Total Institutions

2. Total Institutions • Prisons are a type of total institution—enclosed places where people share all aspects of their daily lives. • Residents of total institutions: • May be sent their forcibly are cut off from larger society operate like “small societies” form distinctive value systems and life styles

3. Prison Subculture • New inmates undergo a process of prisonization, through which they learn convict values, attitudes, roles, and language (argot) that make up the prison subculture.

4. Prison Subcultures • Sykes and Messinger: The Inmate Social System (1960) • Five elements of the prison code: • Don’t interfere with interests of other inmates—don’t rat on others • Play it cool—do your own time • Don’t whine—be a man • Don’t exploit inmates—don’t break your word • Don’t be a sucker—don’t trust guards or staff

5. Prison Argot • Language/terms used in one institution are generally understood in another. • ace duce—best friend • banger—a knife • billy—white man • boneyard—conjugal visit • chester—child molester • dog—homeboy or friend • ink—tattoos • man walking—signal guard coming • tree jumper—rapist

6. Prison Subculture • Research on prison subcultures suggests that they: • Evolve to reflect the concerns and experiences of the wider culture • Develop independently of the plan of prison administrators • Aare consistent among prisons across the U.S.

7. Deprivation Model Prison subculture develops as a way to adapt to deprivations faced by inmates: Liberty Goods and Services Autonomy Personal Security Heterosexual relationships Importation Model Inmates bring values, roles, and behaviors with them from the outside world when they enter prison. The Functions of Prison SubcultureTwo Explanations for Prison Society:

8. Prison Lifestyles and Inmate Types • Some of the types of inmates that researchers have described are: • Mean dude • Colonizer • Religious • The gang banger • Realist • Legalist • Retreatist • Hedonist • Radical • Opportunist

9. Inmate Types • Mean Dude: • Quick to fight • Dangerous: best left alone • Receives frequent write-ups for violations • Spends a lot of time in solitary • Prison subculture supports role of mean dude by: • Expecting prisoners to be tough • Values that say “only the strong survive”

10. Inmate Types • Hedonist: • … builds life around limited pleasures in prison (smuggling, gambling, drug running, homosexuality, etc.). • Opportunist: • … takes advantage of positive experiences prison has to offer, such as schooling, trade programs, counseling, etc.

11. Inmate Types • Retreatist: • … attempts some form of psychological retreat from realities of prison, often becoming heavily involved in drug and alcohol use leading to depression and mental illness. • Legalist: • … the “jail house” lawyer—fights confinement through the law.

12. Inmate Types • Radical: • … views himself as a political prisoner, society = the oppressor. • Religious: • … has strong religious ties and may be “born again.”

13. Inmate Types • Colonizer: • … views prison as “home” • Has many friends inside • Often holds position of power and/or respect • Does not look forward to leaving prison • Has been known to commit new crimes to return to prison

14. Inmate Types • Realist: • … sees incarceration as a natural consequence of criminal activity— just an unfortunate part of “doing criminal business”—follows inmate code and does not get in trouble.

15. Inmate Types • The Gang Banger: • … are affiliated with prison gangs and depend upon the gang for defense, protection, and a channel for goods and services.

16. Homosexuality in Prison • Prison subculture both constrains and promotes homosexuality. • Words within argot describe homosexuality. • Newcomers frequently preyed upon. • Sex used as a commodity. • Prison rape does occur.

17. The Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) • PREA (2003): • Establishes a zero-tolerance standard for prison rape. • Makes prison rape prevention a top priority. • Implements national standards for the detection, prevention, reduction, and punishment of prison rape. • Increases the availability of information on prison rape. • Increases the accountability of corrections officials.

18. Homosexual Assault in Prison • Studies of sexual violence in prison reveal that: • Most sexual aggressors do not consider themselves homosexuals. • Sexual release is not the primary motivation for sexual attack. • Many aggressors must continue to participate in gang rapes to avoid being victims themselves. • The aggressors have themselves suffered much damage to their masculinity in the past.

19. FIGURE 14–1 Prison inmates by gender and ethnicity in state and federal prisons. Prison Inmates by Gender and Ethnicity in States and Federal Prisons

20. Female Inmates • Although women represent only around seven percent of the total prison population, they are increasing at a faster rate than male inmates.

21. National Profile of Women Offenders • According to the NIC, women offenders are: • Disproportionately women of color • In their early to mid-30s • Most likely to have been convicted of a drug-related offense • From fragmented families that include other family members who also have been involved with the criminal justice system

22. National Profile of Women Offenders • Women offenders often share the following characteristics: • Sexual or physical abuse • Substance abuse • Multiple physical and mental health problems • Single motherhood • Limited vocational training • Sporadic work histories

23. Institutions for Women • Most female inmates are housed in centralized state facilities. Institutions housing women: • Usually are located in towns with fewer than 25,000 inhabitants. • Typically not designed to house female inmates. • Some also house men. • Few have programs especially designed for female offenders. • Few major disturbances or escapes reported. • High rates of substance abuse. • Few work assignments.

24. Social Structure in Women’s Prisons • Some researchers have discovered a social structure in which women form relationships with each other that are similar to those experienced outside of prison life. • Courtship, marriage • Kinship systems • Additionally, lesbianism and staff-inmate sexual misconduct exists.

25. Types of Female Inmates • Esther Hoffman (1972) found three types of female adaptation styles to prison life: • The square • The cool • The life • Recently, another type of inmate has arrived: “crack kids.”

26. Violence in Women’s Prison • Violence is less frequent than in men’s facilities. • Violence sometimes comes from staff.

27. Addressing the Problems of Imprisoned Women • The Task Force on the Female Offender recommends the following changes: • Make substance abuse programs available. • Build greater literacy skills. • House females in separate facilities. • Develop programs allowing women to keep children in the facility. • Ensure equal access to assistance with programming.

28. The Staff World • About 748,000 people are employed in corrections. Staff roles can include: • Warden • Psychologist • Corrections officer • Counselor • Area supervisor • Program director • Therapist • Physician • Instructor

29. Corrections Officers • Like inmates, corrections officers undergo a socialization process that helps them function by the official and unofficial rules of staff society. • One of the major formative influences on staff culture is the potential threat that inmates pose.

30. Custody + Control • Prison staffers are most concerned with custody and control. • Has led to institutionalized procedures for ensuring safety.

31. Professionalism of Corrections Officers • Corrections personnel are becoming better trained and more proficient, leading to greater professionalism.

32. Prison Riots • Some of our nation’s prison riots: • 1971—Attica Prison, NY • 1987—Atlanta Federal Penitentiary • 1989—State Correctional Institution, Camp Hill, PA • 1993—Southern Correctional Facility, Lucasville, OH • 2004—Arizona State Prison Complex-Lewis • 2005—San Quentin State Prison, CA

33. Causes of Prison Riots • Riots occur for a variety of reasons, including • Insensitive prison administration and neglected inmate demands • Carry-over of violent criminal lifestyles • Dehumanizing prison conditions • Regulate inmate society and redistribute power among inmates • Power vacuums are created among prison administration

34. Stages of Prison Riots • Riots tend to evolve through five stages. • Explosion • Organization • Confrontation • Termination • Reaction and explanation

35. Hands Off Doctrine • Prior to the 1960s, American courts had taken a neutral approach—commonly called the hands-off doctrine—toward the running of prisons. • Rested on the belief that inmates experienced civil death.

36. Legal Basis of Prisoner Rights • In Pell v. Procunier (1974) the U.S. Supreme Court established the “balancing test.” • Balancing test—attempts to weigh the rights of individuals against the state’s authority to make laws or otherwise restrict a person’s freedom in order to protect its interests and its citizens.

37. Prisoner Rights as Conditional Rights • Prisoner rights have a basis in the Constitution and the law external to the institution. • Prisoner rights can be thought of as conditional rights. • They are constrained by the legitimate needs of imprisonment.

38. Communications and Visitation • First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech apply to inmates’ rights in three areas: • Receipt of mail • Communications with others (especially those on the outside) • Visitation

39. Communications and Visitation • Receipt of Mail • The courts generally have not allowed restrictions on receipt of published mail, though in 2006 the U.S. Supreme Court held that Pennsylvania could ban its most violent inmates from receiving magazines, pictures, and newspapers. • A prisoner’s mail can be censored if necessary for security reasons. • Magazines, newspapers, and the like must be mailed from the publisher.

40. Communications and Visitation • Receipt of Mail • Magazines that depict deviant sexual behavior can be banned. • Prisons cannot ban nude pictures of inmates’ wives or girlfriends.

41. Communications and Visitation • Communications with Others • In McNamara v. Moody (1979) a federal court upheld an inmate’s right to write vulgar letters to his girlfriend. • Prisoners have no inherent right to publish material for use by other prisoners.

42. Communications and Visitation • Visitation • The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a policy that prohibited all inmate visits in Block v. Rutherford (1984). • In Overton v. Bazzetta (2003), the Court upheld a state’s visitation plan that limited visitation for certain substance abusing inmates. • Media members get no special privileges for interviews, but cannot be denied correspondence. • Policies for media access must be administered fairly and without bias.

43. Religious Freedom • Cruz v. Beto (1972) • Established that prisoners must be given a “reasonable opportunity” to pursue their faith, even if it differs from traditional forms of worship. • Meeting facilities must be provided for religious purposes when those same facilities are made available to other groups of prisoners for other purposes.

44. Religious Freedom • Prisoners in segregation do not have to be permitted the opportunity to attend religious services.

45. Religious Freedom • Possessing Items of Worship • In Dettmer v. Landon a federal court held that a prisoner who claimed to practice witchcraft must be provided with the artifacts needed for worship. • Drugs, dangerous substances, and dangerous items of worship may be banned. • It is acceptable to ban wearing beards, even those grown for religious reasons (Hill v. Blackwell [1985]).

46. Access to the Courts and Legal Assistance • Bounds v. Smith (1977) recognized the right of prisoners to petition the court. It is the duty of the state to assist prisoners in preparation and filing of legal papers. • Assistance could be in the form of trained personnel or institutional law libraries.

47. Access to the Courts and Legal Assistance • The Court in Lewis v. Casey (1996) overturned part of Bounds. • Prisoners are not guaranteed the “wherewithal to file any and every type of legal claim.”

48. Access to the Courts and Legal Assistance • The Court in Johnson v. Avery (1968) held that prisoners under correctional supervision have a right to consult “jailhouse lawyers” for advice when assistance from trained professional is not available.

49. Access to the Courts and Legal Assistance • Indigent inmates: • Do not have the right to an appointed lawyer if no judicial proceedings have been initiated against them. • Must be provided with stamps for purposes of legal correspondence.

50. Medical Care • In Estelle v. Gamble (1976) the U.S. Supreme Court concerned itself with “deliberate indifference” on part of staff toward prisoner’s need for medical attention. • Court held prison officials responsible for providing adequate medical care. • Deliberate indifference requires both actual knowledge and disregard of risk of harm (per Hudson v. McMillan [1992]).