Running head: AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

Prison Overcrowding Crisis in America

Teresa R. Hurtgen
Wayne State University

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

Abstract
This paper explores the exponential growth of federal prison populations in the United States
over recent decades. Causes of the issue are considered by way of examining previously enacted
policies which pertain to federal prisons and may have attributed to the rise in populations.
Current governmental policies as they relate to prison population are explored and discussed.
Both pros and cons are explored of the policy which congress is currently discussing: the
sentencing reform and corrections act.
Keywords: overcrowding, prison reform, sentencing reform act,

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

Prison Overcrowding Crisis in America
Over the past four decades or so, prison population has drastically risen in the United
States. Various factors are being considered amongst democrats and republicans alike in order to
address the problem. It is widely agreed that reform is necessary to help the problem with how
many individuals face jail time in the country.
In 2013 the federal prison system was 36% over capacity, and it continues to increase.
Since 1980, population under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has increased on
average by about 5,900 inmates per year. The number of inmates has risen from an estimated
25,000 in 1980 to over 219,000 in 2013 (Congressional Research Service, 2014).
According to Prison Policy Initiative, Americas prison population ranks highest when
compared to any other country. Referring to data obtained during a 2010 census, the United
States incarcerated 716 individuals per every 100,000. The comparison of the U.S. to its
neighbor, Canada, who incarcerated 118 per every 100,00 is astounding. Prevalence of citizens
incarcerated in the United States is that of the highest in the world (2014). Changes in policies
over the last forty years has seemed to have placed more people in prisons and kept them
incarcerated longer, which needs to be corrected before it grows even worse.
Current Problem
If considering how many Americans are incarcerated in prisons today as a single
statement is not heartbreaking enough, there is plenty more to consider. From a micro standpoint,
going to prison is a grief inducing experience for just about any individual involved. Several
individuals who are incarcerated have families or children who are affected. Stresses are placed
on the individual when transitioning back to ordinary life. Should they be granted the
opportunity, reintegrating into society is no easy feat. Its possible that during their time in

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

prison, housing was lost; it is possible that they are much less likely to obtain successful
employment after being exonerated. There is much to consider. Of course justification should be
sought for those who commit crimes, however prison is likely to cause a lot of strain to a
persons life. It is a truly a tragedy that so many United States citizen face ending up behind bars.
On the macro scale, prison overcrowding is costing and in more ways than money. Its
costing in quality and effectiveness of the prisons. Research conducted by the BOP suggests a
possible link between higher levels of overcrowding and inmate misconduct. There is an increase
in inmate to staff ratio from 4.1% inmates per 1 staff in 2000 to 4.8% inmates per 1 staff in 2013.
Infrastructure of the federal system is strained as prisons have had to defer hundreds of millions
of dollars in maintenance which directly and indirectly impacts security within the prisons. With
more inmates, operations costs are higher. The quality of incarceration is being impacted. The
effectiveness of interventions for inmates is being impacted. With each passing year,
incarceration costs of each inmate is growing (Congressional Research Service, 2014).
Some proponents of prison reform argue that prison overcrowding is unconstitutional.
Another advocate and executive director of The Sentencing Project, Marc Mauer, brings
attention to the issue by questioning how ethical prison overcrowding is. He questions how
humane laws surrounding crime really are if population rates are as high as they are among
citizens. He asks if there arent more successful interventions that might be considered (Tamy
Cozier, 2014).
Policies in Place
Perhaps the biggest issue with overcrowding in federal prisons, is the lack of policies in
place. Aside from the reform currently being considered, no policies exist to help this social
problem. Of all policies relating to federal prisons, none address overcrowding. They are instead

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

aimed more toward addressing reducing crime. When comparing the numbers to when these
policies were put in place, crime has gone down. However, it is likely that this correlation is
attributed to many other factors besides the increase in incarceration levels. When considering
the rise of population in prisons, there are not various attributing factors. There is a direct
correlation in research between when these federal policies went into place and when population
in prisons began to climb.
Some of the policies implemented included mandatory minimum sentence, changes to the
federal criminal code considered more crimes to be federal offenses, and the option of parole for
federal crimes was eliminated (Congressional Research Service, 2014).
What Works
Some states have implemented their own policies for reducing overpopulations in state
penitentiaries which may be helpful to review when considering federal reform. The American
Civil Liberties Union focuses greatly on tasks that states can do to reduce populations in prison.
They bring attention to the fact that in 2009 alone nearly 1.7 million people were arrested in the
United States for nonviolent drug charges. They suggest decriminalizing and defelonizing drug
possession and implementing other alternative punishments. As of 2010 and 2011, California and
Kentucky respectively converted drug possession crimes to misdemeanors and civil penalties
which carry non-prison sanctions. Other non-prison sanctions have been implemented for drugs
and other low-level offenses in Kansas, Texas, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Ohio. Minimum
mandatory sentencing is reevaluated in these states for these types of crimes (American Civil
Liberties Union, 2011).
Louisiana has revised laws in the city of New Orleans which have proved effective. The
city has turned some petty crimes into summary offenses which has lowered the rate of of arrests

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

for low-level offenses. The city also reassessed their financial spending providing less incentive
to jail individuals who may not have necessarily needed incarceration as a punishment.
Alternative solutions and interventions were offered. Although New Orleans has one of the
largest per-capita inmate populations of any city in the United States, according to a new report
from The Data Center the city has reduced its prison population by 67% over the past ten years
(Mock, 2015).
What is Not Working
The Congressional Research Service stands by the decisions made by the aforementioned
states. They suggest various options of what might be done to assist in reducing populations in
prisons. Options include modifying mandatory minimum penalties, expanding the use of
Residential Reentry Centers, placing more offenders on probation, reinstating parole for federal
inmates, expanding the amount of good time credit an inmate can earn, or repealing federal
criminal statutes for some offenses (2014).
The strongest arguments behind solving the problem surrounds the idea of reforming the
policies which were implemented around the time of the 1980s and the tough-on-crime
movement. Seventy years ago, criminal sentencing laws yielded judges with very high power in
deciding sentences. It wasnt long after that when both federal and state governments
implemented strong and inflexible sentencing guidelines for mandatory long prison sentences.
Even for cases where an individual is not a threat to society, it is likely they may end up in
federal prisons due to mandatory minimum sentences.
A bipartisan bill known as the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act has recently
surfaced which addresses the long-term issues which these policies have produced. It is said to

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

represent a major step from tough mandatory sentencing adopted in the 1980s and 1990s
(Johnson, 2015).
Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act
The Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of is a two-part federal act currently being
considered to help reform prisons and reduce prison population and has many supporters.
Much of the sentencing reform focuses in on mandatory minimums for drug and gun
related offenses. It targets mandatory minimum sentences for previous drug felons by reducing
life imprisonment to 25 years for example, it extends the current safety valve for drug offenders
and creates a second safety valve for certain drug offenders. It also clarifies and reduces the
enhanced mandatory minimum sentence for certain firearm offenses. The reform applies the fair
sentencing act to prisoners retroactively, which bridges the gap between disparities in sentencing
of crack cocaine versus powder cocaine. It also sets new mandatory minimums for other charges.
The corrections act focuses on programming to reduce recidivism, considers postsentencing risk. It allows juveniles parole, aims to reduce solitary confinement, promotes
successful reentry and compassionate release (Committee on the Judiciary, 2015).
Currently, the act seems to be the positive answer everyone is looking for. According to
Carrie Johnson of National Public Radio, various groups and parties are in agreement with the
bill, ranging from the ACLU to the Koch Industries, republicans and democrats. Mr. Marc
Mauer, previously mentioned as the executive director of The Sentencing Project actually wrote
an entire testimonial in regards to ways the bill will help in prison overcrowding and be good for
society overall.
Marc Mauer has been advocating for prison reform for some time. It was Mr. Mauer who
pointed out, that while crime rates dropped while prison population increased, there is more to

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

consider. He raises good points about the waning of the crack-cocaine epidemic and violence
related to that in the 1980s. He refers to strategic policing being enforced during this time, as
well as better economy in the 1990s and higher employment for individuals who elsewise may
have been involved in committing crimes. He brings awareness to the idea that while prison may
have some impact on crime rates, that not all information is included, and that essentially
warehousing criminals may not be the most cost effective or humane way to address issues
related to crime (Tamy Cozier, 2012).
Albeit there are issues and critiques in regards to the bill, but the unanimous agreement
with the act and reform is overwhelming. The president himself is in support of the bill and
wishes to be able to sign off on it by the end of this year. Obviously the bill will not be a quickfix, but as stated by one of the many advocates, Julie Stewart, president of Families Against
Mandatory Minimums, " it is a substantial improvement over the status quo and will fix some of
the worst injustices." (Johnson, 2015).
Conclusion
Populations in federal prisons have been on the rise consecutively for the past thirty years
and longer. With the overcrowding issue continuing to grow with each year, the problem cannot
be ignored any longer. So many differing populations are in agreement with the reform proposed
by congress today. It is so important that some kind of change be implemented and sooner rather
than later. Nothing has been done to address the population crisis on a federal level. If city and
state level laws can make a difference, so can federal laws. Although the policies put in place
during the 1980s to address crime levels were implemented with good intention, they have
clearly have not been as effective as possible since this problem of overpopulation currently
exists.

AMERICAN PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS

References
American Civil Liberties Union. (2011, August). Smart reform is possible: States reducing
incarcerations rates and costs while protecting communities. New York, NY: ACLU.
Committee on the Judiciary. (2015, October 1). Senators announce bipartisan sentencing reform
and corrections act. United States Senate. Retrieved from
http://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/senators-announce-bipartisan-sentencingreform-and-corrections-act
Congregational Research Service. The federal prison population buildup: Overview, policy
changes, issues, and options. (R42937. 2015, April 15), by Nathan James. Text in: Open
CRS; accessed: 2015, October 12.
Cozier, T. (2012, March 30). The politics of punishment: Q&A with prison-reform advocate
Marc Mauer. Need To Know on PBS. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-toknow/the-daily-need/the-politics-of-punishment-qa-with-prison-reform-advocate-marcmauer/13479/
Johnson, C. (2015, October 3). Heres one thing Washington agreed on this week: Sentencing
reform. Its All Politics: Political News From NPR. Retrieved from
http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/10/03/445309516/heres-1-thingwashington-agreed-on-this-week-sentencing-reform
Mock, B. (2015, June 18). How New Orleans stopped making jailing a business. The Atlantic.
Retrieved from http://www.citylab.com/crime/2015/06/how-new-orleans-stoppedmaking-jailing-a-business/396188/
Prison Policy Initiative. (2014). States of incarceration: The global context. Prison Policy
Initiative. Retrieved from http://www.prisonpolicy.org/global/

Running head: PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

Prison Overcrowding Crisis in America: Policy Alternative

Teresa R. Hurtgen
Wayne State University

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

Prison Overcrowding Crisis in America: Policy Alternative
Over approximately the past our decades, federal prison population rose drastically in the
United States. Various factors are currently being considered amongst Democrats and
Republicans alike in order to address the issue. Changes in policies over the last forty years
seemingly place more people in prisons and keeps them incarcerated longer, which need be
corrected before it continues to grow much worse.
The number of federal inmates has risen from an estimated 25,000 persons in 1980 to
over 219.000 in 2013 (Congressional Research Service, 2014). According to Prison Policy
Initiative, Americas prison population ranks highest when compared to any other country.
Referring to data obtained during a 2010 census, the United States incarcerated 716 individuals
per every 100,000 including both jails and federal prisons. This rate is a dramatic difference
when compared to the bordering nation of Canada, who incarcerated 118 per every 100,000
(2014).
It is widely agreed that reform is necessary to help the problem of how many individuals
face jail time in this country. The question is, what type of reform should be implemented?
Policy Alternative
Causes of the current overpopulation in prisons trace back to policies implemented
around the 1980s. The legislative get-tough movement included policies such as mandatory
minimum sentencing, the elimination of parole for federal crimes, and changes to the federal
criminal code which considered more crimes to be federal offenses. Given that these types of
implementations are the roots of the now overpopulation crisis in prisons, they should be
considered when creating a new policy.

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

The United States tends to hold incarceration and retribution highly in the correctional
system (Vera Institute of Justice, 2013). I propose that the United States focus instead primarily
on rehabilitation and resocialization. With incarceration being an immediate response to crime,
we are bound to have higher rates of persons in prisons. If the country were to change its focus
more toward steering its citizens away from crime rather than simply punishing them, long term
positive change is going to occur. The rate of incarceration will naturally decline by
implementing alternative consequences to less serious crimes; and by implementing policy
aimed at resocialization, the current high rates of recidivism are likely to drop significantly.
Notions of no parole and mandatory minimum sentencing, especially relating to non-violent
crimes, need to go.
In order to change the United States' focus to be more aimed toward rehabilitation and
resocialization, I propose three main changes in my policy: I propose that mandatory minimum
sentencing be revamped instead into a fee-based alternative, I propose that parole and probation
be considered as a secondary alternative to the new fee-based system, and finally I propose that
rehabilitation and resocialization programs be put in place.
All non-serious crimes should be first considered on a fine-basis prior to prison
sentencing. Often fines are issued as an accessory penalty in the United States Judicial system
rather than stand-alone penalties. Fines can be established on an income percentage basis as to
avoid unfair implementation on more socio-economically stressed populations. Implementing a
fine-based punishment as a first-tier punishment will serve as a crime deterrent.
As for probation or parole, these options currently do not even exist for any crimes
considered to be federal crimes. With mandatory sentencing being revised, this can be an
alternative solution in cases where a fine will not suffice, such as with recurring criminal

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

behavior. These new changes taking the place of mandatory minimum sentences will need to be
implemented at a federal level. States and local government may then apply appropriate charges
in ways specific to their populations, which abide by federally established regulations and
percentage ranges.
Additionally, I propose a change to follow suit with the rehabilitation aspect of this
policy, which will aid in preventing such high recidivism. Currently, criminals are in many ways
stripped of their rights as United States citizens. If a person commits a crime, they are forever
labeled as a criminal with most crimes being accessible via their records. I propose that instead
of incarcerating a person for punitive reasons, we incarcerate them with a goal to rehabilitate
them back in to society. Prisoners should not be entirely isolated from society so they are able to
network and maintain relations and build social skill-sets. Select job opportunities should not be
able to determine a persons right to work based on criminal record. Albeit possibly financially
taxing, programs should be implemented in prisons aimed toward rehabilitation and a new
supervision requirements should be put in place in order to monitor a persons rehabilitation
progress.
By considering crime prevention and recidivism prevention, the entirety of this policy
aims to prevent incarceration both before and after crimes are committed. Since such a high
number of incarceration occurs due to petty crimes and recidivism, this policy will keep many
citizens from a path leading behind bars.
Comparison
According to the Vera Institute of Justice, the overall imprisonment rate in the United
States, including the jail and federal population, is 716 per 100,000 residents. European rates
show to be much lower at a startling 79 per 100,000 incarcerated individuals in Germany and 82

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

per 100,000 in the Netherlands (2013). While the prevalence of criminal behavior and the rate of
arrest are likely quite different from country to country, these numbers reflect that Germany and
the Netherlands incarcerate far fewer people proportionally than the United States.
Germany is a great example of how my policy might be effective. In relation to the idea
of making fines a crime deterrent, Germany also uses fines as a stand-alone punishment.
Germany uses an approach in which paying fines is an alternative to being incarcerated. They
use a day-fine approach. Fines are imposed in daily units which represent the costs or a match
of being incarcerated for one day. The fine is derived from the total number of days that reflect
the degree of guilt. This idea is also based on an offenders personal income in order to ensure
that each fine has the same impact on offenders who ay not live under the same economic
circumstances but who have committed equally serious crimes. Of course there is much more
that comes to play in Germanys success with low rates of imprisonment, however, the idea of
fining in place of incarceration clearly has not completely failed in Germany.
When referring to the idea of using probationary punishment secondary to fines, there is
no exact policy that replicates this. However, also in Germany, they do tend to use probationary
sentencing more frequently than the United States do. They tend to suspend the majority of
prison sentences. Suspending is a way of delaying a sentence of incarceration and replacing it
with supervision similar to probation. Germany suspends the majority of prison sentences that
are under two years, which is about 75 percent of their cases. In turn, only a small percentage of
those sentenced even went to prison (Vera Institute of Justice, 2013).
The rehabilitation aspect of my new policy reflects most strongly in both German and
Dutch correctional systems. Both countries set rehabilitation and resocialization as their primary
goals. Conditions of confinement are not meant to be punitive on the interpersonal/individual

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

level. The separation from society is represented by the custodial sentence itself. Life in prison
aims to teach fundamental skills that are needed to be successful in the community. Prisoners are
allowed individual expression and their privacy is respected as a practice of human dignity.
Prisoners are allowed a fair amount of control over their daily lives, including things such as
preparing their own meals and choice of clothing. Additionally, both work and education are
required in order to enhance self-worth (Vera Institute of Justice, 2013). The goal is to help
inmates once they are released to lead more independent and productive lives in society.
As the Vera Institute of Justice (2013) suggests, If you treat inmates like humans, they will act
like humans (p. 12).
Feasibility of Alternative Policy
Louisiana is the strongest example in the United States which proves that removing
minimum mandatory sentences effectiveness. According to a recent report from The Data
Center, the city of New Orleans reduced its prison population by 67% over the past ten years.
This was done by way of reassessing the way in which petty-crimes were tried (Mock, 2015).
Strong and inflexible sentencing guidelines were established in the 1980s in order to equalize the
high power that judges once held in criminal sentencing. These inflexible policies have only
caused for an unfluctuating increase in imprisonment. Plans to revamp these policies are not only
feasible, but crucial in order to gain control of the overpopulation crisis.
Not only has the implementation of removal of mandatory minimum sentences shown
effective on a smaller local-scale in the United States, but as mentioned, other countries such as
Germany and The Netherlands have significant control over their crime rates and prison
population. By changing the attitudes toward what justice means, we can change the
overpopulation crisis at hand.

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

Political Feasibility
Just about all parties are in agreement with some type of prison reform and would most
likely be in agreement with my proposed policy alternative. Barack Obama is a very strong
Democratic face in the realm of prison reform. He has been pushing for action to be taken since
the beginning of his presidency. Edwards of Reuters also points out the strong conservative
proponents of reform. Billionaire backers of conservative causes, Charles and David Koch, are in
support of reform. They center on the $80 billion spent annually on prisons by the government as
unsustainable. Republican presidential candidates, Ted Cruz and Rand Paul have both urged
easing mandatory minimum sentence (2015), directly correlating with the first proposal of my
policy.
Marc Mauer is executive director of The Sentencing Project. He is a very big advocate of
prison reform and would most definitely agree with my proposed policy. He raises a very good
point in several of his arguments how large-scale incarcerations negatively impact the
community. He points out that most people in prison are parents, and how children who have not
committed any crimes have to deal with the loss of financial and psychological support of a
parent. He says the effect of incarceration goes well beyond the individual being sentenced to
prison, but affects that persons life prospects as well his or her family and community as well
(Cozier, 2012, p.2). His arguments toward prison reform definitely reflect his value of dignity for
prisoners which make me positive he would appreciate the rehabilitative approach toward my
policy.
Not many parties are outwardly against prison reform. Predicting that some communities
are likely not going to be in agreement, I would suspect these communities to be that closely tied

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

to the privatization of prisons. I would also suspect that general members of society who strongly
believe in retributive justice may be somewhat partial against rehabilitative justice.
Economical Feasibility
Most of the costs from my new policy will be able to be transferred from existing costs of
incarceration. Removing mandatory sentencing for non-serious crimes and implementing fines as
a first tier punishment will already have very little cost involved. Utilizing probation or
suspension before incarceration will cost to implement. Supervision, and including personnel
such as parole officers, and other forms of checking in will need to be paid for. Additionally,
implementing an entirely new large program of rehabilitation within the prisons will definitely
be the largest cause of new expenses. However, if you consider that more fines are now being
implemented, this newly added influx of funds into the system can be used toward this policy.
Also, with the large amount of inmates who will no longer need to be incarcerated, the costs
associated with overpopulation will be reduced and can be utilized for the rehabilitative program.
Administrative Feasibility
These changes will need to be made via legislation in which laws will be created and
then followed on many levels, such as judicial and correctional levels. Mainly, the Department of
Justice (DOJ) will be most affected. The DOJ is a cabinet-level agency that is responsible for
enforcing the laws of the United States federal government. If the law regarding the enforcing
laws changes, the DOJ will have to become aware of these changes and enforce them.
Social Work Values and Goals
The policy alternative which I am proposing really applies to social work values on all
levels. Many values straight from the Code of Ethics formed by National Association of Social

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

Workers (NASW) are applicable to the policy alternative, specifically the following values:
Social Justice, Dignity and Worth of a Person, and Importance of Human Relationships.
The value of social justice reports that social workers are to pursue social change,
specifically with and on behalf of vulnerable and oppressed populations. As a social worker, we
are to promote sensitivity and knowledge about oppression and unfairness. Access to needed
information, services, resources, and social justice in general is to be strived for (NASW, 2014).
The aspect of my policy which considers utilizing fines as punishment for crimes specifically
finds the cost of the based on income of the person who committed the crime. The purpose of
this is to ensure that the punishment/payment of the crime takes the same toll on the committer
of the crime regardless of their financial stability.
The value of dignity and worth of a person reports that social workers are to treat each
person in a caring and respectful fashion. Social workers are to promote clients socially
responsible self-determination. The value of importance of human relationships reports that
social workers are to recognize the central importance of human relationships. Social workers are
to understand that relationships between and among people are an important vehicle for change,
and should work to strengthen relationships among people in a purposeful effort for the wellbeing of individuals, families, social groups, organizations, and communities (NASW, 2014).
Both values, dignity and importance of human relationship, are in consistency with the
implementation of my policy alternative. The rehabilitative program portion of the policy centers
strongly on these values. The concept of treating a person with dignity in order to help create
change is abided by directly. Additionally, by being sure to still keep relations in the community,
the policy follows the importance of human relationships. Those who have been incarcerated will
be able to have a chance to a successful life after imprisonment.

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

Implementing The Proposal
Given that Mr. Mauer is executive director of The Sentencing Project, I do believe he
would be possibly the largest advocate of my policy alternative. He is very familiar with
advocating for prison reform, so I would reach out to him and ask if he would consider assisting
me in implementing my policy
If possible, I would have Mr. Mauer revise my policy proposal and point out any flaws or
ways in which it may be ineffective. I would ask him in which ways I might be most effective in
implementing the changes. Mr. Mauer wrote the testimony in regards to the current prison
reform which is being reviewed by politicians. He has done various interviews on the current
prison problem. His entire project, The Sentencing Project, is to draw attention to all the
ineffective and problematic aspects of The United States current system. Having him on my
side would be the strongest component in implementing my proposal. That is not to say that I
wouldnt work as hard as possible on my own to make my policy a reality.
I would I would hold rallies to obtain the attention of the public and get a following. I
would write to my representatives and encourage fellow citizens to do the same. Predicting that
some communities are likely not going to be in agreement, I would need to be prepared with a
counter argument. I suspect that most opponents of the proposal would likely be general
members of society who do not believe rehabilitation to be an effective form of punishment for
crime. In order to combat this, I would utilize my role as an educator and inform them of how
effective rehabilitation is and all other benefits the policy can have on society. I would inform
them of how cost ineffective the current situation is. I would inform them of how detrimental the
current situation is for society and the community. The more that people understand how harmful
incarceration is, the more they may take it seriously and understand that it may not be necessary

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

for just any crime. Most importantly, I would inform them how successful many countries in
Europe are able to execute this type of policy. By seeing that this type of policy is implemented
successfully, in high functioning societies, perhaps opposition would lesson.
Personal Feelings/Conclusion
I honestly believe that changing the approach of incarceration from retributive justice to
rehabilitative justice could be a very effective change. Especially judging by how well this
approach works in Germany and The Netherlands, I definitely believe it could one day exist as
an effective policy. If anything, I suspect that populations who are unaware of the positive
effects of rehabilitative justice will not be in agreement with such a bold change.
In order to create this change, I think I would be most effective in takin the role of an
educator. This way I can help create awareness about more humane, cost effective, and societally
beneficial methods of crime management.
Given that prison reform in general is being pushed for by bipartisan efforts, I am excited
envisioning that at least some form of change will likely be made to help with this social issue.

PRISON OVERCROWDING CRISIS: PART B

References
Congregational Research Service. The Federal Prison Population Buildup: Overview, policy,
changes, issues, and options. (R42937. 2015, April 15), by Nathan James. Text in: Open
CRS; accessed: 2015, November, 24.
Cozier, T. (2012, March 30). The Politics of Punishment: Q&A with prison-reform advocate of
Marc Mauer. Need to Know of PBS. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-toknow/the-daily-need/the-opolitics-of-punishment-qu-with-prison-reform-advocate-marcmauer/13479/
Mock, B. (2015, June 18). How New Orleans Stopped Making Jailing a Business. The Atlantic.
Retrieved from http://www.citylab.com/crime/2015/06/how-new-orleans-stoppedmaking-jailing-a-business/396188
National Association of Social Workers. (2014). Code of Ethics of the National Association of
Social Worker. Retrieved from http://www.naswdc.org/pubs/code/code.asp
Prison Policy Initiative. (2014). States of Incarceration: The global context. Prison Policy
Initiative. Retrieved from http://www.prisonpolicy.org/global/
Edwards, J. (2015). Reuters. In Test for Biden: Frustrated cops line up against prison reform.
Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/10/us-usa-criminaljustice-policeidUSKCN0RA0EK20150910#pOJ88K3O4qLs5VTU.97
Vera Institute of Justice. (2013). Sentencing and Prison Practices in Germany and The
Netherlands: Implications for the United States. Retrieved from
http://www.vera.org/sites/default/files/resources/downloads/european-american-prisonreport-v3.pdf