Private Prisons are a Detriment to the Society Essay Example

Prison is meant to serve the corrective measures by providing a corrective platform to inmates. The transition to and from incarceration should impact positively on the life of law offenders. There lies controversy in terms of the efficiency and effectiveness of the prison department. The comparison between the services provided by the federal prisons and the private prisons indicate a wide disparity in the quality of service delivered and the corrective measures offered in relation to the safety and security offered (Reid). The private prisons are termed as business opportunities operated with a motive of maximizing profits. In this case, some of the private prison entities exhibited the poor quality of services and deteriorating the quality of life. On the contrary, federal prisons show advance care to prisoners as opposed to private prisons which are expected to offer better services. The quality of services rendered in relation to the treatment from both the corrective officers and inmates characterizes the injustices experienced by inmates in private prisons. The social injustices such as violence fights, sexual harassment, and killings have been pointed out some of the basic problems experienced by inmates in private prisons (Reid). This paper takes a deep insight into the quality of services and the viability of the private prison prisons in fostering corrective and improving the quality of life of the offenders. the injustices experienced in the prison departments will be analyzed with a view of shading light on the effects of the private prisons on the society in general.

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According to Rynne, the services and the amenities provided in the private prisons rank poorly against the services provided by the federal bureau of prisons (152). The fundamental reason for serving jail term is to undergo corrective services. However, the private prisons exhibit shortage in corrective services with beefed up security as well as increased risk factors in the prisons (Rynne 149). In this light, the stay and services offered to expose the inmates to a wide range of health and life risks. Some studies indicate that some private prisons offer quality services to offenders and provide conducive living conditions for inmates. On the contrary, some studies argue that private prisons are profit oriented and therefore try to cut costs which deteriorate the inmates' living conditions. With regards to failure in safeguarding the interests of the offenders, the prisoners leave prison hardened for more criminal activities rather than undergoing a corrective transition. This leaves the society exposed to more criminal activities rather than benefiting from the prison corrective measures.

Staff costs and training stands out distinctive as a critical point of concern among the private prison corrective officers. The low renumeration, as well as higher inmate to staff ratio, accounts for the increase in the turnover rate among the corrective officers. The prisons are overwhelmed with prisoners, but the number of corrective officers is far below compared to the population of prisoners under guard (Rynne 154). This increases the rate of fights and prison deaths among prisoners. The limited training time offered to the corrective officers exposes them to the risk of attack by some inmates too. This call for the improved welfare of the corrective officers through considerate renumeration as well as security measures that guarantee the safety of the officers. On the other hand, the shortage in the security officers exposes the inmates to less surveillance and increases the cases of inmate assault causing injuries and deaths (Turnbull et al.).

The most argued point is the ability of private prisons in offering standardized and quality services to the public. This is because private prisons operate on the motive of maximizing profits and therefore tend to save on costs (Rynne 154). In that light, the number of prisoners continually accelerate surpassing the available facilities that can comfortably serve the inmates.

However, the main concern arises from the ability of private prisons carrying out business with a profit motive and offering standard services to the prisoners. Some private prisons prove to offer standard services as well as optimizing on profits. Therefore, it cannot be ruled out that private prisons collectively offer inferior services. The debatable issue is the entrusting establishment of justice via a prism of profit (Crewe 322). Justice cannot be administered through subcontracting. This exposes the prisoners to harsh treatment as the stakeholders focus on making more profits rather than improving the life of the prisoners. Therefore, associating the justice sought for by the judicial system is compromised with the prisoner leaving prison without undergoing adequate corrective support. In this case, the prisoner suffers more in the institutions and get used to criminal activities such as fights.

Private prisons destabilize the community since it advocates for mass incarceration as opposed to the calls for few people in prison over a short period of time. According to (Reid), the spending of much time in prison encourages the recurrence of criminal activities, and therefore, it is recommended for a few prisoners over a short period of time. This increases the effectiveness of corrective measures offered and the elimination of the crime in the society (Reid). On the other hand, private prisons are motivated by an influx of prisoners which reflects in higher expenses. Long prison time provides an opportunity for private prisons for mass incarceration and treatment of psychiatric disorders (Donnelly).

According to Donnelly, social injustices such as violence, sexual harassment, are common in private prisons. This makes it unhealthy for the sentencing in such prisons. Victims suffer from frequent starving and accompanied malnutrition due to harassment from other inmates. Additionally, prison fights and conflicts increase the vulnerability of prisons to a wide range of health and life risks. Sexual harassment is common in private prisons with most victims going without medical support. The psychological effect from imprisonment can be detrimental to the prison population with some prisoners contemplating on suicide. On the contrary, the psychiatric services provided are inadequate and ineffective in addressing individual inmates' needs.

The alarming factor in private prisons is the keeping of extensively mentally ill prisoners in the prison confinements. Cases of these victims throwing feces, starting fires, self-electrocution and self-mutilation are common which questions the morals and motives behind the operation of the private prisons. The wellbeing of the prisoners should be top of their priority list, but as it stands, that lies just like any other less relevant issue (Donnelly). The private prisons withhold mentally ill prisoners to provide for incarceration and treatment for their psychiatric problems which on the other hand improves their profits.

Conclusion

The private prisons cannot be collectively assumed to offer dismal services to the prisoners and the society in general. In that light, some private prisons prove to offer quality services to the prisoners. Additionally, they don't basically base their operation to maximizing the profits but consider the wellbeing of the prisoners and at the same time ensure the cost of the services. The balance in the service deliver, and the cost of operation ensures the safe operation of the prisons. Some studies indicate that there are some federal prisons save on costs more that the private prisons do. The increases in the series of poor surveillance, health concerns and the motive of judicial sentencing have attracted the attention of the American Civil liberty Union advocating for the closing down of some of the private prisons. The US records high rates of mass incarceration which reflects in demand for prison services. However, the services offered by the private prison services contradicts the advocated support and correction. Therefore, the institution's worth in the society is questionable. In that case, private prisons prove to be detrimental to society and its population.

Works cited

Crewe, Ben, Alison Liebling, and Susie Hulley. "StaffPrisoner Relationships, Staff Professionalism, and the Use of Authority in Publicand PrivateSector Prisons." Law & Social Inquiry 40.2 (2015): 309-344.

Donnelly, Claire. "A Problematic Business Model: The Effect of Private Prisons on Arrests." (2017).

Reid, Melanie. "The Culture of Mass Incarceration: Why Locking Them up and Throwing away the Key Isn't a Humane or Workable Solution for Society, and How Prison Conditions and Diet Can Be Improved." U. Md. LJ Race, Religion, Gender & Class 15 (2015): 251.

Rynne, John, and Richard Harding. "Private prisons." Handbook on Prisons (2016): 149-168.

Turnbull, Sarah, et al. "Introduction: Critical Prison Studies, Carceral Ethnography, and Human Rights: From Lived Experience to Global Action." (2018).