Would short sentences of solitary confinement solve the prison problem?

Question

If it would, it would also solve the problem of prisoners learning negative things from each other.

Answer 1

Prison doesn't work if there is a) no deterrent or b) no rehabilitation. At the moment both of these things are missing from the prison system. Of course there are dangerous people who should never, ever be released and there are people who should never be in prison eg the old lady who refused to pay her council tax and those suffering from genuine mental illnesses who are there because so called "Care in the community" is another social failure. Lots of minor offenders could be put to work in the community doing something useful rather than while their time away at the tax payers expense. But for those who need to go to prison for time out for reformation there needs to be an element of punishment followed by a good programme of rehabilitation. The present system is just multiplying the problem as results demonstrate.

Answer 2

Chain gangs would help many problems...instead of inmates being allowed to sit in a day room and watch television and movies they should be out in the communities on chain gangs and cleaning, rebuilding - whatever needs to be done. They are there (jail/prison) for punishment not recreation. Send a bunch of chain gang crews to New Orleans to rebuild the city there....that would meet the required recreational period/exercise period that inmates have the "right" to and they would all be too tired to fight each other or the guards at night so that would lessen the jail crimes. If these turds found out they had to WORK while incarcerated they might reconsider committing their crimes, find an easier "job". And the child molesters, murders and criminals of that ilk should be swiftly put to sleep!

Answer 3

No

To some degree it is already being done.

After being processed at a Reception Center (to determine health & security needs) an inmate is assigned to a prison. Could be super-max, max, medium, or low (extremely rare) security prison.

As they serve their time and show they can behave, they are moved to lower security prisons.

But inmates who mis-behave can be put into solitarty confinement. The International Human Rights Org requires to be in compliance with their rules - that an inmate must be allowed out - at least 1 hour per 24 hour period.

I worked at a state's Dept of Corrections. Saw several cases, where someone was sentenced say to 5 to 10 years. Meaning they could serve either 5 years or - if they continued to misbehave while behind bars - they could serve 10 years.
They served 10 years.

In some cases, the inmates were being bad a**es, and wanted to show they would not take orders from the guards. In some cases, the inmates were so afraid of being out in general population with the other inmates - that they felt safer being in a cell by theirselves - so they violated the rules and had extra days added to their sentence.

I have a rare last name. Once got a email from a prison where the warden was issuing orders to his men on how to handle an inmate. I got the copy intended for one of his guards. A defender at a local jail was so bad - the jail could not handle him. The jail asked, and the state agreed, to take the accussed into custody. The email stated that the man was so dangerous - that 5 guards should be present any time someone went into the cell and whenever the man was moved. He was to have a belt around his waist with his hands - handcuffed to the belt. 1 officer was to carry mace (but there was a note that they thought he had gotten so used to it that it did not effect him). 1 officers was to carry pepper spray. 1 officer a stun gun. And another officer was to carry a loaded shotgun. And a supervisor was to be present with a 2nd shotgun. ?? I sent the email back to the warden - told him I got it by mistake - and to try to be careful. A guard makes in the upper 20,000 - 30,000. (For this ?)

Answer 4

Maybe repeat offenders should be tested for chemical imbalances first, this could help a lot. Some people aren't born with what they need to live normal lives.
We are globalized, any negative thing you want to know we can find online like the anarchists cookbook for example.
If anything, putting someone in a small room by themselves would cause a man to go crazy. Ever seen the movie "The Beach" what happened when they made Leo's character wait up in the woods by himself for days? Answer: He went crazy and became distant towards others. I know its just a movie, but theres some truth in it.
In conclusion NO, this will not work. It would slim down high prison populations, but when these people get out, watch out because they are far more gone than when they came in.

Answer 5

Presumably you are talking about the overcrowding in prisons

We need to shorten sentances but make them harsher, such as bringing back hard-labour and chain-gangs, providing only cold showers, basic food and little lighting.

This would allow a greater throughput of inmates, solitary confinement would double then number of cells required but could be introduced to increase the prisoners despair.

Obviously the more dangerous prisoners would not have shorter sentances.

Personally I favor an open air (alcatraz style) prison on a remote scottish island, exposed and hard

A short sharp shock and they won't do it again.

Answer 6

It's not a prison problem it's a crime problem. The Government has had years in which to build new prisons in the face of rising serious crime.They do not appear to want to spend money (step forward Gordon Brown) on anything that would benefit the public, be it prisons, police,cleaning up hospitals or offering relief from high taxes to middle or low income earners. Mind how you go.

Answer 7

The prison problem an only be solved by banishment. Do like the British did to the Australians, send them to an uninhabited place and let them fend for themselves. They will come up with a way to live in a society or they will perish. People need order.

Answer 8

If they took all the TVs, pool tables and other stuff that is considered amusing in any way possible out of the prisons think of all that spare room!

Just stick more people in each cell, they're not there to be comfortable

Answer 9

There's no way to build a single cell for every prisoner. The people in jail couldn't get along with people in free society if you isolate them even further all you will do is create a bigger problem when and if they ever get out.

Answer 10

The best solution to prison overcrowding, which really is the BIG prison problem, is to reform our outdated drug laws. We spend BILLIONS of dollars putting normal, everyday people in prison, breaking up families, forcing people into forclosures, and for what? Has the drug "problem" ceased to exist? Of course not. We've been "fighting" this "war" for years, with no end in sight. Time to set another course of action.