Cost of prisons and importance of correction activities

Author: James Jassi

Prison crisis, is a term that is most commonly heard about in almost all the countries, especially in the US. When the prisons are not controlled in the right way, there can be lots of problems. One of the main problems is that the inmates suffer a lot from the health issues. The health crisis can be both physical and psychological. When the jails are crowded, this can lead to the inmates being caught up with lots of physical problems because lack of hygiene.

Also, this can lead to the inmates being assaulted by the others. Bullying, ragging and there can be even deaths because the inmates are being threatened by the others. This is well known to the government and the jail authorities. But why do they still not able to reform? The reason is that cost of prisons is higher. jailcells can be visited to know more about its solutions.

Why prisons are to be reformed and rebuilt?

When the inmates are overcrowded, there are larger chances of the social disorder rather the comfort of the inmates. It would have been on the news sometime back that California was asked by the federal government to the prisoners of more than 40,000 to be released because the prisons were not properly maintained and fit enough for large group of inmates.

This made the imprisonment an unusual and a very cruel punishment for the people there. If the prisoners were to be released at such large scales often, then the crime rates tend to grow higher, says the California government and the case is waiting at the US Supreme court now.

The dispute can further arise various problems and this is why there are several people calling for the rebuilding of jails and coming up with new ideas. The reason why this is not put into practice immediately is the cost of prisons.

Why cost of prison is higher?

Cost of prison is not only the cost associated in building a new one. The US has the 5% of the world’s population and 25% of the world’s prisoners are in the US. So, it means feeding them and taking care of the basic amenities too are the responsibility and the duty of the prison authorities and the government. Incarceration has been seen as the safest way to bring down the crime rate in the city, but unfortunately this has become the very reason of the problems.

When the jails are built in a cost effective way, there are lots of chances of the problem being solved. Spacious confinement for the inmates can offer hygienic environments, and the building being cost effective means that the cost may not postpone the process.

When the prisoners are released back to the world after they are being treated in a dangerous environment, this is not going to serve the purpose. While correctional expenses meant that the state and federal government have got to share the expenses, while the state should be contributing more. In spite of the expenses being more, it has to be kept in mind that this is an essential activity.

About the Author:

The writer is an expert in the field of Eagle Companies with focus on Cost To Build A Prison and International Prison.