By: Hyrum Portlock CJ-1010 –Renckert 4/13/2109

Prisons
Life in prison can be a hard for many people who commit crimes in life. Many may feel

scared, mad; go insane as they spend their time around those who also qualify for prison time.

What qualifies people for this time is based upon the criminal acts they perform. Those who go

to jail are only charged with misdemeanors and spend no more than up to12 months until they

are released. Those that commit what we call felonies are sentenced to prison which is 0-life in

prison. Here we will discuss a brief history on prisons and where they have come to in our day,

explain the differences in Misdemeanors and Felonies as well as discuss different levels of

Prison and why people go, and finish off by going over things that prisoners might do in a day in

prison and post life prison.

Prisons were first recorded in the 1st millennia BC Mesopotamia and Egypt. During

criminals imprisonment they spent most of their time in underground dungeons and many were

either sold into slavery, used as gladiators or spent life until they awaiting their execution.

According to “Crime Museum” London is the “birthplace” of modern imprisonment. Prisons

were not meant to punish those who committed crimes but to detain them while they wait for the

punishment of the crime to be carried out. Many inmates would die of starvation, heat stroke or

even commit suicide. Philosopher Jeremy Bentham had the idea to instead of having them wait

in prison for their punishment; they could set up the prison on a scale of time spent to be the

punishment. This type of theory on how prisons should be set up didn’t catch on until the 19th

century. As is our day Jail’s are in place to detain those who have committed a crime and is

waiting for their case to take place, if the crime is a felony they will be shipped to Prison.
By: Hyrum Portlock CJ-1010 –Renckert 4/13/2109

Punishments were usually called corporal punishment that was intended to cause the guilty

person pain and capital punishment meant death.

As modern prisons now have more structure within our society we base our crimes on

Misdemeanors and Felonies. Misdemeanors are considered “lesser” crimes as they are mostly

infractions/regulatory offences. They are usually punished with monetary fines that are

affordable. Misdemeanors include offences such as simple assaults (assault by threat), Petty

theft, minor in possession of alcohol or tobacco, public intoxication, criminal trespassing, DUI of

alcohol by a minor and leaving a child inside a vehicle. There are three types of Misdemeanors

in Utah which constitute of a class A, B or C. Class A’s are the most serious type and are

punishable up to one year in Jail and a fine up to $2,500. Class B’s are punishable up to 6 months

in jail and a fine up to $1,000. A class C is punishable up to 90 days in Jail and fined up to $750.

Felonies are the more serious crimes and those who commit these are sentenced to Jail for up to

life. Felonies can include crimes such as Murder, Aggravated assault or battery, Manslaughter

(unintentional killing of another), animal cruelty, vehicular homicide, larceny, arson and

burglary Rape and other sex crimes. Capital degrees are the highest type of felony and are

punishable for life or death. First degree felonies are punishable from 5-life in prison. And have

fines up to $10,000. Second degree felonies are punishable for up to 15 years in prison with up to

$10,000 fine while third degree felonies are punishable for up to 5 years in prison and a fine for

up to $5,000.

After a criminal has caused a crime that is either a misdemeanor or a felony they go to

Jail where they await their prosecution and time sentencing. If the crime isn’t as bad the criminal

might spend less time and also have the option of parole or probation depending on your
By: Hyrum Portlock CJ-1010 –Renckert 4/13/2109

behavior. Prison types can vary based off the severity of the crime. There are Juvenile,

Minimum, medium, High security, Psychiatric, and military. Juvenile Prisons are for those under

the age of 18. Minimum Prisons are known to be reserved for “white collar” crimes who

committed embezzlement or fraud which are usually less if not non-violent at all which put most

people at less risk. These types of living or dormitory-type living with fewer guards and more

personal freedoms. Medium Prisons are designed to house most criminals in which the layout is

more “cage-style” housing, armed guards and less personal freedoms. High security prisons are

for the most violent criminals. These prison layouts will have many guards with high security

and very little freedom. Psychiatric prisons are for law-breakers who are found to be mentally

unfit and usually are more hospital like prisons. Inmates here will receive psychiatric help for

their mental disorders. Military prisons are reserved for military personnel who have broken laws

that affect national security and also house prisoners of war.

Life in Prison to many, if not all are said to be miserable and mentally unstable as they

are confined to hardly, if not any personal freedoms. Those that sit on death row may not have

anything to hope for as they know they will be put to death. However many may say that Prison

is super boring with nothing to do, According to the “Marshall Project, A day in the life of a

prisoner” Jerry Metcalf with experience discusses in detail what he did day by day in prison. He

took a notepad with him and noted down everything he did and at what time. At 1:30 Jerry is

woken up by a guard and is taken down to what he calls the suicide watch and simply just sits

with those who are suicidal and makes sure they don’t try anything that would kill them. After 3

hours Jerry takes a take a quick shower, stretches, meditates, prays, and then climbs back under

his blanket falls asleep at 6 a.m. at 10 am Jerry wakes up to the dogs and hollering around him

from others, goes down to the communal bathroom to brush teeth with other inmates. After
By: Hyrum Portlock CJ-1010 –Renckert 4/13/2109

which Jerry takes his service dog outside for 40 minutes to teach the god commands. At 11:25

the speaker goes of saying “5 minutes till count time, people… Be on your bunks and be visible!

I repeat, be on your bunks and be visible for 11:30 count or you will get a ticket!” During count

Jerry writes a few emails on his tablet and listens to the radio during count. After count Jerry gets

his work clothes on and is out in the yard at 12:20 pm. Jerry runs a few miles, does pushups, pull

ups, lifts weights and ends with stretching. When the Prison opens its doors everyone goes back

in which Jerry gets some oatmeal and waits his turn to take a bath. When Jerry heads to his bunk

he studies Spanish and other literary books of his choice and reads until 6 pm. Jerry and all the

other inmates are forced down a line in the hallway to eat some mush, when done Jerry hurries

back to his cell as this is a dangerous place to linger. Jerry Teaches a English class for one hour

and then calls his mom at 8 Pm for 3 dollars in which he only has enough money to make calls

twice a week. Jerry than heads to his cell and watches TV until he falls asleep. He repeats the

next day while he counts down 3,650 days left. I believe that Jerry probably doesn’t live in a

high security jail but most like a minimum security due to the many freedoms he has within the

jail.

According to an article titles “MY LIFE AFTER 44 YEARS IN PRISON” the statistics

states that “in 2013, approximately 3,900 inmates were released from US prisons after serving at

least 20 years, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. That is less than 0.7% of all state

prisoners released that year”. Life after prison is time for these criminals to face society after

how many years they were sentenced to, this could mean going back to school, getting a job and

possibly starting a family. It’s basically putting a big pause on their life and they have to start off

where they left off, hopefully for many they have changed certain views and behaviors and are

changed people while others may fall right back into prison for another crime they performed.
By: Hyrum Portlock CJ-1010 –Renckert 4/13/2109

Prisons have come a long way from torture of inmates who are sold into slavery and end

up dying to a positive punishment where they spend time recovering and finding help in

rehabilitation. The time spent in Prison is based on the type of misdemeanor/felony the criminal

commits and is placed into a certain degree of prison. Depending on the criminals behavior and

severity of prison they are in they still have certain freedoms within the prison to keep

themselves busy as they wait there time sentenced and eventually if they are not on death row get

let back out into society to start their life over or find themselves right back to where they left

off.
By: Hyrum Portlock CJ-1010 –Renckert 4/13/2109

Citations:
Museum, C. (2017). History Of Imprisonment. Crime Museum. Retrieved April 13, 2019, from
https://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/famous-prisons-incarceration/history-of-
imprisonment/.

History of Prisons, (2019). Prison History. Retrieved April 13, 2019, from
http://www.prisonhistory.net/prison-history/history-of-prisons/

Utah Misdemeanor Crimes by Class and Sentences, Felonies and Types of Prisons. (2019),
Criminal Defense Lawyer. By Ave Mince-Didier. https://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-
library/famous-prisons-incarceration/types-of-prisons/

A Day in the life of a Prisoner, “The Marshal Project”, July 12th, 2018. By Jerry Metcalf.
https://www.themarshallproject.org/2018/07/12/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-prisoner