The jail and prison systems all share one common problem or goal, depending on how one looks at this issue--control of the inmates. There are two basic methods: Keep them occupied, or, lock them down. There are varying degrees of each, and each comes with its own unique benefits and problems. Most systems attempt to control inmates through keeping them occupied, then moving towards locking-down those individuals that fail to function under this system. 

However, in this mean spirited get tough on crime era, the uninformed and nonunderstanding tend to advocate harsh draconian punitive conditions. They ignore the lessons of history, and unknowingly promote repeating those mistakes. Some of what they advocate should offend the collective conscience of our evolving society. They would move totally away from rehabilitation and instead warehouse inmates under the harshest of conditions. There are reams of material written on this topic, but simply stated: Eventually most of these inmates are released. Society must decide whether it wants to release individuals who have been rehabilitated and will become functioning taxpaying members of society, or, do they want to place inmates into small cages, treat them harshly, and turn them into a mean bitter animal, then release that animal upon society to wreak havoc. It would seem logical that the interests of society would be better served through rehabilitation. 

The present trend of locking them up and throwing away the key mentality, as shown through the three-strikes laws, and other recidivism statutes that achieve the same results, has diminishing returns. Notwithstanding the debate between the "lock'em up forever" group, and the rehabilitation group, demographics will provide society with a new group to lock-up as each successive generation reaches maturity. As this group of individuals from each successive generation joins their predecessors in being locked-up forever, with no one being released, at what point do we simply have one half of society hired to guard and take care of the other half of the population who are prisoners? 

The critics of that prognosis would say that is an extreme that will never be reached. Maybe so, but how far toward that extreme can society approach before irreparable damage occurs? A recent media report stated one out of every 32 Americans are presently in the justice systems, either in prison, or on probation or parole. That is a large number of people who are presently guarded or supported by roughly an equal number of staff, and all of these are effectively leaches on the tax dollar--both inmates and their keepers. That is approximately three percent who are prisoners to some degree, and another three percent who guard, watch over, provide services, etc., to the prisoners. 

Again one asks, at what point do diminishing returns cause the system to collapse? The deciding factor will no doubt be money. Someone must pay for whatever system is in place. In the last decade, the lock 'em up forever attitude has turned corrections into a growth industry. The term "Prison Industry Complex" has been applied to this phenomenon, however, it is nothing more than a welfare system for poor rural counties willing to have a prison facility in their community. Just the prison staff payroll alone can take a poor depressed area from poverty to semi affluence, and to that add all of the ancillary services the facility must also spend money on. All this money comes from taxpayers in the more affluent areas that don't want the prison in their community. At some point this cost becomes unbearable because there is no return for this investment. It is simply a money drain. 

The converse of this lock 'em up forever philosophy is rehabilitation. The utopian goal of rehabilitation would be to turn all prisoners into productive, law abiding, and taxpaying members of society. This is, of course, the other extreme which also will not work. Extremes never work. A compromise that will rehabilitate those so inclined to respond to the program, coupled with provisions to deal with those who are truly beyond redemption would be a more economically realistic approach over the long term. The prisoncrats would have you believe we have this--in reality we do not. 

This brings us back to the control of the inmate. Either they are controlled in a positive and meaningful manner that promotes rehabilitation, or we insist on straight punishment--they are controlled through draconian lock-down methods. While when considering the short term, the lockdown method may appear more economical; there has been a great deal written on the long term costs to society, and the psychological damage caused. 

Many methods used to control inmates have rehabilitative value, nevertheless, control of inmates is often just a matter of keeping them occupied. The quality of this time occupation determines its rehabilitation value. The greatest babysitter known to the modern world--the television--is bar none the time occupier of choice by both inmates and correctional staff. If gang bangers are busy watching television, they are not out rioting. However, the programming most inmates choose to occupy their time watching is of questionable rehabilitative value. Then, the more the inmates are locked down, the more they watch television, that is if they have access. 

The California Work Training Incentive Program ("WTIP"), set forth in Penal Code §2933, lost its incentive when the State passed the "truth in sentencing" laws. Previously, inmates were allowed to earn substantial time credits by participating in the WTIP; this gave them immediate reason to better themselves. This incentive is now gone for the inmates who have the greatest need to learn work and social skills, and with the loss of any incentive to better one's self, also comes the loss of any incentive for good behavior. This is readily apparent in the statistics that show an increased level of prison violence since the truth in sentencing and three-strikes statutes were enacted in California. 

Slavery is still legal in the United States, but only within its prisons. The prisoncrats take advantage of slave labor for the menial labor which keeps the prisons running. In addition to these menial dead end types of jobs, there are also numerous make work jobs, that also fulfill the WTIP statutory requirements. However, none of these have any real rehabilitation value, and should not be confused with the types of vocational and training assignments that develop into experience and skills that are needed in today's job market. 

Educational and vocational programs have an obvious rehabilitation value proportional to the quality of those programs, and is a topic about which much has been written. It is the little things that are ignored. Often the low cost programs have the greatest overall value. It is well documented that any thing that will enhance and improve family relations will have great rehabilitative value. When an inmate has family support when released, his chances of becoming a productive citizen are greatly improved. There are only three means of maintaining relations while incarcerated: Visiting, telephone calls, and letters. Close friends can also provide the needed support, so these must not be limited to only family members. If the prisoncrats truly wanted rehabilitation they would quit messing with these. 

Visiting is the most recognized means of preserving and enhancing relationships, however, most facilities have made the visiting process so onerous that families often dread the visits. The weaker relationships, the ones most in need, are the first to fail under the new oppressive visiting ordeals. In California, prior to the law change to Penal Code §2600 and 2601, visiting was a right. It has since been relegated to the status of a privilege that is often canceled, and routinely tampered with. Families have traveled hundreds of miles only to find visiting canceled. If the relationship is weak, they will only do this once. These relationships need strengthened not destroyed. 

Telephone calls are also an important method of maintaining relationships. The money hungry bureaucrats, who insist on higher and higher kickbacks in their contracts with telephone service providers, have essentially priced these phone calls beyond the reach of poor families. Many of these families continue to accept these outrageously overpriced collect phone calls, but at what cost. Over time this strains and can help destroy the relationship. For those families who can afford these expensive calls, the physical access to telephones is often dismal. For instance, the California Mens Colony West Facility at San Luis Obispo, on two yards, has only four telephones for approximately 1000 men. While they have a rotating sign-up system for fairly spreading around the prime time access, an individual may only receive a usable time slot once every three months. This is another area needing improvement that is instead becoming worse. 

Mail is often the only method remaining for inmates to maintain outside relationships. Similar to visiting and phone calls, mail is tacitly discouraged by increasingly draconian policies and procedures. In California prisons it is common for mail to take upwards of three weeks after its delivery to the institution before being delivered to the inmate. However, they seem to be able to deliver outgoing mail to the post office within one or two days. The prison authorities will cite the excuse of needing to search and read incoming mail. While this half truth is correct, the rest of the story is they also search and read all outgoing mail. 

The most damaging thing to relationships that was ever done to mail was when jails and prisons began marking the outside of outgoing envelopes with a stamp that effectively states: This mail is from a prison inmate. This displayed information takes various forms, but it always does the same damage. Many recipients of such a marked envelope treats this much the same as the biblical "Mark of the Beast." They want nothing more to do with mail displaying such a stamp. For various reasons many do not want the stigma of an observer seeing that they receive mail from a prisoner. They terminate the relationship. The prison authorities cite security and protecting the public as justification for this stamp, however, they are already searching and reading this mail. How much security is necessary? 

All of these: Visiting, telephone calls, and mail, should be encouraged as they are known positive influences. There also are many other less obvious programs that statistics show promote self esteem and rehabilitation such as: Art programs, music programs, and religious programs. Each of these in their own special ways help an inmate better prepare for reintroduction into society in a positive manner. 

The greatest obstacle to rehabilitation programs is that our present Prison Industry Complex is just another growth industry. It has grown so rapidly, that the prisons are a growth industry, and because California allows this industry to have its employees represented by powerful labor unions, these unions do what unions do: They promote higher wages, increased benefits, and more jobs for future potential union members. The CCPOA is only one of the unions involved, and is the most powerful and vocal, but non-custodial prison employees are also represented by various other unions. While the prisoncrats and their employees pay lip service to rehabilitation, the truth is they want to expand their industry. They want more inmates and more prisons. That goal is in conflict with rehabilitation. 

It gets down to choices: Who is to ultimately determine the corrections philosophy--the unions or the taxpayers. What will the choice be--rehabilitation, or continuing oppression and recidivism with increasing expense? 

Tom Watson