What should we do in the US to actually rehabilitate inmates?

Question

It seems like right now we are just removing them from society and burying our problem.

Answer 1

Something more then they are doing that's for sure! I know someone really close to me that spent 5 years of a 5-7 sentence for drunk driving. ( it was a 3rd. offense, nothing else on his record, no other tickets,no other trouble,no violence,etc. ) He has always had a drinking problem, but held a good business, had a family that he provided for,etc.good guy. NO- i am not making excuses, just giving you a little of his background. In our state-over a 3 year sent. you are also put into a higher sec. level / with some of the really bad people.OK- my point here- in 5 years he got 2 weeks of i am sure POOR counseling on drinking problems,etc. Of course this will not cure an alcoholic, maybe we should open to the people with no insurance - good treatment centers / and for alcoholics and drug users that need to get sentenced for a punishment,the ones with no violent history/ send them to treatment ( a lock up treatment rehab.) for 1 yr. and you'll prob. have less people coming back into prison systems! Locking people up without resolving their issues, does not help.........................
Someone wrote on here about the prison offers classes, treatment,etc. but it has to start with the inmate wanting help. Ok 1st- it all depends on the state, and prison, because that is not true. 2nd when you house people that are non violent alcoholics that otherwise live normal lives with hardcore criminals that threaten your life / it is pretty hard to be normal and to try and function. i know people should be punished for their crimes, but you should not mix the the ones that have only drunk driving , with crazy's and very violent hard core criminals- and unless you have been there and have had family that you know are not like some of the others in there/ of course you will think the way some of you are! My dad worked in there as much as they would allow, to help time pass because he likes working / then that came to an end when the state shut the coo coo house next door down and housed them in his prison. 1st day turned around at work and got a pipe to his face. ( and if you know my dad, he stays to himself, is not a fighter and is a lilttle guy )There of course should be punishment, but they should not be mixing the lower level with some of these real bad ones.
oh and the same judge sentenced a guy 1 month later ( 2nd drunk driving ) and the last one he killed someone. He got 3-5, which is less then my dad. So it also needs to start with the courts!

Answer 2

Make them work. No more anything other than a cell, basic food, and basic medical care.

First, all terms should be labor terms. Six days of work a week, one day of "rest" you pick the day. The default is Sunday, those who pick another day, work on Sundays in the cafeteria and laundry. If you don't work one day because you don't "feel like it" it doesn't count against your time in. I don't care if they are digging a big hole one day and filling it back in the next. Six days of some type of physical labor.

Next, everything is a reward. You want a Coke or Coffee? Better do what the guards say. Cigarrettee, same thing. Hamburger off the grill line...you get the idea. Otherwise it's chili-mac or equivalent everyday with water. How about TV time? again, a priveledge same with radio.

Another aspect of good behavior would be "trade school" training. I understand we're all created equal but some kids don't have a chance the second they are born. If they behave in prison, why not train the kid to be a carpenter/plumber/roofer etc. Something they can use to actually get a job with a wage. Make some tax break to companies that hire the kids into apprenticeships.

I think Leavenworth prison has the lowest "return" rate for prisoners. Meaning that once out, less of thier inmates are ever in jail again. So whatever they are doing there should be a National Standard.

Answer 3

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Answer 4

Well, I'm not real up to date on any other state, but as for Florida, I work for the Florida Department of Corrections, as a correctional officer Sergeant, and I believe in rehabilitation.
The quality of person is the key to this rehabilitation thing though. An just reading a few of the first answers, there are some I like and some are just moronic, however, the system fails way before an inmate is brought to prison. The system that actually fails Americans, is the legal system.
Tougher penalties should be on child molesters, murderers and rapists. In my opinion if a drug user is not commiting any crime other than illigal use of drugs he should not spend 20 years in a prison, that because of his sentence length, cannot go to educational classes, but a child molester, who only received 5 years, can go and get an education because he is not classified as high of a risk because his time is less.
The laws should be changed to fit the crime, and not enough people in the world are willing to make a difference, same as in the correctional setting. People are lazy to the fact that every person alive and breathing is indeed a person, and has a right to change. I try to not condemn people, although I have a hard time having normal interactions with someone that has hurt a child (child molester) because children have not had the opportunity to live life as adults and make their own sexual decisions, that choice is taken from them.

So my question to you is are you willing to try and make a difference?
You as well as every other person that has a solution needs to put it together, and sale it to the people who make decisions in our society, write your local governor, the president, or anyone else who will listen.
They don't like negative press, so they will answer, and maybe your efforts will make a difference.
I know a guy, who I went to high school with, who was a pretty well rounded person, everyone liked him, one night at a party he had a little too much to drink, as did his best friend, and they got into a car accident and she died. Do you think he did it on purpose, it's hard to answer this, because his drinking, he could have not done if he knew he was going to be driving, but she was also driving which puts her breaking the law also, he lives in my prison now, and he is still well rounded, and because I know him, I know that not all criminals deserve the max when there are ones that only get a minimum sentence for a horrific crime.
Anyways, rehabilitation is gone in the prison system, the quality of people hired now days speaks volumes.
It starts with the lawmakers, go there first, and when positive changes are made there, positive changes will occur with the rehabilitation aspect.
We actually have a new secreatry over our Department and he seems to be all about CLASS and that is something we have not had in a while, some of our good ole boys were ousted and it had a major impact on the thinking of some, but not enough. I hope he continues to make positive changes for staff as well as offenders.
Good question, I want to read the answers to it, so I need to go.

Answer 5

We need to take control of the prison system and stop it from being a training ground for criminals and a festering puss-pocket of corrupt employees.

Getting rid of the employee corruption should probably be the first priority. After that "Human Rights" really needs to be re-evaluated and a better determination of what are human rights, and what is coddling and letting the inmates run the show are.

Some criminals SHOULD be warehoused, or executed.
Rehabilitation of some real worth should be done to enable others to live on the outside.

I'm not a professional, don't claim to be, but the system now stinks. It costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, supposedly in actual costs to the prison to execute one person. WHAT IS THIS??? Crazy! Millions have already be spent determining the guilt, so why does giving a shot cost that? Our system has gone crazy.

"Our Problem" has been buried in other ways long before people reach the prison system. PC rules common sense is racism or bigotry. The AVERAGE person is afraid to say what they perceive to be "truth" for fear of what the people who are not average may say or feel. Oh well, smart people see where this is going I think, so it shouldn't be much surprise when that is what we have.

Answer 6

Address the problems, not just deal with the symptoms! We can break the cycle of symptoms at any time, people (read: taxpayers and government) would rather lock them up then take the time and money to address the problems that create/make inmates. We have pretty much figured out why 80% of people do what they do, and become the person that they are. We know why, we know how, yet we do nothing to stop it. Granted we'll never know 100% of the behavior issues, or why all the child molesters molest, or how murderers become monsters. Yet, we know if you can get to them young, when they're still moving through the juvenile system. that we can break the cycle! So why are so many children still so very lost in it?
Until society is ready to take a stand and address the issues/symptoms, we are losing and will continue to lose this game.

Answer 7

rehabilitate the unjust laws.Freedom will prove more powerful then an unjust sword .Back up the constitution and ink out the greed that has corrupted it. Burying the competition is more like it ,or the fact that their lives are hindered forever due to the so called justice handed down Not to say some are not guilty of an arresting crime. You swing and miss someone else swings and bam a home run How do make that fair When it is a matter of justice and a defendant has nothing to give punishment does not equally weigh in with the other hand Most or all the people in prison dont want to be their And yes its easy not to commit a felony for the rest of us Although it is more like ignorance than that of graphic proliforation Oh ya and legalize prostitution everywhere not just for greedy brothels I need a date???????????

Answer 8

When inmates are relased or get out on parole, many end up back in the system because they can not find good jobs or
housing. Most employers will not hire anyone with even a misdemeanor conviction, now. This is especially true if the conviction involves any kind of theft, drugs, assult, fraud, etc.
A felony conviction even though they say on applications that it won't necessarily barr a person from employment ...it usually does.
About the only job an ex con can get around here is minimum wage working picking fruits and veggies...and thats only seasonal work.
I know this because a good friend is engaged to an ex con (despite my advice to dump him).
Also, most landlords won't rent to anyone with a criminal record.
What needs to be done in prison and jails is to locate the inmate a job that pays well enough to cover their living expenses and housing BEFORE they get out so that they have someplace to go and a chance to succeed.

Answer 9

I think some inmates cannot be rehabilitated especially child molesters, rapist, and violent murderers. I do not even want to see tax payers waste their money on these type of people. Blue collar crimes are a different story and may be detered by education of our financial systems. Who knows? I really feel like those who steal federal money sit in jail longer then child molesters. That's a sin!

I do believe that those arrested solely on drug and DUI charges (without burglary, manslaughter, or violent tendencies) should be in a seperate facility. A facility where they are do not reside with the 'bad guys' and where they can get the drug and alcohol treatment needed. This would include the time to sober up while learning about their addictions and how to exchange them for better traits such as taking care of their families or volunteering in their community.

Answer 10

First of all, I think that violent offenders do need to be removed from society and placed in a prison setting. However, putting people away without attempting to address the root cause of the illegal behavior is ineffective and expensive to those of us who obey the law. I am by no means speaking of violent criminals who have taken lives or those who prey on children or the elderly. People with this disposition are typically beyond the reach of amendment.

I believe that many inmates have serious psychological problems that need to be addressed. Some of these people were abused as children or have been victims of crime or poverty their whole life. Typically their abusers were never punished - this fuels their anger with the world and skews their view of justice. Psychological/emotional problems of inmates are typically not treated (unless they are being treated for the illness before incarceration). So when the individual is released - they commit the same crimes (and end up back in the system).

To give these people a chance to change their life the cause of the offensive/illegal behavior must be addressed. I think that each inmate with emotional trauma or psychiatric problems should be treated as patients as well as inmates.

Not every inmate in the system can be rehabilitated. But I think that a targeted approach to identifying those who can truly be redeemed and then giving them therapy and other tools to move past their issues will give some a chance at a more normal life.

Answer 11

First of all it should be a sentence, not a time to pump iron and soak off of society. I realize that being incarerated isn't all what is cracked up to be but TAKE AWAY cable TV and SMOKING. Quit giving them a free education that costs fortunes (because what company is going to hire a convicted felon of muder with a bachelors degree??) Make them EARN there right back into society. HARD LABOR, chain gangs. (quit reading now if you are the sensitive reforming counseling type) Because SOME of these offenders NEED HARSH and cruel treetment. EVEN the Death Penalty. My goodness if you had a daughter that was raped by some low-life repeat offender you would defintly want them to be consoled for a few years and returned to society RIGHT?? BULL$%@#....You would want that A$$&%!E on a firing range so you could take aim and shoot too. So quit living in your Ivory castle and face reality....SOME people don't give a crap about there life and are just a waste. Why am I forced to go to work and have more of my check taken away because they have to build another prison.....Because we reform...Reform starts by scarring the HOLY crap out of everyone by not doing what is wrong because you will be punished....punishment isn't a free pass at being in a cage and having the world hand everything to you. Punishment when I was a kid was a spanking.....and guess what....I LEARNED not to do that again...I bet I would have pushed my luck if I was given a candy bar everytime i did something wrong!!!!!!