Introduction
Over the past years, the issue of prison overcrowding has been a significant factor affecting the criminal justice system. The rate of congestion in the correctional facilities is fluctuating following the increase in the number of inmates serving their sentences. The overpopulation is causing severe impacts on the lives of the offenders within the jails, making them have a complicated environment to serve their terms. A number of reports suggest that the main contributors to the challenge are the war against drugs, the nature of crime policies, and rising crime rates. The stricter laws and racial disparity have led to congestion in prisons causing health issues, recidivism rates and constant violence, however, criminal justice reform such as reduced jail term can solve the overcrowding crisis.
Cause of Prison Overcrowding
Many countries across the globe, including the US, face the single problem of prison overcrowding. The issue is causing life-threatening situations in correctional facilities, thus risking the lives of incarcerated individuals. Furthermore, the large number of inmates reduces the ability of the system to provide the basic human needs to convicts. Several factors are connected to the rising rate of overpopulation within the penitentiaries. Some of the contributors are the war against drugs, detention of petty offenders, and the aspect of racial disparity.
The War against Drugs
In the past decade, the US government initiated laws to help in reducing crime rates in the country. Before the 1970s, the prison population in the US was relatively low; however, by the late 1990s, the rate of incarceration increased rapidly (Rosino and Hughey 859). The sudden change resulted from President Richard Nixon imposing was on drugs. The tough-on-crime policy played a vital role in increasing the number of inmates both in federal and state prisons. The law allowed the criminal justice system to sentence any individual found in possession of illegal substances to serve long-term imprisonment. Furthermore, the law enforcement unit focused its attention on the regulations, making it easier to implicate many prisoners. Despite the massive conviction of drug offenders, the country failed to realize the effort of the law since many people continued using drugs, leading to a rise in jail congestion. According to research, the imprisonment rate rose from about 15 convicts per 100,000 individuals in1980 to over 150 in 1996 (Tosh). From the given figure, more than half of the prisoners are drug offenders. The data indicates the impact of the regulation on the prisons.
The Detention of Petty Offenders
Increasing the detention of petty offenders is another crucial making the prisons experience a high number of inmates. The court system has adopted the tendency to incarcerate people who have committed less serious crimes in the community. Instead of subjecting the individuals to the rehabilitation centers, the criminal justice system arraigns them in courts, after which they are taken to serve their sentence in the correctional facilities. This aspect results in a massive population of offenders within the prisons.
The Racial Disparity
Racial prejudice in the criminal justice system plays an essential role in enhancing the rate of incarceration. Generally, people of color are associated with criminal activities, and the notion has dominated the law enforcement unit making the police officers and prosecutors convict them frequently. For instance, Black Americans, Latinos, and Hispanic individuals are more likely to be arrested by the police irrespective of the nature of the criminal activity. For example, in the US, the rate of black male incarceration is about five times higher than the white counterparts (Baggio et al. 601). This makes the number of an ethnic community imprisoned surpass the white group. Moreover, prosecutors’ verdict, especially in cases where the defendant is black American, tends to rule against them, which increases their chances of jail sentencing.
Excessive Application Pre-Trial Detention
Many prisoners in the correctional facilities are deprived of their liberty following a lack of evidence to determine their sentencing. The approach is common practice in the criminal justice system, where court orders force alleged offenders to remain behind bars waiting for pending investigations that sometimes take a longer time to be executed. The increase in the number of convicts waiting for trials in prison makes the population within the facilities rise higher above the capacity limit (Ashouri and Ansari 24). For instance, in the case where the accused victim cannot bail themselves, they might continue serving the jail term for an extended period raising the overcrowding.
Impacts of Overcrowding in Prisons
Prison overcrowding is significantly affecting the well-being of prisoners within the facilities. Following the increased number of inmates, the prison management is not able to provide the basic needs to support the stay of the offenders in the jails. The limitation has resulted in several issues such as the transmission of infectious diseases, rising rate of recidivism, violence, and mental health problems, amongst other severe challenges (Nkosi and Maweni 338). Figure 1 below shows an example of an overcrowded prison facility.
Spread of Disease
When the number of inmates exceeds the capacity of the correctional facility, the possibility of contamination is high since there is limited space to accommodate the offenders. For instance, the convicts might be forced to share the beds, leading to the easy spread of infectious diseases amongst the criminals. Furthermore, the large population makes it difficult to maintain the necessary hygiene, thus making the overall condition to be unsafe for the prisoners.
Increase Recidivism
Generally, interacting with different offenders increases the exposure of convicts, which may later affect their ability to survive in the community upon release. The stories inmates share influenced the majority to the extent of trying to apply similar situations in real-life after finishing the sentence. These aspects make the convicts more likely to reoffend and face imprisonment in the future (Baffour 1173). In addition, overstaying in the penitentiary promotes the immunity of the individual; hence they are less scared of prison life. Such criminals, when released, may commit crimes easily, thus finding themselves back in the system.
Mental Health Problems
The prison overpopulation deprives inmates of accessing necessities within the facilities that might enhance their ability to serve their jail terms. Failure to obtain crucial basic needs such as food and bedding are contributing to the growing mental health problems amongst offenders. Moreover, the technicality of survival and pressure and intimidation from fellow convicts make most criminals experience anxiety. For instance, about 3% of state prisoners are suffering from schizophrenia disorder which affects their health status (MacDonald 67). The harsh conditions and unforgiving environment facilitates the level of ill health amongst the criminals.
Increased Violence
The competition to survive with the limited resources such as beds and the scramble for space within the facilities promotes the rate of conflict among the inmates. When offenders are congested, they are forced to fight one another in order to deprive the weak convicts of the resources (Nkosi and Maweni 340). This aspect makes the cause of violence rise, leading to death and severe harm to the criminals. Such conditions render the penitentiary unsafe for the well-being of the offenders.
Reforms to Reduce Prison Overcrowding
In order to reduce and overcome the overpopulation crisis in the prison department, the institutions should practice the already existing reforms to facilitate the necessary change. Both the government and the criminal justice system have roles to play in affecting mandatory actions. When proper and effective measures are taken, the likelihood of lowering the impacts of prison congestion will be increased. Furthermore, such implementations will improve the conditions within correctional facilities. Some of the required restructurings include reducing the number of convicts taken to the penitentiary, minimizing the imprisonment time, adjusting the capacity of the structures, and revising the criminal justice policies.
Reducing the Number of Prisoners Taken to Jails
The criminal justice system should lower the number of convicts taken to prison. In order to achieve this, judges should consider differentiating minor crimes from severe ones to allow prosecutors subject petty offenders to other forms of treatment such as community sentencing. The practice will enable the prisons to receive a low population of criminals, thus lowering the overpopulation. Similarly, jurors should encourage the use of rehabilitation centers to serve the accused that might portray health conditions during their convictions (Di Vita 285). Lastly, they should promote the use of bails to enable defendants to settle their cases without going to jail.
Minimizing the Imprisonment Time
The time taken to serve a jail sentence is another factor leading to overcrowding. In order to reduce the congestion, prosecutors should lower the harsh punishment that can make convicts serve extended jail terms. When prisoners stay in the correctional facilities over a period of time, the available space reduces; hence the coming of new inmates causes congestion. Judges should consider reducing the duration, especially for people sentenced for less severe crimes.
Adjusting the Capacity
Significantly, the government can opt to build more prison facilities to increase the space for accommodating the offenders. When the number of prisons is increased, the ability of the penitentiary to hold more convicts comfortably will be high, thus lowering the overcrowding aspect (Abel). Similarly, the criminal department should ensure there are more resources such as beds to cater to the needs of offenders. This will ensure there is no scramble over the places to sleep.
Revising the Criminal Justice Policies
The government and the criminal justice system should revise the stricter laws and regulations that lead to the arrest of individuals. For instance, the policy of law and order is making the majority of citizens be arrested. By changing the guidelines, the rate of convictions will be reduced (Abel). Similarly, the measure on the war against drugs should be revisited to consider the jail term associated with it. The approach will ensure the sentencing period is minimized hence lowering the rate of stay in prison.
Conclusion
Based on the research findings, a number of factors significantly contribute the prison overcrowding. The criminal justice policies, war against drugs, and pre-trial detention increase the population in the correctional facilities. The congestion in prison interferes with the well-being of prisoners, making them experience poor health conditions. In order to overcome the impact of overpopulation in jails, both the government and the criminal justice system should undertake effective reforms such as reducing jail terms, lowering the number of convicts taken to prison, and revising laws. When these aspects are considered, the possibility of managing the consequences of congestion will be increased.
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