The Pros And Cons Of Supermax Prisons

According to Bassett, 50% of suicides occur inside solitary confinmenet (419). Not to mention, inmates are sometimes physically abused by the guards in power. Through the Solitary Nation documentary, it is seen that guards sometimes have to use bigger forces like a toxic gas to get an inmate out of their cell. While it makes sense that guards have to do it for their own protection, there needs to be thought about why inmates do the things they do. When inmates suffer from their mental illnesses, they begin to lose their sense of reality as well as sense of right and wrong.

TO: Thomas R. Krane, P.h.D., Acting Director of Federal Bureau of Prisons FROM: Roger Rael, Graduate Student University of Colorado-Denver DATE: Tuesday, May 10, 2016 RE: Evaluating the consequences of continued super-max confinement I. Issue The issue is broad and national in scope. Whether the Federal Bureau of Prisons should continue supporting the use of super-max facilities is a matter of extreme societal and legal questions. Solitary confinement, for an extended or indefinite period of time, implicates constitutional rights and questions our morality as a society.

The documentary solitary nation demonstrates the effects of solitary confinement on the prisoner’s health. There are several problems associated with using segregation as a punishment, however, the main problem is the effects to the mental health of the inmates. The documentary illustrate that some prisoner lost their sanity in solitary confinement. One example is what happened to the prisoner Adam Brulotte, at the beginning of his solitary confinement time he was optimistic and have plans to improve himself by reading books and think about his future, but only after twenty five days he started to lose his mind and become unstable, threaten to cut himself, pushes feces under the door and flooded the unit. This behavior clearly indicates segregation bad affects to the mental health of the inmates.

Jaime Mata CRIJ 2313.03 Correctional Systems and Practices Article review Date submitted: February 4, 2017 Word count: 850-1,500 Kurki and Morris (2001) examine the spread of Supermax prisons and the problems that plague them in the article titled The Purposes, Practices, and Problems of Supermax Prisons. The National Institute of Corrections defines a Supermax as a highly restrictive unit or facility used to isolate those who are considered more of threat than the general prison population (id, p. 388). Though the goals of a Supermax prison are clearly stated they face scrutiny due to their vast amount of problems some of which interfere with what most consider basic rights and morals. This article review provides insight into the use of Solitary confinement as a punishment in correctional facilities.

Annotated Bibliography on Solitary Confinement Cheril L. Hall American InterContinental University CRJS405 Research Methods for Criminal Justice Solitary Confinement and Mental Health An issue we have in the correctional system is solitary confinement & mental health. Solitary confinement is the practice of confining a person that is incarcerated to a small cell for around twenty-two to twenty-three hours of the day without any social contact. The problem with solitary confinement is that it is either being done to someone that is weak minded or to someone for an extended period of time.

Criminals on death row will be placed in solitary confinement. This usually consists of twenty-three hours a day, alone in a small cell, with the only human interaction being with the jailer letting the criminal out for their one hour of exercise. Since the average time spent on death row is approximately ten years, the daily solitary confinement can have detrimental psychological effects on the prisoners. These effects, called Death Row Syndrome, include symptoms such as, depression, paranoia, hallucinations, self mutilation, thoughts of suicide, and stress (Harrison, 6-7). Prisoners also experience psychological stress and mental suffering from not knowing when their execution date will be.

Supermax inmates are allowed one hour of recreational time by themselves. What can inmates do to work their way out of a supermax facility? Due to inmates limited ability to interact with other inmates, there is limited opportunities to get into trouble; therefore, it is also hard to show an improvement in ones attitude. For an inmate to work their way out of a supermax facility, they more often than not have to flatten their time.   Studies conducted on the effects of long term solitary confinement have shown evidence of acute sensory deprivation, paranoid delusional belief system, irrational fears of violence, resentment, inability to control rage, and mental breakdowns (Schmalleger, 2015).

Those with a mental illness in prison have been known to develop it while being held in solitude. Solitary confinement is used as a way to correct an inmates’ bad behavior. Many have been against solitary confinement for many reasons. Scientists and psychologists have researched the punishment of solitary confinement

Inmates in confinement have no contact with any human beings other than the guards, and this often leads to extreme mental health problems. Additionally, many inmates do not receive proper medical treatment and are left with severe physical health complications. One example of these health problems is presented in an excerpt from the American Law Yearbook from 2017. In this excerpt, the authors say, “Those held in solitary confinement are often subject to physical torture, including different types of restraints. Prisoners report that they also endure nonphysical torture, such as sensory deprivation, forced insomnia, permanent bright lighting, and extreme temperature.”

First, it has given prisoners severe mental issues and pain that have made sone reach the point of suicide. Second, it violates international charters aiming to preserve human dignity. Third, it increases the recidivism rate among prisoners who completed their sentences. Furthermore, it has locked people in a metal box for at most 22-24 hours a day, as permissible by law in the U.S. (“Solitary Confinement Facts”). To end this injustice, lawmakers in the United States must agree to introduce alternatives to solitary confinement.

Solitary confinement has so many harsh conditions that negatively affect these prisoners. The practice of solitary confinement should be put to an end due to the long term damage it causes to one’s physical and mental health. The rooms that are used for solitary confinement are made very uniquely in order for these prisoners to feel trapped, isolated, and alone. They are put in dangerous conditions which may not look dangerous to the naked eye, but do actually damage these inmates. The prison cells that are used for solitary confinement are extremely concerning.

Prisoners can be sent to Special Housing Units for a wide variety of reasons, among those being minor and non-violent transgressions. Consequently, solitary confinement is experienced by a high percentage of prisoners, including those that are especially susceptible to extreme isolation like juveniles, the elderly, and people with mental illnesses or substance abuse problems. Statement of the Problem During the past few years, the numbers of supermax prisons have increased in many countries, especially in North America. Supermax prisons are said to be a solution to keep the most dangerous and violent prisoners that pose a threat to other individuals including inmates and the society that they live in.

In my honest opinion solitary confinement in the U.S. is not justified and only does more harm than good. Not only is it a rash punishment, but it is one of the worst kinds of psychological tortures that could be inflicted upon an inmate. Human beings are undoubtedly social creatures and without the mere contact of another person the mind decays and ultimately leads a person to anger, anxiety, and hopelessness. Psychologists also claim that solitary confinement and isolation in general also cause depression or the loss of ability to have any "feelings", cognitive disturbances, such as confused thought processes and disorientation, perceptual distortions, such as hypersensitivity to noises and smells, distortions of sensations, and hallucinations affecting all five senses, as well as paranoia and psychosis which often times involve schizophrenic type symptoms, and finally, the worst of all symptoms, being self-harm such as self-mutilation, cutting and even suicide attempts.

In the Penal System, one of the most severe forms of punishment for criminals is solitary confinement. Solitary confinement is when a prisoner is placed in a solitary cell for twenty-three hours a day and permitted out only for a shower or recreation in an outdoor cage. Prisoners live in these conditions for up to many years with no human contact. In his essay, “Hellhole”, Gawande produces evidence to indicate that solitary confinement is a social injustice because the lack of sustained

In my paper I will be stating my opinion on if super max prisons are doing what they were intended to do. Furthermore, what I feel are the improvements needed to terminate outside communication amongst inmates. Additionally, I will talk about the pros and cons of having this type of facility. Likewise, I will give general facts about super maximum security prisons. Lastly, I will explain what the differences between super max and the other levels of prison are.