Criminal Justice Chapter 6 Study Guides

Types of early forms of punishment

• flogging

• mutilation

• branding

• public humiliation

• workhouses

• exile

the penitentiary era (1790-1825)

marked a shift in American punishment, moving from public shaming and corporal punishment to imprisonment.

the pennsylvania system

a form of imprisonment developed by quakers around 1790 as an Alternative to corporal punishment. It was the First to encouraged rehabilitation and use Solitary confinement.

the mass prison era (1825-1876)

This style of imprisonment was based on the philosophies of incapacitation and deterrence. The Auburn system featured group workshops, rather than solitary activities, and reintroduced corporal punishments into the disciplining of offenders.

Auburn System

A group of inmates that lived together and worked together but could never speak to each other. It was essentially solitary confinement that saved space.

the reformatory era (1876-1890)

The reformatory style of imprisonment was based on the use of indeterminate sentences and the belief in the possibility of rehabilitation, especially for young offenders. Although the reformatory era ultimately proved to be a failure with regard to successfully reforming offenders, the principles it established, including indeterminate sentencing, parole, trade training, education, and the goal of reformation over punishment.

alexander moconochie (father of parole)

the first person to develop incentives and rewards for inmate good behavior

The industrial era (1890-1935)

Caused by security failures of reform period. The Industrial Era had the underlying philosophies of incapacitation and restoration. Much prison labor.

ashurst-sumners act

specifically stopping inmate products from being shipped and sold out of state.

contract system

Private businesses would pay the state to use inmate labor. Businesses would supply material.

piece-price system

Prison’s would oversee the production for private businesses and get paid off of quantity produced

lease system

Prisoners would be taken to the work cite outside of prison and brought to the private business

public-account system

Prisons and the state started running businesses entirely on their own without private businesses

state-use system

Inmates could only make goods for the state

public-works system

Inmates worked on public infrastructure projects

the punitive era (1935-1945)

Prison administrators returned to the notions of custody and institutional security as the primary purposes of corrections. During the Punitive Era, the sole philosophy of most prisons was retribution. Large maximum security prisons were built throughout the United States. Alcatraz in an example.

the treatment era (1945-1967)

This era was primarily based on rehabilitation and the medical model of corrections, which implies that convicts are merely sick individuals and that rehabilitation is only a matter of finding the right treatment.

medical model of corrections

every offender is inherently a good person but suffering from some kind of sickness. The thought was that it was only a matter of finding the right treatment in order to rehabilitate.

the community based era (1967-1980)

The Community-Based Era saw a transition to community corrections based on the idea that rehabilitation cannot occur in isolation from the communities to which the offenders will eventually return. Less institutionalized prisons.

deinstitutionalization, Diversion, Decarceration

 a means to keep people out of prison and give them the ability to change their behavior without being locked up

half-way house

supports recovery for people transitioning out of drug and/or alcohol rehab, mental health treatment, and/or incarceration

The warehousing era (1980-1995)

Highly publicized media accounts of crimes committed while offenders were on release in the community coupled with rising recidivism rates resulted in many state legislatures restricting the more liberal methods of the Community-Based Era. The Warehousing Era was an imprisonment strategy based on the desire to prevent crimes from reoccurring and abandoned most, if not all, hope of offender rehabilitation. Mandatory minimum sentencing and incapacitation goals.

nothing works doctrine

that correctional treatment programs had little success in rehabilitation.

the just deserts era (1995-2012)

Based on retribution, incapacitation, and deterrence. Increased prison population and restricted prisoner freedoms.

the evidence based era (2012-now)

focuses on using research and data to guide correctional policies and practices

name five ways we can better rehabilitate prisoners

• Education/Training: Skills for employment.

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Addresses criminal thoughts.

• Addiction programs: Treatment for substance abuse.

• Mental health: Access to mental health support.

• Re-entry support: Community reintegration resources