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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 5 page paper provides an overview of the inequities in the current criminal justice system based on assessments of prison populations. This paper assesses the conflicts that occur as a result of attempts to weigh the protection of public rights while also supporting the personal freedoms of individuals and the necessary equality in the application of the law. Bibliography lists 8 sources.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: MH11_MHprison.doc
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
and bias have been perceived as underpinnings, increases in criminal behavior (Surette 131), incarceration rates and recidivism in general have also been noted as determinants of the increasing minority population
currently being monitored within the criminal justice system (Cole and Gertz 45). Criminal behavior and crime has increased significantly across populations over the past three decades, and numbers have
leaped in the past five years. In 1996, for example, the number of men and women of varied races incarcerated in state and federal prisons jumped 5%, to
a record 1.18 million detainees, the equivalent of adding over 1,000 inmates a week to the already overcrowded prison system (McMurry, 1997). The following table reflects the increases in
the state and federal prison populations since 1970: State and Federal Prison Population (number of detainees) 1970 1980 1988 1991 1996 196,429 315,974 581,609
823,414 1.18 million (Haley (1996) and Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1997). The increases in the prison populations are especially problematic when reflecting the capacity of federal
and state facilities and their ability to address the constantly increasing population. State prison, for example, operated at 16 to 24 percent over their capacity, while federal prisons operated
at a full 25% above their capacity (McMurry, 1997). Though some have blamed increased recidivism rates and decreasing prison effectiveness on the increasing rates especially among state prisoners, research
suggests that this is only one element of the larger problem. The factors that are most commonly associated with the increasing populations of state prisoners, especially between 1985 and
1995 include: 1. a 91% increase in admissions; 2. a decline in annual prisoner release rates from 37% in 1990 to 31% in 1995; 3. an overall
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