Essay Example on Jail vs. Prison: Comparing Roles in Corrections

Introduction

Prison is an institutional facility that serves under the rules and principles of the state and where the convicted offenders typically serve their long sentences. Jail, however, is a local institution that is under the power of a district, city, or county, and its penalties are ordinarily short. This paper analyses the comparison between jail and prison.

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Jail's Place

Jail's play a significant role in terms of corrections as they tend to receive offenders who break the law and arraigned in court waiting for their trials. It contributes to detaining criminals and especially juveniles and mentally challenged people temporarily.

The role that the jails play in corrections is in terms of parole and probation and among other violating terms. It also ensures that there is a reduction in offender acts and recidivism. Jails achieve their role by using strategies that help to keep order and create community-based sanctions. They help in correcting the behaviors of the offenders through enhancing correctional lessons and courses. These activities are vital in assisting criminals to have a better time and place while being detained. Throughout history, jails have been performing the tasks of enhancing the defender results by transforming them to be better persons (Gaes, 2019). They have been carrying out the activity of transferring inmates to federal and local institutions. Jails have also ensured that they house the inmates from various prisons who may be in excess. Generally, jails improve the lives of the offenders and those likely to be.

History

Prisons and jails can detain criminals who have committed similar crimes. The difference between prison and jail is that one holds offenders for long and the other for a short period. In the early 1800s, state prisons started by the Sing Sing state prison. When prisons began to emerge, they were minimal and held many prisoners with a higher population in the U.S. Due to the increase in the number of penalties; prisons began to develop quickly. The states and necessities provided funding for the prisoners. The federal systems started in the late 1890s and had significant changes through the bills signed by Herbert Hoover (Avery et al., 2018). This created many federal prisons and introduced federal laws and bank robberies led to the development of the system

Comparison of Security Levels

The security levels in state prisons have levels that range from one to four. The standards, however, can be administrative, minimum, high, or medium. In the federal system of prisons, however, the security levels of the prisons play a significant role. The offenders in federal prisons are mostly drug dealers and politicians. Various people with different offense states are locked in these institutions.

Factors

The factor influencing these institutions is the higher number of offenders that have increased the rate of the offenders and overcrowding in these facilities. The other factor is the increase in the number of juveniles who are involved in criminal acts, and many are treated like adults in these institutions. With an increase in the number of children in these institutions, it poses a significant challenge since they have to implement effective measures of assisting them. The number of women breaking the law has also increased over time and the rate of illegal immigrants in the nation. Poverty has also influenced the jails and prisons and the differences in wages. With these factors, the number of offenders and prisoners and offenders has highly increased. Jails are prisons have played a significant role in reducing criminal acts in society and sustainability through creating order and peace.

References

Avery, J. V., Casey, L. V., Johnston, P. V., & Act, P. L. R. (2018). Jails Compared to Prisons. American Prisons and Jails: An Encyclopedia of Controversies and Trends [2 volumes], 351. https://commons.und.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1264&context=nurs-capstones

Gaes, G. G. (2019). Current status of prison privatization research on American prisons and jails. Criminology & Public Policy, 18(2), 269-293. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1745-9133.12428