NCJ Number
175380
Journal
Corrections Forum Volume: 5 Issue: 7 Dated: July-August 1996 Pages: 12-14-21
Date Published
1996
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This analysis of correctional overcrowding notes that some of its causes and cures are beyond the control of correctional institution managers, but strategies in place include construction, the use of alternatives to incarceration, and legislative action to manage the increasing dangers that overcrowding can cause.
Abstract
Most correctional facilities are seeking faster and cheaper ways to add beds. However, without long-range planning, quick fixes can result in higher overhead, management problems, maintenance problems, and future capital costs. Double-bunking is becoming more common. It reduces construction costs and is allowed under American Correctional Association accrediting standards. Double- bunking maximizes space use, but it doubles the staff workload and increases maintenance requirements. Some facilities are using large dormitories. Medical screening on intake is crucial to avoid the spread of dangerous diseases. Sentencing policies are receiving increased attention due to their impacts on prison populations; shock incarceration programs, community-based sentences for nonviolent offenders, and structured sentencing for drug offenders are receiving increasing support. Some States are focusing on expanding or privatizing corrections or using fast-track construction to address expected increases in juvenile correctional populations. Corrections administrators can learn from the experiences in other jurisdictions as they consider ways to accommodate more inmates, maintain program space and keep order in a detention facility. Photographs