Prison overcrowding is one of the most serious issues facing the corrections field today. What can we do to solve this problem? How can we keep our prisons under control without letting potentially dangerous prisoners back out onto the streets? You will examine the extent of prison overcrowding and its consequences. Increases in prison overcrowding can be explained through crime rates, law and sentencing practices, criminal justice practices and crime control policies. You will analyze this very serious problem through short and long-term goals.
Prisoners’ Rights
The question of the rights of prisoners has been debated for decades. What rights do convicted felons and prisoners have? What does the Supreme Court have to say about this issue? Has much changed over the years? We will also look at the prison reform movement and discuss its impact on the correctional system. What can correctional officers do to improve things and make our prison systems better for everyone involved?
Prison overcrowding is a serious problem facing America's correctional system today. You will explore the politics of crime, correctional reform and whether recent crime control policies have been effective. You will also study the prisoners' rights movement through constitutional amendments.
You will learn that there are various schools of thought as to the causes of prison overcrowding, but rectifying the problem is a complex issue. Historically, the prisoners’ rights movement has experienced three stages and since about 1976, institutional security has been held as a higher priority than prisoners' rights.