NCJ Number
208615
Journal
Criminal Justice Studies Volume: 17 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2004 Pages: 333-351
Date Published
December 2004
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This article compares the mandated purpose clauses and statutory requirements of all 50 State correctional departments during the period 1991 through 2002 to assess their stated primary correctional philosophy.
Abstract
Despite the public perception that crime rates are soaring out of control, research indicates that violent crimes are decreasing dramatically and overall victimization is on the decline. Other research evidence shows that both the public and policymakers support rehabilitation as well as incapacitation as the primary goals of corrections. The current article assesses the 50 State correctional departments’ mandated purpose clauses and statutory requirements for the period 1991 through 2002 to determine what changes have occurred over the past decade in terms of mandated rehabilitation versus punishment as the primary correctional philosophy. Four main questions were the focus of the research: (1) do the majority of States mandate rehabilitation as a correctional goal; (2) how many States mandated both punishment and rehabilitation over the past decade and has this number changed; (3) if changes occurred, which States amended their statutes; and (4) what changes were made? The results indicated that whole rehabilitation remains the predominant correctional requirement, punishment and custody/control experienced increases in 2002. Most States require their correctional agencies to address both punishment and rehabilitation, possibly resulting in a budgetary crisis for State correctional agencies. Future research should use the current findings to conduct a budgetary analysis to determine if State statutes are influencing correctional policy. Tables, references