Essay Sample on Advantages of Keeping Offenders in Prison Environment

Introduction

Imprisonment has its own advantages and disadvantages to both the community and the inmates. Incarceration seems to be on an advantage to two communities. That is on those imprisoned for a short term they are convinced that after imprisonment the have to mend their ways since through the imprisonment acts they learn that there are hard consequences due to unlawful conduct (Bondeson, 2017). For example, the spouse abusers in the US. Also being confined in prison is advantageous to the other group of wrongdoers cannot do any crimes in prison. Also by the time of their release, their crime time may have passed making them unable to commit more crimes (Bondeson, 2017). If the law was not enforced and applied to the law breakers then very many individuals would break the law. That means that imprisonment satisfies the retribution desire of the society and the victim because without their imprisonment punishment some people would make revenge that is endless.

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In my opinion, offenders being in prison has the advantage to the community rather than keeping them outside the prison environment. Inside the prison, there are many advantages that help in the reformation of one's life thus reducing the potential risk of the community. The first advantage of having someone behind bars is that there are education sessions offered to the inmates that make them change their mind of crime thus reducing their likelihood of going back to prison or bring a threat to the community (Riggs, 2013). For instance, according to the meta-analysis provided by the RAND Corporation, it showed that inmates participate in educational programs while behind bars and over 40% of them have a very low probability of becoming repeat offenders (Riggs, 2013).

Secondly, it is very easy to correct offenders while in prison rather than while already in society. Thus putting offenders out of prison is threatening to the community because it is very easy for them to go back to crime. Very little investment is used on correctional programs for inmates while in prison than when they are out of the prison environment. Sometimes it becomes difficult to train them but after training them maybe even to degree programs they get back to the society and work with the society thus being helpful to the society (Riggs, 2013). However keeping the offenders out of the prison, they are less likely to get the chance to reform while in the society thus they can get back to the society. For instance, the Pathways from Prison Project by Vera Institute of Justice director say that their projects reforming prisoners making them get into the community to work in fields like IT or further with their tertiary education. Currently, the pathways project is working in 21 prisons with an aim of changing the lives of the inmates and make them fit in the society (Riggs, 2013).

Third, wrongdoers are imprisoned in a humane society to remove the threat that the community likely to face. Usually keeping people in prison serves as punishment for being separated from the outside community. That saves the inmate from doing harmful things in the community (Spitz, 2018). Thus in there, they get teachings that will make them better people in the community after imprisonment than they would have been let out to the society where there is less care.

Fourth, putting offenders in prison is advantageous in my opinion as it gives the inmates especially those addicted to substance abuse a chance to reform. Therefore, that makes prison be viewed as a rehabilitation center. Prison helps the affected inmates learn how to cope with the life outside prison that has drugs being distributed without control that is through rehabilitation (Mitchell, Cochran, Mears, & Bales, 2017). Through being put away from drugs while in prison, the inmates are able to emerge in the society as good and reformed people who can work with the society. After the rehabilitation, the inmates can then learn other working skills thus giving them a structure to their day-to-day life (Mitchell, Cochran, Mears, & Bales, 2017). That makes them better people in the society as they are prepared to handle responsibilities outside prison. That also reduces the burden for the society to support the inmate as he or she can earn by himself. For example, in some prisons like Wandsworth the inmates get the skill of being laborers and plasterers and the government endorses the scheme as it has been of help to many so far.

Lastly, imprisoning wrongdoers is of benefit to the society in a way that the prison or correction facility separates the inmates from their former gangs whom they would commit a crime with. The inmates also have a time for a vacation in their lifetime where the can recollect on what has been going on in their lives and how to change it (Spitz, 2018). Breaking the relationship of wrongdoers may be for even years helps makes the inmate change after release as they have no friends in crime. That makes them forget about crime thus it is helpful to society. For instance, there have been several cases where for one to reform separation from the wrong environment is key just as the prison does.

References

Bondeson, U. V. (2017). Alternatives to imprisonment: Intentions and reality. Routledge.

Mitchell, O., Cochran, J. C., Mears, D. P., & Bales, W. D. (2017). The effectiveness of prison for reducing drug offender recidivism: a regression discontinuity analysis. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 13(1), 1-27.

Riggs, M. (2013). Why Prisoner Education Is Key to Reducing Crime. Retrieved from https://www.citylab.com/solutions/2013/09/why-prisoner-education-key-reducing-crime/6812/

Spitz, J. (2018). Does imprisonment really protect or otherwise benefit society? | Notes and Queries | guardian.co.uk. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/notes /0,5753,-18814,00.html