American Penology Chapter 9 Flashcards

Prisoner's Rights in the Age of Discontent (1960s-1970s)

What was believed about the correctional system system prior to the 1960s?

An effective correctional system was possible with increase knowledge, resources, and time. “March of progress”

What was believed about the correctional system during the 1960s?

• Correctional practices were doing more harm than good

• “More is better” was the problem to crime control

• Prisoners were seen as citizens who deserved constitutional protection

• Decreased faith in the government

What are key aspects of the Hippie Generation?

• Silent protests

• Anti-Government and Anti-Establishment

• “authenticity of lifestyle alone would alter politics and economics”

What is nihilism?

The philosophical viewpoint that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value.

What were some of the movements that ignited reform on a broader scale?

• Brown v. Board of Education

• Civil Rights Movement

• College Student Protests

• Women’s Rights Movement

Why was the Black Panther Party created?

To defend against the actions of the police and to move black power into the electoral space.

What is Disinteredted Professionalism?

Criminal justice actors/sysetm operate without an agenda or a bias

What did inmates rely on in the struggle for inmates rights?

Protests, riots, and lawsuits

What is the context for prisoners starting their fight against inhumane and unfair treatment?

Several marginalized groups protesting to fight for rights and equal treatment in society ( African-Americans, Native Americans, women, Hispanics, LGBTQ+, etc.)

What was the first stage of the Prisoner Rights Movement?

Riots in the 1950s

What were the 1950s prisoner riots for?

Prisoners wanted better quality food, shelter, and healthcare, asa well as early parole and better treatment.

Were the 1950s prison riots successful?

No, prison officials would ignore them after and put in place more restrictive conditions and harsher diciplinary measures.

What was the second stage of the Prisoner Rights Movement?

Increase organization of Muslim inmates/ religious freedom

What was the issue with Muslim inmates?

Prison administrators saw the spread of Islam, although peaceful, as a threat to institutional order.

How did prison admin respond to the spread of Islam?

Religious meetings were disbanded, outside communication was cut off, Muslim ministers were transferred, and inmates were thrown into isolation.

How were activist inmates punished/targeted for their rioting behavior?

Denied parole, isolation, unofficial beatings, gassings. Intentional neglect of medical care, staged suicides, the bribing of other in mates to kill other inmates, and outright shootings under the pretext of escape attempts

What was the third stage of the Prisoner Rights Movement?

The revolutionary stage, identified by the way the inmates organized and the public support given to inmates.

What changed within inmates during the third stage of the Prisoner Rights Movement?

Prisoners of all backgrounds united to become a unified “class” to fight the injustices committed against them.

What was the 1970 Folsom Prison Strike?

• Longest, most nonviolent prison strike in history

• 2,400 inmates stayed in their cells for 19 days without food

• Inmates wanted their demands met

• Folsom ran on inmate labor, so this this strike affected the heavily

What were the Folsom prisoners demanding?

• They had a 31-point manifesto

• Wanted an end to stop injustice, discrimination, the denial of politica/legal rights to prisoners, and exploitation in work programs

What did the inmates at New York’s Attica Prison do?

They organized under the name of the Attica Liberation Front

What did the Attica Liberation Front demand?

• 29 demands

• The right to organize economically and politically, the right to participate in choosing the officials who ruled them, protest without repurcussions

• Better working and living conditions, the termination of the current warden

• Transportation to a non-imperialist country be pro vided for those who wished to the leave the United States

What did the Amercan Bar Association start in 1970s?

The Commision on Correctional Facilities and Services and the Resource Center for Correctional Law and Legal Services

What was the judical philosphy of the 1940s and 1950s?

• Courts lack the expertise to intervene in the business of correctioinal administration

• Intervention by the courts will only undermine prison dicipline and overwhelme the court system

What did Banning v. Looney (1954) solidify?

Courts should not interfere on the rights of states when it comes to prison rules and regulations. Separation of powers between executive and judicial branches

What did the Warren Supreme Court do?

• Extended constitutional protections to minorities, many who were in institutions

• Education reform (Brown v. Board)

• Penal Reform (Miranda rights, search and seizure, conditions of confinement)

Fullwood v. Clemmer

Allowed Mulsims to practices their Religiuos activities within the prison and recognized it as a religion

Cooper v. Pate

Inmates successfully sued for the right to use the Quran/place and opportunity to worship

Cruz v. Beto

Inmates must be afforded “reasonable opportunities” to exercise their faith of choice in a way that is comparable to others

Bailleaux v. Holmes

Prison authorities could not stifle the study of law when it can be shown that this impedes one’s right of access to courts

Johnson v. Avery

• The absence of jailhouse lawyering put unreasonable nurden on other inmates right of access to the courts

• Prisoners are entitled to obstain legal assistance from other prisoners, unless the prison provides alternative so they can filed the necessary legal documents

Wolff v. Mcdonnell

• Addressed whether prisoners deserve due process under confinement

• Court ruled that due process does apply because the state does give some valued things to prisoners that can later be taken away