Legislative Analyst Office. (2008). Proposition 9 Criminal ...



1. Discuss inmate riots and disturbances. Include factors that cause them and response team roles and goals. How can prisons try to prepare for these types of events? What preventive actions can prison administrators take to reduce inmate unrest and lessen chances of a precipitating event starting a riot? (400)Inmate riots can be very destructive and violent. When riots occur, the inmates become out of control with strong determination to act in defiance to administration rules and regulations. The root of riots can traced up as influenced by various factors.Riots are sometimes part of plotted plans such as plan to protest against the facility management or plans to escape from the facility. Inmates that felt dissatisfaction in the treatments received can start to make complaints. The foods, the supplies, the system management, and some unjust and inhumane treatment are just among the factors that can be frustrating that can drive the inmates to become aggressive and impulsive. If the needs and complains of the inmates seem to be ignored and unattended, the helpless inmates may have no other way but can be forced to stage riots to call attention. The inmates particularly those with heavy sentences may seek ways to escape from being held in prison and staging riots become part of the escape plots. The built up tensions and infarctions between the inmates could be traced as a major contributor of the roots of inmate riots. The racial differences along with various differences among the inmates can generate individual conflicts. Formation of opposing gangs within the facility can become a common root of riots. For instance, the blacks will be forming a group and so with the other races. Racial tension can be very strong and formation of gangs carries all potentials of causing disorder in the facility. The growing differences that generate conflicts and building up of grudges can end up to gang to gang or group to group violent riots.With the inmates that have already breached the law, violence including riots is probable. The correction management must have prepared fairly on the prevention aspects such as keeping the environment safe as much as possible by keeping strict accessibility to any object that can be used as weapons. Access of inmates to sharp objects, guns, glass and metal objects for instance must be restricted and close guarded. The facility must have preparedness plans to handle riots in case it happens. The event would be like managing a disaster that needs to have efficient and systematic plans that every officer will take roles. The safety and security of the environment must be always a priority.Strict implementation of discipline system within the facility may not always help but proper classification of inmates can be very helpful in easing unrest within the facility. The tensions building up due to differences between the inmates can be very strong causative factor of fights and riots. Putting the inmates according to the level of risk and supervision needed may help. Management that eases discrimination within the inmates may help as well particularly when handling racial groups. The formation of gangs however must be carefully addressed making sure to strictly monitor every move of inmates. ReferenceDolovich, S. (2011). Strategic segregation in the modern prison. “Opposing Viewpoints in Context”. American Criminal Law Review. Retrieved from Gale Database. 2. Discuss prison gang development and characteristics of gang members. What strategies are being used in an attempt to control gangs in prison? Do you think these strategies are effective? Why, or why not? (200)Prison gang development start with the motive to have some control and power to carry out some activities while in prison. The gangs may start with inmates that share similar ideas and beliefs and the group may group progressively with due recruitment of more inmates. The gang members have various characteristics that include the notorious inmates as leaders and the vulnerable ones as the subordinates and followers. Prison gangs may look after the protection of every member but more than good purpose; the gangs usually end up with involvement with prohibited activities and crimes both inside and outside the facility. The gang may take the lead in the procurement and distribution of drugs, tobacco, and alcohol inside the facility. The gang may also turn as mastermind of assaults, prostitution, and murder inside the facility. With due bribery of officers and good connections, the gang may also lead in participation in organized crimes that include drug dealing and money laundering. Prison gangs can do many activities that allow maintenance of the criminality behavior particularly of the gang leaders. Some members may have no direct involvement in the notorious activities of the gang but they remain under the control of the prison gang. Prison gangs usually start as few-members group but may start growing in number and strength using different strategies. Facilities usually keep close monitoring of the activities of inmates to prevent growing up of the gangs. Appropriate segregation of inmates such as according to race and sexual orientation are found helpful but raised some questions (Hagedorn, 2008). But I think segregation according to behavior of inmates will be helpful. Recruitment of more members usually uses pressure and intimidation to force inmates to become member of the gang. If the vulnerable inmates are segregated, they will be saved from being forced as gang members. ReferenceHagedorn, J. (2008), A World of Gangs: Armed Young Men and Gangsta Culture.Minnesota:University of Minnesota Press. 3. What Supreme Court decisions limited the number of lawsuits that could be filed by inmates? List and explain three legislative acts that helped to reduce inmate lawsuits and how they accomplished this. (200)The case of Coffin vs. Reichard led to recognition of the prisoner’s rights. The Supreme Court decision following the Coffin’s case stated that “the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that “a prisoner retains all the rights of an ordinary citizen except those expressly, or by necessary implication, taken from him by law” (Foster, 2006, p. 326, para 2)”. The conferred rights on the prisoners eased the heavy burden of being punished that allowed the prisoners to live as normal as they could. However, the defined rights increased the awareness of prisoners on their rights that increased the filing of complaints and lawsuits. Prisoners increased sensitiveness in looking at every issue that could be causing violation to their rights. Trivial and frivolous complaints and lawsuits could not be controlled which some of them were raised as sort of recreation for some bored and dismayed inmates (Foster, 2006).The definition of prisoner rights based on Eight Amendment of the US constitution limited prisoner to seek legal actions on appeals, torts, and filing criminal charges while in prison (Foster, 2006).The Eight Amendment mandated to set limits on the power of federal government and its officials towards the federal prisoners defining reasonable sentences and provided indications of knowing when the punishment is considered as not cruel (Foster, 2006). The provision of rights of prisoners has been furthered by the Section 1983 that covers the civil rights litigation conferring protection to those deprived of statutory and federal rights (King County Law Library, 2009). The provisions in 1983 associate other issues covered by other Amendments including freedom of speech, search and seizure or use of force, violations of due process and cruel and unusual punishment ((King County Law Library, 2009). ReferencesFoster, F. (2006). Chapter 12 Prisoner’s Rights. “Corrections: The Fundamentals”. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Pearson Education, IncKing County Court Library. (2009). Section 1983 civil rights litigation research guide. Retrieved from . Discuss due process as it relates to inmate discipline. What steps are required for prisoner due process when an inmate is faced with a disciplinary action? Which amendment guides due process for inmate disciplinary processes? How did Sandin v. Connor affect due process for inmates? (200)People accused of crimes may instantly turn as bad apples to the eyes of the public. The situation the offenders are in, once accused of any crime, places them to a state highly vulnerable to sorts of prejudice and discrimination bearing high potentials of receiving unfair and bias treatment in the criminal justice system. The US Constitution has provided some rulings on application of due process all throughout the criminal justice proceedings and lawful treatment of prisoners. The Eighth Amendment for instance confers protection of the rights of the prisoners specifically from cruel and unusual punishment and from excessive bail or fines. (US Government Printing Office, 2002). With due process, the Criminal justice system promotes and protects justice in the society that includes protection of the human rights of every individual including the accused offenders. The criminal justice system maintains protection of fair process in all phases of court proceedings. The accused offenders are given privilege to exercise their rights to maintain fairness that defines due process. The law grants offenders right for a counsel, right to be silent, right to bail, right for a jury trial, and right to see all the witnesses who are going to give testimonies during the process. With the given rights, the accused criminals are given opportunities to deliberately participate in the forthcoming processes of the justice system (Legislative Analyst Office, 2007). The case of Sandin v. Conner provided basis that clarified more specifically the rights of the offenders that have to be protected per mandate of the law. The denial of Conner’s right for witness and unlawful segregation as sentence indicated breach of the law indicating failure of compliance to due process required by the law. The case served as the bases to be more specific when handling the offenders according to due process. ReferencesLegislative Analyst Office. (2008). Proposition?9 Criminal Justice System, Victims’ Rights, Parole, Constitutional Amendment and Statute. Retrieved July 7, 2010, from Government Printing Office. (2002). Eight Amendment. Retrieved from Website:. Why is staff diversity important in correctional facilities? What are the advantages of having a diverse staff and the disadvantages of not having one? Describe a historical event that occurred due to having a non-diverse prison staff. (75)Correctional facilities handle diverse inmate population. With non-diverse staff, bridging the cultural differences can be difficult and management of the inmates within the facility could become very troublesome. The riot in Aticca in 1971 due to racial tension between the predominantly white staffs and black inmates influenced the staffing reforms that looked after increasing staff diversity and promotion of diverse management of the inmates (Camp, Saylor, & Wright, 2000). The gaps from racial and cultural differences had been found to be better managed with the representation of minority staff in the workforce in every correctional facility. Balance in racial and ethnical representation of the staff can ease the tensions arising from racial and cultural differences and discrimination.Reference Camp, S., Saylor, W., and Wright, K. (2000). Racial Diversity of Correctional Workers and Inmates: Organizational Commitment, Teamwork and Worker Efficacy in Prisons. Retrieved from . Explain the balancing test, totality-of-conditions test, and deliberate indifference as they apply to prison inmates and administrators. What court cases were involved in their development, and what was the focus of each of those cases? (75)The balancing test refers to the judicial tests that provide the jurists bases to weigh all the factors surrounding the legal case. The jurists have to balance judgment on a case that will promote public safety balancing it with the due rights of the offender. The totality-of-conditions test addresses all the conditions that inmates have to go through while in prison such as the overcrowding, medical care, food, sanitation, discipline and all the conditions that affect the life of the prisoners. The deliberate differences refer to intentional bias treatment of the inmates by the officers and administration. The cases that took part in their development include the case of Estelle v. Gamble (1976) for deliberate indifference, the case of Ruiz v. Estelle in 1980 for prison overcrowding applied on totality of condition test (O’Connor, 2011), ReferenceO'Connor, T. (2011). Prisoner Rights. MegaLinks in Criminal Justice. Retrieved from ................
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