officers who make an honest living and put their life on the line everyday should not be exposed to ever-increasing risks because of overpopulated prisons. A substantial release of low-risk prisoners may be what California needs to decrease the ever-growing problem of prison overcrowding. The criminals released would still be monitored and would have to, for example, meet with parole offices, have regular drug test, and participate in rehabilitation and counseling. The benefit of making prisons safer and more humane outweighs the threat of releasing low- risk criminals who are crowding our prison system.

Easing the Dilemma of Overcrowded Prisons

Overcrowded prisons are everywhere in the United States with a new influx of prisoners arriving everyday. The overcrowding causes inhumane conditions, which initiates stress and contributes to behaviors such as aggression and depression. Prisoners do not get ample space or food to satisfy their personal needs and prisons are too impacted to provide adequate rehabilitation or job training programs. In addition to the problems overcrowding encompasses on prisoners, it also creates a predicament for correctional officers who are many times understaffed resulting in enhanced danger. Overcrowding impacts the community outside of the prison walls as well by eating up much of our tax dollars. Prison overcrowding appears to be a problem without a clear solution, but one American county is productively working to ease the dilemma.

In Berks County Pennsylvania, Warden George A. Wagner is making recommendations to county judges on prisoners who should be released early for exemplary behavior. Wagner started his earned-time program in 1993. A new law, which takes effect November 25, provides rules under which prisons must implement programs similar to Wagner’s. Wagner has been releasing about a dozen inmates per month prior to their release date. “Wagner said his program gives inmates an incentive to behave in jail while helping to reduce overcrowding.”
(http://www.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=111331)

The new law in Pennsylvania would allow state prisons to decrease incarceration time for nonviolent offenders who finish treatment programs. “We found that what is driving criminal behavior is underlying substance abuse problems, “said Susan McNaughton, state prison spokeswoman. “If we can provide them with skills, it is less likely they will re-offend.
( http://www.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=111331 )

Although this is clearly not the total solution to fixing the epidemic of overcrowded prisons in America, it is a start. Unconventional programs such as Wagner’s need to be utilized throughout America’s prisons. Wagner is releasing about 12 prisoners early each month. If every American prison followed this example, overcrowding could be reduced significantly. Programs for non-violent offenders in which they can decrease their sentence through good behavior and concluding their treatment program, should be initiated throughout America. A giant step would be taken in alleviating the overcrowding of our prisons if all of America were to follow in the footsteps of Berks County, Pennsylvania.

LETHAL BUNK BUDDIES

Massachusetts is taking steps to alleviate prison overcrowding that may ultimately threaten the safety of inmates and correctional officers. The Department of Corrections (DOC) is initiating a plan to mount 400 bunk beds in Souza-Boranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, MA, in order to house the most hazardous inmates from MCI-Cedar Junction in Walpole, Ma. To make matters even worse, the state is said to have been accepting requests from inmates who want to bunk together. “The roommate request scenario, sources explained, raises several bad possibilities: gangbangers teaming up, couples making house in the big house, or even worse - jailbait forced to live with their abusers.” http://news.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view/2008_11_10_Prison_guards_say_cons_chiming_in_on_bunk_buddies:_The_roommates_from_hell/srvc=home&position=1

If the DOC of Massachusetts were to go through with this plan it would be a tumultuous idea. Prison is not a privilege as is college and inmates should not be able to choose their roommate as if they were in a dorm at a university. The prisoners that are being considered for this move are exceptionally dangerous and can only become exceedingly more dangerous if bunked with one of their inmate pals. “One 20-year correctional officer explained, “once this happens, my ability to separate inmates is gone, it’s gonna be ugly. It’s gonna be a bloodbath.” http://news.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view/2008_11_10_Prison_guards_say_cons_chiming_in_on_bunk_buddies:_The_roommates_from_hell/srvc=home&position=1

Riots and other fights would have the potential to become more lethal if buddies are bunkingtogether because they would have the ability to group up and work in tandem. Gangs could team up on rival gang members and inmates could also have the ability to plan attacks on other inmates or possibly on correctional officers. Correctional officers always want to maintain control at an institution and by placing associates together in the same bunk bed, they may lose a little of that control. Inmates outnumber correctional officers substantially, and to allow associates to bunk together and have the chance to arrange or prepare a group attack on an officer is extremely hazardous. Placing known acquaintances together in a prison atmosphere is a recipe for disaster, not only for the correctional officers, but also for inmates whom could come under attack.

I would not recommend the stance Massachusetts is taking to alleviating overcrowding prisons. Alleviating overcrowding prisons at the cost of the safety of prisoners and correctional officers is not a reasonable solution to solving the nation-wide problem of overcrowded prisons. There are many other stances that could be taken to reduce overcrowding in prisons, including 1) reduced sentences for good behavior for low-risk offenders, 2) rehabilitation programs to reduce second time offenses, and 3) a change in the mandatory minimum sentencing laws, to name a few.

Is It Time For America to Repeal Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Laws?

In 1986 Congress enacted mandatory minimum sentencing laws, forcing judges to deliver fixed sentences to individuals convicted of a crime, regardless of culpability or other mitigating factors. Since the initiation of mandatory minimum sentencing laws prisons have been filled at an alarming rate with drug offenders and non-violent criminals. More prisoners are locked away for drug violations than all violent crimes combined, and more than 80 percent of the increase in the federal prison population from 1985 to 1995 is due to drug convictions. (http://www.drugpolicy.org/) With prison overcrowding at an all time high and no real solutions presented, is it time for America to repeal mandatory minimum sentencing laws?

There is a portion of society who believes mandatory minimums inflict punishment far too severe for first-time offenders and petty drug peddlers. Critics acknowledge the problems caused by the drug trade, but contend that punishments are often too severe. According to the United States Sentencing in 1992 alone, more than 3,000 drug offenders who were not involved in violence and had no previous record were sent to federal prison for terms of at least five years. (http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html) Defenders of mandatory sentencing claim that the drug trade itself is inherently violent and that America needs to be “tough on crime.” And if overcrowded prisons have become a problem, they offer a solution: build more prisons. (http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html)

Mandatory minimum sentencing laws came about because of the major crack epidemic that was running rampantly through America’s streets in the 1980’s. When these laws were established by congress it seemed as if they would be a sufficient remedy to control the epidemic. However, through the years these laws have been under more and more scrutiny. The laws have not proved to be a successful deterrent to crime and are in fact a major reason the prisons are overcrowded.

Though defenders of mandatory minimum feel that we need to be “tough on crime” and criminals should be incarcerated, there is one major issue, we simply don’t have anywhere to place them. Petty drug dealers and first time offenders shouldn’t be incarcerated with rapists and murderers, they should be rehabilitating to try to better themselves. In prison many of these petty offenders are learning how to become more efficient criminals and are not receiving the help they need.

The crisis of overcrowded prisons across America is only on the rise. We need to find a better solution to not only decrease the number of prisoners in jail, but also the frequency of recidivism. In this case, a feasible solution would be abolishing the mandatory sentencing laws for first first-time offenders time and offering comprehensive rehabilitation and counseling.

FIRE IN OVERCROWDED PRISON RESULTS IN FATALITIES

Prison overcrowding not only takes away from successful rehabilitation and quality of life, but it also drastically reduces the safety of prisoners. Three years ago in Higuey, Dominican Republic the harsh reality of the danger of an overpopulated prison was seen firsthand. “A battle broke out in a cell known as Vietnam, the authorities said. Shots were fired and punches flew. Mattresses, machetes and other objects sailed through the air before a burst of flame came, then torrents of black, choking smoke” (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/09/international/americas/09dominican.html). This melee occurred in a severely overcrowded cell and took the lives of 136 prisoners. The cell was built to house no more than 40 prisoners. “Human rights workers here and abroad say prison overcrowding in the Dominican Republic is among the worst in the hemisphere” (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/09/international/americas/09dominican.html).
The prison was first constructed to hold 80 prisoners but on the day of the tragic fire there were at least 426 prisoners in captivity.

Tragic events such as this should be a forewarning of how ghastly it can be on the inside of an overcrowded prison. One person’s actions can start a chain of events that can abruptly get very dangerous. In this case the situation became dangerous because rival gangs who were waging war over the drug trade set their bedding ablaze. One survivor stated that “some died in a stampede to escape the flames and some died of smoke inhalation” (http://chinadaily.com/cn/english/doc/2005-03/08/ ). “The fire burned everything fast in a matter of seconds or minutes,” said Pedro Rojas Morillo, the governor of La Altagracia Province. “There was no hope” (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/09/international/americas/09dominican.html). Events such as this display the danger of overcrowded prisons and the importance of relieving prisons of overcrowding. In addition to the lack of rehabilitation and job training opportunities, overcrowded prisons make conditions extremely dangerous. Fights, and riots are more likely to occur in congested prisons because in an overcrowded, frightening and stressful situation people trend to become exceedingly irritable and are always “watching their back.” This stress and irritability can cause paranoia, which can lead to confrontations. These confrontations can ultimately become deadly and out of control. Another downfall to an overpopulated prison is that criminals feel they need to join a gang in order to survive. You are not likely to survive in a hostile situation if you are a loner. Gangs ultimately battle each other, which can end in tragedy as was exhibited by the skirmish in the Dominican Republic. All of these conditions escalate in overcrowded prisons because people cannot stay to themselves and have to adapt to gang life.

Prisoners are detained to pay their debt to society for their wrongdoings, but being put in an overcrowded and potentially deadly environment is not fair or equal punishment. If the prison in the Dominican Republic held the amount of inmates it was built to accommodate, hundreds of lives would have been saved. Instead, this crowded prison was a death trap for at least 136 prisoners who were caught in a fiery blaze with no chance to survive, rehabilitate, and rejoin society as productive individuals.

Prison Tent Camps: A Short Term Solution to a Long Term Problem

Tent City in Maricopa County, Arizona

Can you imagine sleeping under tents in the middle of a scolding hot desert while eating bologna sandwiches everyday? No, I am not talking about the soldiers in Iraq. I’m referring to what many prisoners go through every day in Maricopa County, Arizona. One of the most controversial yet most backed sheriffs in the nation runs this “tent city” prison. “For the Maricopa county sheriff (Joe Arpaio) who opened the nation’s largest tent prison in 1993, saving taxpayers pennies matters more than comforting convicted felons.” (http://www.cnn.com/US/9907/27/tough.sheriff/).

With taxpayers across the nation dishing out more and more money every year for the overflow of prisoners entering our overcrowded system, alternatives such as tent prisons may become more of a trend. In the summer of 2006 a 65 million dollar “tent city” was built in Raymondville, Texas to be used as an immigration detention facility due to lack of space in the prisons. (http://realcostofprisons.org/blog/archives/2007/02/tent_city_in_te.html)

The advantage of these “tent prisons” is that taxpayers save money due to the cheaper up-keep, building expenses and electric expenses of these military camp-like structures. Supporters of tent prisons believe that criminals should pay for their crime and shouldn’t be awarded the amenities such as air conditioning and television. Sheriff Joe Arpaio has even gone as far as excluding coffee, which he claimed saved $150,000 a year. On top of this exclusion, “Arpaio makes inmates pay for their meals, which some say are worse than those of the guard dogs.
Canines eat $1.10 worth of food a day, the inmates 90 cents."
(http://www.cnn.com/US/9907/27/tough.sheriff/)

Critics of tent prisons deem the conditions in these prisons too ruthless. In Arizona temperatures have been known to reach all the way to 120 degrees Fahrenheit. In Raymondville, Texas at tent city, “a group of women huddled in a recreation yard on a 40-degree day with a 25-mph wind. They had no blanket, no sweat shirt, no jacket, officers were wearing earmuffs while detainees were outside for an hour with short sleeved polyester uniforms and shower shoes and not necessarily socks."
(http://realcostofprisons.org/blog/archives/2007/02/tent_city_in_te.html)

Conditions such as 120-degree weather in Arizona and 40-degree weather with flailing winds in Texas are reasons that critics call these jails merciless. One of the critics, Eleanor Eisenborg of the ACLU stated, “Sheriff Arpaio has conditions in his jail that are inhumane, and he’s proud of it.” (http://www.cnn.com/US/9907/27/tough.sheriff/)

Critics also are weary of tent jails because even though the Maricopa County jail is saving money on everyday amenities, they have been “hit with hundreds of inmate-related lawsuits, and ordered to pay millions in legal damages.” (http://www.cnn.com/US/9907/27/tough.sheriff/)

While prisons across America are overpopulated and legislators, lawmakers and the criminal justice system are all struggling to find a way to accommodate this huge influx of prisoners, tent prisons are not much of a solution. Criminals should pay for what they have done but putting people outside in horrid conditions is not the way to accomplish this. Many of the people that stay in tent city jails are non-violent offenders who would be better served by being involved in some type of intermediate sanction such as probation and counseling. Placing these non-violent prisoners in an inhumane environment, without electricity, proper nutrition, and hygiene is not the correct way to rehabilitate and better equip them with the proper skill-set to transition back into society and a working profession. Desperate measures such as tent camps are only a short-term solution to a long-term problem and a better solution must be made to solve this ever-increasing problem.

EFFECTS OF PRISON OVERCROWDING ON INMATES

California State Prison in Los Angeles, CA

“Mr. Weier has served his sentence in prisons in Minnesota, Oklahoma, Arizona and now Hawaii. He last saw his daughter 11 years ago and has five grandchildren he has never met. “To them, I’m just a voice who talks to them on the phone for a while,” said Mr. Weier who expects to be released next year.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/31/us/31prisons.html.)

Mr. Weier’s story is not much different than those of many prisoners in the United States. Overcrowded populations in prisons have many prisoners being transferred from state to state to try to compensate for the congestion in prisons. California is one of the states implementing this tactic in order to improve the clogged conditions in California’s prisons. “Last year in 2007 the state’s prison population reached a historic high of 173,000 inmates. Overcrowding had become so bad that 18,000 inmates were sleeping in gyms and laundry areas in the prisons.” (http://www.nbc11.com/news/14328402/detail.html)

There is a definite downside to shipping inmates from prison to prison and one of the major concerns that correction officials have is that it, “disrupts training programs and puts stress on tenuous family bonds, making it more difficult to break the cycle of inmates committing new crimes after their release.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/31/us/31prisons.html)

By transferring inmates various times throughout various facilities, American taxpayers are essentially not getting their money’s worth. Some of the frequently transferred prisoners are not getting the proper treatment, rehabilitation, or training needed to help better their life upon release. This vicious cycle can lead to repeat offenses and incarceration. “Eli Coates a 26-year-old inmate from Arizona is serving a 10 year sentence did time at six Arizona prisons and one in Oklahoma, and is now back in Arizona. Mr. Coates has said that his frequent moves had made it hard to complete educational programs that he had hoped would help him get a steady job upon release.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/31/us/31prisons.html)

Stories such as Mr. Coates’ illustrate some of the problems of overcrowding in the America criminal justice system. In order to improve on recidivism rates across America it is essential that criminals can receive the rehabilitation and training that they need in order to be viable and productive members of society. If criminals continue to be shipped from prison to prison because of overcrowding then it makes it almost impossible to receive the full training, rehabilitation, and stability that is required to reintegrate them into the fabrics of society. Without proper rehabilitation -including job training, work skills, and life management classes - there is much more likelihood that newly released prisoners will continue the cycle of re-offending and reconviction. Gaining employment is fundamentally important to a prisoner’s rehabilitation. If prisoners move into meaningful work upon their release there is a much less chance of them re-offending, so the community (i.e. taxpayers) benefit as a result.