Does jail work?

[Futures Red]

Jail sure taught me some lessons in the early 90's. I never went back.

 

Good for you for admitting this!

 

Does prison work? I personally think the system is antiquated.

 

I wonder if we locked people up with cells made up of girly looking fluffy pink pillars, children's music/nursery rhymes out very loud when it gets heated... Bedtime stories on the speakers at night... Make the cells as child like as possible, with sponge walls... Make it as annoyingly child like as possible.

 

And make everyone go on a 100% vegan diet, to reduce testosterone.

 

I think I would reduce violence, aggression and improve behaviour.

[El Cid]

Between June 1993 and June 2012 the prison population in England and Wales increased by 41,800 prisoners to over 86,000. That is a big increase.

It obviously means that we are paying much more to keep these people behind bars.

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/218185/story-prison-population.pdf

 

---------- Post added 29-01-2017 at 17:09 ----------

 

Prison has a poor record for reducing reoffending – 47% of adults are reconvicted within one year of release.

For those serving sentences of less than 12 months this increases to 58%. Nearly three quarters (73%) of under 18 year olds are reconvicted within a year of release.

[Margarita Ma]

Good for you for admitting this!

 

Does prison work? I personally think the system is antiquated.

 

I wonder if we locked people up with cells made up of girly looking fluffy pink pillars, children's music/nursery rhymes out very loud when it gets heated... Bedtime stories on the speakers at night... Make the cells as child like as possible, with sponge walls... Make it as annoyingly child like as possible.

 

And make everyone go on a 100% vegan diet, to reduce testosterone.

 

I think I would reduce violence, aggression and improve behaviour.

 

You have a fair point there with the food I mean. Though total vegan would be too great a change diet should be changed slowly to let the digestive system adjust. Many of the younger people in Prison have never eaten a decent meal in their lives and would not know what to do with a knife and fork other than stab each other.

 

We cannot hope to improve things while this is allowed to go on and it only make things worse by having too few properly trained staff and overcrowding. No chance for education means no chance at all for rehabilitation. Many people in prison are unable to read or write properly so cannot get any kind of work (not even fill in the forms or read the advertisements) The education system let them down. Many have mental health problems and physical health problems too. The situation is a total disgrace. Well qualified officers are leaving and recruitment cannot keep pace because an incompetent government has made bad decisions about running the country and its services.

[mickey finn]

Of all the lads I know that have done prison time it has only worked for the odd one.

[Flanker7]

I think jails do work. I work hard and earn money and do not steal. If I steal I will be sent to jail. I do not steal because I dont want to go to jail.

 

You seem to presume that you are going to get caught. Not necessarily so.

 

If you could guarantee not getting caught. Would you steal?

 

Do you think it is wrong to steal?

 

The first thing that stops most people stealing is that it is wrong.

[Margarita Ma]

Between June 1993 and June 2012 the prison population in England and Wales increased by 41,800 prisoners to over 86,000. That is a big increase.

It obviously means that we are paying much more to keep these people behind bars.

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/218185/story-prison-population.pdf

 

---------- Post added 29-01-2017 at 17:09 ----------

 

Prison has a poor record for reducing reoffending – 47% of adults are reconvicted within one year of release.

For those serving sentences of less than 12 months this increases to 58%. Nearly three quarters (73%) of under 18 year olds are reconvicted within a year of release.

 

When there is no proper program of support and rehabilitation this is the result you get. Not many employers will choose to take an ex-con in preference to someone who has walked the straight and narrow. Time spent behind bars is time wasted and lost experience in the workplace. Young offenders should be kept away from older prisoners who influence them Just as terrorist prisoners should be kept away from the general prison population and both should be educated and taught to work for their living.

[Halibut]

There aren't any politicians around presently with the balls to tackle prisons effectively. What's needed is

 

a) reform of our ludicrous drug laws

b) prison largely for violent offenders only

c) massive investment in community sentences that properly address the causes of offending

d) massive investment in the prison service to rehabilitate and educate prisoners

 

and e) most crucially of all, massive investment in aftercare; the single most important important antidote to reoffending is having a job.

[Margarita Ma]

There aren't any politicians around presently with the balls to tackle prisons effectively. What's needed is

 

a) reform of our ludicrous drug laws

b) prison largely for violent offenders only

c) massive investment in community sentences that properly address the causes of offending

d) massive investment in the prison service to rehabilitate and educate prisoners

 

and e) most crucially of all, massive investment in aftercare; the single most important important antidote to reoffending is having a job.

 

How would you organise C) to make it work properly. Community sentences can be organised in different ways for different types of offence. But how do you make a person who has been so embarrassed and demoralised by being incapable of what seemingly most others can do easily turn up for education sessions when they probably did not turn up for school most days when they passed out of Juniors.

[crookedspire]

There aren't any politicians around presently with the balls to tackle prisons effectively. What's needed is

 

a) reform of our ludicrous drug laws

b) prison largely for violent offenders only

c) massive investment in community sentences that properly address the causes of offending

d) massive investment in the prison service to rehabilitate and educate prisoners

 

and e) most crucially of all, massive investment in aftercare; the single most important important antidote to reoffending is having a job.

 

Some years ago their was an local programme in my area on trying to get local employers to set on ex offenders . The up take was zero after an while the programme was ended yes offenders would be better off in work but it's an case of trust or even fear that they set someone on who then committes a crime in the workplace.

 

 

The other side of the coin is someone committes a crime though been put in a situation like had their dole money stopped for months and then turns to crime to survive jail for them while not Ideal becomes an refuge .

 

Do jail's themselves work yes and no but for many it becomes an way of life many find after leaving jail they can't cope with the outside world so committ an crime to get back in.

[Margarita Ma]

You make a good point there Crooked Spire. Suddenly being pushed back into the outside world where you have to fend for yourself is not easy on a person. day release and longer releases can do a bit to bridge the in-out but only if services are co-ordinated to help with resettlement and finding some sort of stability and preferably work for the person. But what hope is there of that in the current climate.