prison reform

The San Diego County prison has reported the highest death rate when compared to all other large counties in the state. This led the Democratic Party of San Diego County to request that the Joint Legislative Audit Committee do a review that will look at deaths that took place in the prison system during the last 15 years. What the DPSD is seeking to achieve is answers as to why the prison system in San Diego County has seen such a large number of deaths and what is being done to address the problem.

Specifically, the lawmakers who made the audit request are inquiring about:

How the San Diego Sheriff’s Department has acted to lessen incidents of death.
What the demographics of the deaths are and if minorities are dying at a higher rate than other groups.
What the sum total was that the county paid to families that took legal actions as a result of death.
Examine practices and funds used for the Citizens’ Law Enforcement Review Board.

The Sheriff’s Department has accepted the review and is in full cooperation with it.

How Did the Request for the Audit Come About?

The San Diego Union-Tribune did a write-up about the deaths that were occurring in the prison system entitled “Dying Behind Bars.” This article was used by the lawmakers to justify their request for an audit. According to the article, the San Diego County prison system is the sixth-largest in the state of California but has the most deaths. Deaths and suicide are markedly high for inmates in this specific system.

It was found that the prisons were mismanaged in terms of how inmates were treated and what services to which they had access. The article showed that several individuals who died from suicide could have been saved if the suicide-prevention methods were improved and strengthened. Likewise, inmates who had illnesses were not given the quality healthcare they needed.

Potentially preventable deaths present a real tragedy caused by an ill-prepared prison system. This loss of life was also very costly. The prison system had to pay millions of taxpayer dollars to settle legal challenges that resulted.

The next panel of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee will meet sometime this summer. This is when the request for the audit will be seen and if approved, findings would likely be made available by 2022 or earlier. Continue reading

The United States offers its people the most freedom and liberty of any country in the world, yet, despite this, the prison population is larger here than in all other countries. For a country that is forward-thinking and home to laws that are not draconian by any means, it does not seem logical that there are so many people incarcerated. In 2016, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported that approximately 2.2 million adults were locked away in jail.

When a person is locked up, many times, they are not serving their time alone. Often, inmates leave behind loved ones that have to also endure the distance apart and manage the emotional toll of the situation. In some instances, the inmate was the sole means of financial support for their loved ones and while they are behind bars, their loved ones suffer that loss. There are several implications that come along with a prison sentence, and the effects are far-reaching. In many instances, a jail term affects more people than just the inmate themselves.

Why are America’s Prison Populations So Big?

America’s struggle with prison reform has gotten more attention in recent years. There are many factors that are being evaluated to determine what the best approach would be when it comes to using prison in a reasonable manner and when the prison is not the right approach to a specific case. There are many reasons why so many people are housed in the U.S. prison system, but the following three issues are the most pervasive:

The United States has made a concerted effort to fight the “War on Drugs” for close to 50 years since President Richard Nixon declared it in 1971. Federal dollars were funneled to drug control agencies and assistance was plentiful for other efforts the country made in trying to control the problem. Federal prisons are more than half-full of people serving time simply because they were associated with controlled substances in some capacity. Unfortunately for those individuals jailed because of their addiction, jail is not a remedy nor a cure and these individuals are being immensely underserved by the system.
Recidivism rates are high when a criminal record is a permanent blemish on a person’s history that follows them around for the rest of their life. A person with a criminal history has to work much harder to live a lawful life and get ahead because they are significantly limited in their opportunities. It is also a barrier for an ex-con to establish new, healthy relationships with others.
Those living at the lowest economic levels are at increased risk for exposure to criminal activity and to engage in criminal activity. For instance, in the United States, if your income level is under the Federal poverty level the risk for violent victimization is more than 50% higher than those that have higher income levels. When urban poverty is assessed, individuals living in these conditions are the most vulnerable to violent aggression as well as overall crime.

Articles Tagged with prison reform

Unreasonably High San Diego Prison Deaths Prompt Audit Request

America Has the Highest Incarceration Rates in the World