Discuss and evaluate at least three reforms that could reduce prison overcrowding

Reducing Prison Overcrowding

Definition of Prison Overcrowding

Prison crowding is often identified in terms of prison crowding and its negative consequences for prisoners ' health and conduct as well as the consequences for postrelease recidivism (Gaes , 95 ) Prison crowding is often calculated by reference to floor space per prisoner ' and the number of prisoners actually occupying each cell or unit . Gaes , 95 ) In other words prison overcrowding occurs when the actual prison population does not correspond with institutional population relative to stated capacity (Gaes , 95

History and Evolution of Prison Population

Overcrowding in the US

Concerns about and attention to crowded prison conditions began taking center stage in the US in the early part of the 1980s (Kelly and Ekland-Olson , 601 ) By the middle of the 1980s all but eleven ' US states reported having at least one overcrowded prison (Kelly and Ekland-Olson , 601 ) Prison overcrowding became such a problem in the US that by 1995 27 percent of state prisons were under court for overcrowding (Delgado , 31 ) A court for overcrowding refers to an restricting the number of people who can be imprisoned (Delgado , 31

It is commonly believed that at least 67 percent of the growing prison population is attributed to time increases in custodial sentences (Delgado , 31 ) Persons sentenced to life imprisonment in federal facilities , saw an increase from 1986 and 1997 from 36 to 314 (Delgado , 31 ) Overall , the largest increases in prison population typically correspond with state populations . For instance , California , a densely populated...