Essay - Prison Overcrowding Since Much of the Overcrowding Currently Existing in...

Prison Overcrowding

Since much of the overcrowding currently existing in both the state, and federal prison systems is primarily due to the incarceration of ***** nonviolent offender, ***** especially the mandatory sentencing of crack cocaine' users, it is suggested that to alleviate such overcrowding, and the associate problems caused by *****, a more benefici*****l method of dealing with *****se ***** *****fenders be implemented.

The question that is being asked is whether society would benefit more if nonviolent criminals received punishments other than jail sentences, or would such leniency lead to a lesser regard for the consequences of committing crimes, therefore leading to a rise in nonviolent, and violent, crime rates?

One recent study seemed to indicate ***** such a policy ***** not likely lead to a ***** in the crime *****. After comparing the results from an eight month period to the same ***** month ***** before the ***** was implemented in a local municipality, ***** study showed; "that it did reduce the *****take population, and that there were minimal side effects; however, the potential impact was considerably overestimated in ***** plann*****g stage" (Baumer 2006 ab)

The d*****ficulty w*****h this particular finding is that the study itself was so limited in scope. The study examined one small snapshot in time as compared to a*****her small snapshot in an earlier period. The ***** was not long-term, ***** was so limited in scope as to nullify most of its f*****dings, with the exception being ***** it does raise some interesting questions ***** to what fur*****r studies might discover.

The study did not *****swer many ***** the o*****r questions and problems that are asked in conjunction w*****h lesser ***** for ***** offenders. One of the reasons why ***** ***** are being asked in the first place, is ***** to the overcrowd*****g in prisons and the problems associated with such overcrowding.

***** of Psychology, Craig Haney stated, "we now fully understand, in psychology and related discipl*****es, that powerful social contexts like prisons can shape ***** transform ***** people who enter them." (***** 2006 pg 265) Haney continues to explain that when prison environments are harmful, that upon release the pris*****rs that are subjected to ***** an environment carries that harm with them back into normal' society. He seems to imply that if the ***** are overcrowded, *****d due to that overcrowding (as well ***** other factors) the environment is a *****ful' one, then the *****d prisoners will be more likely to commit o*****r **********, including ***** ones, and ***** they will then ***** caught, returned to prison, ***** the circle will continue.

Studies are sometimes conflicting, however, and an earlier ***** conducted ***** Frank Porporino showed that most individuals confined to a prison environment were ***** harmed in any long-term way. His study concluded, "the evidence *****dicates that prison is not generally or un*****ormly devastatingImpr*****onment, in ***** of itself, does not seem inevitably to damage individuals." (Porporino 1990 ***** 36) caution is issued when using Porporino's study and comparing it to *****'s study.

Porporino's