The Criminal Justice System: Prison Gangs - Paper Example

The problem of prison gangs has been a major problem for the correctional departments in the United States. In as much as the challenge is global, American prisons are the worst hit by the gang problem because of numerous background factors that are deep rooted in the society. For instance, the issue of drugs, possession of guns and dens for crime groups are all factors for the breeding of prison gangs. The fact that the American criminal justice system is keen on sending the criminals behind bars does not eliminate the problem of gangs but rather moves it to the prisons. The prison gangs normally have a message to portray, and they have made it difficult for the personnel of the correctional facilities to understand their motive through their body tattoos. This paper discusses the problem of prison gangs in the United States and how it undermines the operations of the criminal justice system.

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The problem of prison gangs in America is a widespread aspect throughout the country. The affiliation to the gangs can be equated to a religion with different sects, whose descendants and followers subscribe to certain beliefs. The members of the gangs are bound with a set of rules and terms that keep them together. The gangs are normally anti-administrative bodies that maintain law and order (Secrest 169). The deviance from the societal norms is usually aggravated by certain concerns that they seek to address using their forces. The gangs stand for ideologies that are expressed in their dressings, tattoos and group agenda. The lack of consistency across the gang mentality splits them into various groups, with each one of them having a particular motive behind their movement. However, the consensus is that the prison gangs are out to9 cause disturbance to the inmates and defy the regulations defined by the law enforcement agencies.

One of the most notorious prison gang groups in the United States is the United Blood Nation. The gang is made up of majorly the black community that is common on the east coast. The United Blood Nation has conflicting ideologies with the Black Guerilla Family and the Texas, making them be rivals. Another group that is popular in the US is the D.C Blacks that are found in Washington. The group is allied with the Black Guerilla Family and is rivals with the Mexican Mafia (Howell 215). The Texas Syndicate is another notorious prison gang group made up of the Hispanics. The group is based in Texas and is associated with inmates of the Mexican origin. The Nazi Lowriders is a new group made up of the whites that is based in the Pelican Bay. However, the group admits light-skinned members that are not entirely white.

The representation of the agenda of the prison gangs is communicated through signs that are in the format of tattoos. One of the most common tattoos is 1488 which is commonly used by the Nazi inmates who are the white supremacists. The number 14 represents the fourteen words of the Nazi leader who advocates for protecting the future of the white children. On the other hand, the number 88 is a short format of the eighth digit H of the alphabet. The cobweb sign is also a commonly used tattoo, which signifies a long prison sentence. The teardrop tattoo is also used by the gangs to indicate a lengthy prison sentence or an intended revenge for the murder of a fellow inmate.

Literature

The literature and statistics on the problem show that prison gang members are composed of people with a criminal record, poorly educated and users of drugs and prohibited substances. Using these statistics, the problem can be abated by introducing educational services to most society members to reduce chances of most youth to join the bad forces that end up being part of the prison gangs (Falk, 99). Having a strong stance on drugs will also ensure that there are limited chances of people joining the gangs because the need to peddle the substances is the prime objective of the gangs. Offering social education on the need to maintain peace will also act as a mechanism for limiting potential candidates of the gangs from joining the force. The issue of prison gangs poses a challenge to the criminal justice system because it shows the inefficiency of the system. The adamancy of the law enforcement agencies also to combat the groups shows less dedication from the agencies in ending crimes attributed to the gangs. The residents, who are protected by the constitution, begin engaging the criminal justice system when they report their complaints to the law enforcement agencies. The reports are followed by investigations, which lead to arrests or citations (Fagin, 128).

The United States is one of the few countries that still experience the effect of prison regardless of the efforts that are placed by the system to control their activities. The inability of the US criminal justice system to manage the situation is ironical considering that American countries are in the forefront to enhance the level of security (Hodgkinson 274). In fact, the US has one of the most mature legal systems that should set a standard for other nations to follow. For the system to be successful in doing away with the gangs there should be efforts to address the foundation of the groups. For instance, drug-smuggling in the streets breeds the increase in the number of the gangs in prisons. The lack of jobs for the youth also facilitates the emergence of the gangs as the jobless individuals revert to illegitimate methods of making a living.

The major purpose of the correctional facilities is to change the behavior of the offenders. The criminal justice system should not rely on executions as mechanisms to find justice because it does not make the offenders to become better people. Progressive developments in global; constitutions advocate for a more amicable mechanism to solve cases, the conversion of the gangs into law abiding citizens is a challenge (Howell 66). In fact, the convicts can be made useful people in the society if they are trained and given tasks within the prison systems. In developed countries, prisoners are equipped with basic skills that they use ton generate money while behind bars. The money raised through such activities is used to support their families and other development projects. In fact, using the prisoners as a source of labor is good for the economy, but having defiant individuals that are opposed to the correctional departments is a challenge to the state.

In as much as the criminal justice system in the United States is committed to maintaining justice among its residents, the institutions face various challenges that undermine its operations. The institutions that constitute the criminal justice system such as the judiciary and law enforcement organizations lack effective approaches to ensure that they deliver their mandate. The system in the United States is surrounded by ethical and technical controversies regarding the application of laws and procedures (Fagin 210). The issue of prison gangs remains on top of the overall controversy that point to the weaknesses of the judicial system in the US. Whereas the practice is lauded for its role in mitigating the crime rates in the world, there are criticisms that are intended to campaign against its application. For this reason, it is essential for human rights organizations, law enforcement agencies, and legal scholars to find an amicable solution to the conflict of ideas on prison gangs. It is evident that whereas the proponents of the capital punishment have substantial claims to support the idea, it is still difficult to ignore the controversial bit of the practice (Secrest 211). Criminals are a dangerous population in the society and governments should launch initiatives to eliminate them. However, it is not justifiable that executions are the most appropriate approach that can be used to stop crimes. For this reason, the government of the United States should apply alternative approaches to punish serious offenders. Life should be protected as addressed in the Constitution and, therefore, the government and the correctional facilities should introduce methods that seek to protect the welfare of the inmates. The issue of prison gangs continues to be a threat the quality of life of inmates, making it necessary for the concerned agencies to be versatile in addressing the matter. However, this approach is considered expensive because a lot of resources are required to establish the networks of the gangs and break them.

The United States suffers from the problem of prison gangs, which consist of groups who are out to discredit the effectiveness of the countrys criminal justice system. The prison gangs are made up of inmate organizations which operate within the systems of correctional facilities. The prison gangs operate as cooperation because they have an aspect of perpetuity. It has been difficult for the criminal justice systems in the United States to eliminate the prison gangs because of their wide networks.

One of the challenges that have made it difficult for the authorities to fight the prison gangs is their control of resources. The gangs operate as a network that is involved in crimes such as kidnapping members of the public, fraud and smuggling drugs (Maguire and Dan 96). Although they are not physically able to perform these activities while they are behind the bar, their associates that exist out of prison aid their performance. The sale of drugs is the major source of funds for these groups.

The prison gangs are bothersome to the state because they disrupt the performance of the criminal justice system. The gangs threaten the staff of the correctional facilities as well as other inmates (Rosen and Marten 140). Some reports from the correctional facilities in the United States indicate that the quality of life in prisons is compromised by the existence of the gangs. It is also essential to note that the efforts by the management to clamp down on these groups have not been successful because of the deep-rooted networks of the group which makes it difficult to end them. Their presence in prisons introduces a new task to the government to monitor their operations and control their activities, a situation that makes the management of prison facilities expensive to the state.

It has been difficult to manage and exclude prison gangs because their presence is deep-rooted. Most of the members of the gangs take their group as a culture. The subscription into the gangs is a lifetime commitment which can only be terminated by death. Besides, they know how to exist with other society members without being noticed. One of the methods they employ is to drop the word gang from their tag. The group members refer to themselves as Security Threat Group STG. From the name, their main objective is to give the state a hard time maintaining law and order.

It is difficult for the law enforcement officers to confront the prison gangs head on because of their might and the possibility of retaliatory attacks. Most of the gang members are trained personnel who are also armed. They have commanders at various levels, and their activities are controlled systematically. The coordination among the gang members ensures that their operations are well-planned and carried out in missions. The coordination makes it difficult for the law enforcement officers to botch their plans since they use a lot of logistical input. In fact, some groups have intelligence information they receive from their members who have knowledge of informatics. It is due to this reason that some prison gang members are connected to cyber-security attacks that occur against financial institutions and other organizations which lose money in the process.

The prison system should be managed as a state institution whose agenda is to offer correctional services to the tens of thousands...