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Effective rehabilitation programs in prison
Rehab and prison reduce crimes
How effective is incarceration as a rehabilitation tool
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Recommended: Effective rehabilitation programs in prison
Each year the U.S spends billions of dollars to keep federal inmates behind bars. Nearly half of these federal inmates are convicted of drug abuse, and a vast majority of the ones convicted are low-level nonviolent criminals. Keeping these low-level criminals in jail is expensive, and it’s not very helpful because many of them end up going back to jail with higher drug charges. We as a society need to recognize that addiction is worthy of medical help and not just a crime that deserves punishment. Hey, I’m tori smith and today I 'm going to discuss the benefits of using a rehab facility instead of jail for these criminals. a. Before I can start I must go back to when this all began. On May 8, 1973, the “Rockefeller drug laws” were adopted. These are the …show more content…
Through the years the mandatory sentencing for drug offenders has lowered to at least 10 years it varies by the state. Even though it 's shorter than previous years it is still a long time to send someone to jail without a guaranteed promise that they will get better in the end. On Prison police.org website it is quoted that “two decades after the enactment of the mandatory sentences, these laws have failed to deter people from using or selling drugs. c. This is because many substance abusers are addicted to the drugs and even though you send them away when they are free they still may be addicted so they end up relapsing back into the same issues. so now the big question is “How is sending criminals to rehab more money conscious than jail?” II. As I said before America spends billions of dollars to keep up with the growing number of inmates in federal prisons. According to rehab-international.org if only 10 percent of drug abuse offenders went to rehab instead of jail. The U.S would save 4.8 billion dollars now this is a big difference compared to their current costs. a. And if 40 percent of offenders would be eligible for this treatment then we would scrape off a total of 13 billion we
Once these individuals in rehab serve there sentence the majority of them, won’t look straight to the next opportunity to get high, but the next opportunity for a better future after being encouraged in rehab to accomplish something in life, compared to someone’s attitude coming out of prison. One story involved a man named Richard with his wife Marcia. She was an addict who was often jailed for it, but Anthony believed like many others that “addiction can be overcome with proper help. He believed that the solution was to get her into a mental hospital [and] get her whatever she needs – Xanax, morphine, to get her chemical imbalance right. Show her some respect. (114)” Give her some working skills, so once she gets out she is capable of being successful but instead she kept getting “kicked down the steps” by the criminal justice system. The jailing and torture of addicts is routine to people serving cases for drug related offenses, who are often not built to endure prison, let alone jail. “The Justice Department estimates that 216,000 people are raped in these prisons every year. (This is the number of rapes, not the number of rapes – that is much higher.) (109)” This is ultimately shows the simple fact that many people are not built to endure
In recent years, there has been controversy over mass incarceration rates within the United States. In the past, the imprisonment of criminals was seen as the most efficient way to protect citizens. However, as time has gone on, crime rates have continued to increase exponentially. Because of this, many people have begun to propose alternatives that will effectively prevent criminals from merely repeating their illegal actions. Some contend that diversion programs, such as rehabilitation treatment for drug offenders, is a more practical solution than placing mentally unstable individuals into prison.
The purpose of this paper is to inform about effect the drug treatment programs in prison are and who they affect the most. The programs are meant to for re-offenders with an extensive drug record. Some of the questions the researchers asked was how well do the programs work for the inmates, who does it effect, and does different drugs affect the programs. In 2002 there was 250 prison based drug treatment programs in 40 states. In 2004 the number went up to 290 treatment programs in 44 states. (Farebee et al. 1999) The main focus of the programs are to help inmates so they do not reoffend once released from prison. Drug treatment programs help the different inmates by using different programs.
The “Tough on Crime” and “War on Drugs” policies of the 1970s – 1980s have caused an over populated prison system where incarceration is policy and assistance for prevention was placed on the back burner. As of 2005, a little fewer than 2,000 prisoners are being released every day. These individuals have not gone through treatment or been properly assisted in reentering society. This has caused individuals to reenter the prison system after only a year of being release and this problem will not go away, but will get worst if current thinking does not change. This change must be bigger than putting in place some under funded programs that do not provide support. As the current cost of incarceration is around $30,000 a year per inmate, change to the system/procedure must prevent recidivism and the current problem of over-crowed prisons.
...ailable, they could be required to go to free rehab programs and support groups because money should not be a factor in attempting to reduce the use of drugs in our world.
As drug addiction becomes an increasing problem, we are posed with the question of what to do with these addicts. Is it better to send them to prison where they can attempt to get better, or to a rehabilitation facility where they can be treated by professionals? I personally believe that drug addicts should be placed into a rehabilitation program rather than being placed in prison due to the reduced risk of post incarceration syndrome, the reduced cost, and the overall benefits of support they receive in a program afterwards.
Prison sentences should be reduced by proposing a sentencing reform. First, the U.S has the highest incarceration rates in the world. According to CQ Researcher, 98% of prisoners are incarcerated for nonviolent offenses; in fact, these prisoners majorly affiliate with drug violations. Criminal justice expert Jeremy Travis stated, "We've lost some of the constraints we used to place on the state to deprive somebody of liberty." A good example of this would involve Weldon Angelos, and He's an individual who is serving 55 years for three marijuana sales, which were in a value of $350. For such a low-level drug offense and no criminal history, His sentence is considered "extraordinary injustice" (CQ). Second, prison maintenance is very expensive.
This is where the correction system needs to be improved and why I want to become a counselor for the addicted public. The need is obviously out there for the individual to assist in helping the addicted public in our prison system. Without the people in the correct jobs, there is no way changes can be made. In addition, drug-using offenders are at higher risk for infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis and frequently have psychiatric disorders, which highlight the need for treatment of this population. Not treating a drug abuser is a missed opportunity to simultaneously improve both public health and safety. Integrating treatment in the criminal justice system would provide treatment to individuals who otherwise would not receive it, improving their medical outcomes and decreasing their rates of
The President proposed an increase of $100.6 million in 2005 for substance abuse and drug treatment systems, such as clinical treatment or recovery services. Another anticipated budget increase is for drug court programs. With more monies, the extent and value of drug court services will increase. These programs are options to imprisonment with the goal of being drug-free.
Although there is always a reason someone is placed behind bars, sometimes there are the ones who do not have a reason. However, not only are these rates astounding and troubling to the economy, but they are also affecting the prisons themselves by overcrowding. For example, a jail in Florida is capable of holding about one hundred and fifty inmates, but is currently housing close to two hundred and thirty. Overcrowding got so bad in California that the Supreme Court ruled in “cruel and unusual punishment” not long ago. Proven programming and treatment is a more appropriate response to certain offenses. One solution to this is to send fewer people to prison for drug charges, or at least reduce the time they are required to serve. Another suggestion would be to require offenders to serve seventy percent of their sentence instead of the eighty five percent the “truth-in-sentencing” states. A major fix would be to send foreign offenders back to their home countries. Studies have shown that by these tragedies the federal government could save billions and stop endangering the lives of inmates and correction officers due to
In her article Kristin Mitchell said that “The average cost of someone in the program is $32,974 compared to the $64,338 needed to send him or her to prison for 25 months, or the average prison sentence for drug offenders. Though the treatment in prison can help them while being there. In prison, they have classes where they talk about how you got into jail and how many times you been in jail for the same thing(which is drugs , alcohol, etc) and what can you do to fix it. They help you get better, every time you have that chance to go in there everyone has the chose to talk about how they got into their addiction. In prison they have no choice but to go to the treatment. When they are out of prison, however, they have choices that they must make and many people fall back into their old habits. Treatment centers offer more choices. For this reason, treatment centers provide a more realistic solution to the problem of addiction
The link between drug use and crime is not a new one. For more than twenty years, both the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute of Justice have funded many studies to try to better understand the connection. One such study was done in Baltimore on heroin users. This study found high rates of criminality among users during periods of active drug use, and much lower rates during periods of nonuse (Ball et al. 1983, pp.119-142). A large number of people who abuse drugs come into contact with the criminal justice system when they are sent to jail or to other correctional facilities. The criminal justice system is flooded with substance abusers. The need for expanding drug abuse treatment for this group of people was recognized in the Crime Act of 1994, which for the first time provided substantial resources for federal and state jurisdictions. In this paper, I will argue that using therapeutic communities in prisons will reduce the recidivism rates among people who have been released from prison. I am going to use the general theory of crime, which is based on self-control, to help rationalize using federal tax dollars to fund these therapeutic communities in prisons. I feel that if we teach these prisoners some self-control and alternative lifestyles that we can keep them from reentering the prisons once they get out. I am also going to describe some of today’s programs that have proven to be very effective. Gottfredson and Hirschi developed the general theory of crime.
Those that live a criminal lifestyle are more willing than others to accept jail time as a punishment. So, no matter how long? When looking at methods of punishment in other countries, one can deduce that they are successful in their ways. There could possibly be something that the United States is missing or have yet to figure the system out.
In America there is an ever growing conflict of whether convicted drug offenders should be incarcerated and/or offer rehabilitation services. In my life I have been an addict and a convict, so this particular topic is very important to me. The conflict is within society and within the individual that is dealing with conflict. This research will show how simple incarceration without treatment is detrimental to society and the individual when returning to society.
“The vast majority of ex-prisoners lack job skills, education, self-confidence and social supporters. Some face the additional challenges of mental illness and addiction” (Moriarty). Not enough programs are available, due to this prisoners are leaving without the proper rehabilitation to be successful when attempting to re-enter society. There is not enough of a noticed need to rehabilitate our prisoners because they have committed crimes and are locked up in a prison as result. Research has shown there are cost-effective ways of rehabilitating and transitioning prisoners back into society, preparing them for their release (Moriarty). If the United States decided to take other countrys routes for rehabilitation compared to their current choice. It would cut the cost per prisoner rate, while preparing the prisoners to re-enter society. Making opportunities available for those who do not plan on returning. Addiction and mental illness contribute to felons returning to prison once again. Many prisoners do not have access to the addiction and mental health treatment that are needed for their rehabilitation. Which affects the long-term health outcome of the prisoners (Fiscella). The failure of doing this adds toward the problems. Making this a priority would decrease the number of prisoners that become recidivisms. Cutting down the overall cost for the United States economy. “Rather than preventing deaths from opioid overdose jails and prisoners contribute to deaths when they fail to adequately treat opioid use disorder pre-release” (Fiscella). There needs to be actions taken in order to make an impact. Too many prisoners have to suffer after release due to the prison system failing to adequately prepare prisoners for release. Lack of opportunity after release leads to citizen re-entering prison, many do not wish to