Mass Incarceration Research Paper

Mass Incarceration in the United States Analyzing the Costs of Mass Incarceration in America
Juan Guereque
University of Texas at Arlington

Institutional Corrections
Professor Arthur G. Vasquez
December 11, 2015

Introduction This research paper concisely reviews matters regarding mass incarceration in the United States of America by presenting several facts and findings discovered in research conducted by scholars who have dedicated themselves to studying this subject. The main objective of this research paper is to analyze the matters of concern of mass incarceration and to present a series of possible recommendations for the U.S. Department of Justice. Mass incarceration in the United States has particularly been
a subject of concern for many years, and the negative impacts to society as a whole because of mass incarceration are genuine ones. This paper contains findings from previous academic research (with additional commentary) that reviews the general findings about mass incarceration as well as a more profound investigation at the costs to society, causes, and statistics regarding mass incarceration in the United States. To end, this research paper will go further in order to include policy recommendations meant to offer supplementary understanding of how to possibly improve the current conditions of this crisis.
Background
According to (Allen, Latessa, & Ponder 2013), the United States of America carries the burden of an immense prison problem that negatively impacts American society and that is only in danger of getting worse. When the subject mass incarceration is discussed in any situation, one of the chief issues of the subject deals with the idea of how much mass incarceration really affects the economy here in America. It is assured that people are troubled over the way the economy in America is affected, but the actual weight of the problem is not really found at the federal level. The level at which the real battle takes place is at the state level (Kelly, 2015). According to Kelly’s study (2015), about 2.5 million prisoners in total are currently imprisoned within the United States. (Allen et al, 2013). That is four times the amount of people that were incarcerated in the last 3 decades (Kelly, 2015). When considering the statistics, the United States possesses the largest population of prison inmates on the planet; this in terms of the literal number of people in jail as well as the ratio of the entire population (Kelly, 2015). This is particularly unnerving since the U.S. only makes up about five percent of the planets population, and yet somehow manages to be the home to nearly twenty five of the world’s inmates (Western & Pettit, 2010). The concept of this truth worsens when considering that U.S. prison populations surpasses those of heavy populated countries like China and other countries that have been withstanding the harsh impacts of massive drug wars like Mexico ( Loader & Sparks, 2014). The main culprit behind the crisis of mass incarceration, is the ineffective combination of poor policy regulation and punitive policing strategies (Loader & Sparks, 2014).
Review of Past Findings. A big problem that affects the United States caused by mass incarceration is economical costs the problem brings with it.
Naturally, the economic and social impacts of the development of this issue have been immense. According to Kelly (2015), state expenditure on corrections facilities increased approximately four hundred percent just between the years of 1980 and 2009. The outcome of this is that penitentiaries are currently some of the main suppliers of various necessities to the group of people that are the most underprivileged groups; these necessities include therapy, health care and job preparation (Western & Pettit, 2010). In the meantime, the negative cultural and social consequences of mass incarceration are unreasonably endured by minorities, deprived communities, and groups with mental health issues (Western & Pettit, 2010). To state it clearly, the studies show that Latino and black men (as well as young boys of either race) are treated disproportionately different by the law. This type of disproportionate treatment includes being detained, questioned, charged, and arrested (Traum, 2013). One of the most apparent disproportionate treatments under the law is being sentenced for longer or punished more severely for the same crime their white counterparts commit (Traum, 2013). Because of this, the United States is increasingly becoming a country that leaves close to a million children without fathers and that prevents those same people from joining the workforce
and becoming taxpayers. Wildeman & Western (2010) argue that disproportionately leaving minority children in a situation in which they have an influential figure (such as a parent) in prison, in only increases the likelihood that the child will be branded as a criminal themselves, turn to substance use, or to turn crime themselves. All these factors ultimate contribute to damaging society by initiating a cycle of making criminals out of minorities, who are an increasing portion of American society. If there are actual benefits of mass incarceration, they are not very strong.
While it has been observed and recorded that crime rates have gone down in the last thirty years, the correlation between increasing the number of prisoners and less crime is not significant (Kelly, 2015). This is due to the fact that more and more non-violent offenders have been imprisoned for minor drug related offenses that have only been interpreted as major offenses by poor policy regulation (Kelly, 2015). This only means that tax payers are progressively increasing the amount of money they pay for nothing other than a false sense of
security. The amount of resources the Justice Department implements in the unnecessary struggle to keep non-violent drug offenders incarcerated for long periods of time is monumental. Just about one third of the monetary resources of Justice Department is aimed at keeping individuals incarcerated (Kelly, 2015). Lately, however, there have been attempts by the U.S. government that have tried to soothe the situation by a series of strategies. In 2014, the Department of Justice sanctioned to reform to spread guidelines for lighter sentencing to over forty-thousand inmates that were imprisoned for drug crimes (Loader & Sparks, 2014). These types of efforts to apply federal and criminal justice reforms would have been considered impossible some only a few a small years ago, but the overwhelming costs of mass incarceration are opening the eyes of several policy makers (Kelly, 2015). When talking about the state level, limited resources have required policy makers and councils to lessen the harshness of drug laws and to reduce overly tough guidelines concerning incarceration. The criminal justice department is looking into implementing more financially efficient solutions to crime, such improved drug rehabilitation treatments and probation programs (Loader & Sparks, 2014).
Summary
All things considered, the costs of mass incarceration in the United States are costs that greatly and negatively affect the American community. These are consequences that proceed to increase in harshness as the Justice Department remain (for the majority) unchanged. The Justice Department is applying and wasting more assets to ineffectively fight the crisis that is hurting the American community every day. Because of this, the government continues a fighting a battle with no end, but does not realize that their current efforts are in vain and counterproductive. The only sensible solution is an inventive combination of improved community policing and department reforms that will do away with punitive law enforcement and punitive court systems.
Policy Recommendations Even though there have been movements to improve the conditions currently imposed by mass incarceration in the United States, it is clear to see that current strategies and regulations being implemented by the Justice Department are not sufficiently economical or effective in patching the problem. While it is true that more thorough criminal justice reform can help eliminate the problem, it would not be of any use to ignore the factors that are currently hurting the system. One of the recommendations taking care of the inmates that are imprisoned currently due to non-violent drug offenses by altering the sentences that imprisoned them under old drug regulations. On top of that, offering more job and skill training programs to give those people that have paid their debt to society an alternative than crime. It is important to consider passing a legislative reform that makes businesses more tolerant of hiring individuals that have gone to prison before, but have served their term so that they can utilize their newly acquired skills. Another recommendation is reform to our juvenile justice department. This reform is to ensure that that the juvenile system diminishes punitive policing tactics and remembers that our youth is just that, youth. Simply tagging youth as future criminals creates more criminals instead of reaching out to young people that have made a mistake with new opportunities. This can be achieved by funding more counseling, job training programs, and extracurricular programs.
One way to help achieve this is to put forth efforts to provide better training for police officers and a focus on community policing. This is to ensure that there is improved collection of information (more accurate and unbiased) and better relations between law enforcement and the community.
When talking about non-violent crimes, seeking an alternative to simply imprisoning people is an effective solution. These alternatives can include new, innovative probation programs or specialized courts designed to provide a more effective solution instead of just harsh punishment. Giving prosecutors and judges an increased amount of discretion and reformed guidelines to help determine which sentence can greater increase the chances of helping a delinquent youth turn his or her life around.

References:
Allen, Harry E., Edward J. Latessa, and Bruce S. Ponder. (2013). Corrections in America: An introduction. Thirteenth ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education.

Kelly, P. J. (2015). Mass incarceration. Public Health Nursing, 32(1), 1-2. doi:10.1111/phn.12185

Loader, I., & Sparks, R. (2014). Beyond mass incarceration? The Good Society, 23(1), 114-120. doi:10.5325/goodsociety.23.1.0114

Traum, A. (2013). Mass incarceration at sentencing. Hastings Law Journal, 64(2), 423-468. Retrieved from http://www.hastingslawjournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Traum-64.2.pdf Western, B., & Pettit, B. (2010). Incarceration & social inequality. Daedalus, 139(3), 8-19. doi:10.1162/DAED_a_00019

Wildeman, C., & Western, B. (2010). Incarceration in fragile families. The Future of Children, 20(2), 157-177. doi:10.1353/foc.2010.0006