Journal Reference Summary

Kayla Brewer
College Writing 1
Dr. Dawn Walts
11/10/2014

I will be using a few of these articles to put into my paper, but the last one is the main one I will be using.

Discrimination against criminals from the public – Sex offenders most likely won’t be rented homes or apartments by landlords when they reenter the community. Those who do find housing can be driven out of town by evictions. Employers are also reluctant to hire sex offenders, making it hard for them to become a part of the community again.

Willis, Gwenda M., Jill S. Levenson, and Tony Ward. "Desistance and Attitudes Towards Sex Offenders: Facilitation or Hindrance?" ProQuest. Springer Science & Business Media, 12 May 2010. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.

Attitudes of correctional nurses were found to be more negative towards inmates than any other group interviewed that works in the correctional system.

Shields, Kristine E., and Dorothy De Moya. "Correctional Health Care Nurses' Attitudes Toward Inmates." Correctional Health Care Nurses' Attitudes Toward Inmates. N.p., 2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.

The definition of police corruption given in this article is as follows: 1) The actions must involve individuals who function as employees. 2) The action must be in violation of the formal rules of the organization. 3) The offense must involve an employee receiving some personal material gain for the misuse of one’s office. Information on corruption in prison is limited because it is a report from an employee of the state/federal system, rather than an inmate who experienced the corruption firsthand. Corruption includes theft, trafficking, embezzlement, and misuse of authority. When an official uses any method against inmates to achieve personal gain this is corruption. The article talks about malfeasance and misfeasance, which are different ways officials are deemed corrupt. Misfeasance is an act in which an officer may lawfully do, but they abuse their power in doing it.  Malfeasance is a wrongful act in which their power is improperly used. A lot of prison corruption comes from the bad environment the workers have to work in, and the low pay they receive for working in those conditions.

MCarthy, Bernard J. "Keeping an Eye on the Keeper: Prison Corruption and Its Control." Sage Journals. Sagepublications.com, 1 Jan. 1984. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.

Video Summary

Kayla Brewer
11/10/14
College Writing 1
Dr. Dawn Walts

Video Summary

This video is just one of many examples of corruption in the corrections system. The clip talks about a boy, who is now 14, that committed a crime that may have deserved community service that got more than what he and his mother bargained for. The boy took his mother's car joy riding, and hit a barrier. No one was hurt and no major damage was done, but the mother wanted to teach her boy a lesson so she filed a police report, which would also cover her insurance claim. The boy was sentenced to 2 years in prison, the judge didn't even bother to go over his record or read him what he had fully done wrong. This boy was one of many victims of this judge to be wrongfully convicted of petty crimes. The judge was being paid money to send these kids to juvenile detention. If this is seen in juvenile cases, they are also going to prevalent in adult cases.

"Victims of Judicial Corruption Kids For Cash Prison Slavery Ring, Pennsylvania." YouTube. YouTube, 9 Feb. 2011. Web. 12 Nov. 2014.

Interview answers

1. How are women treated compared to men on a police force?

-  I worked in the field of corrections and therefore, I cannot speak from experience on the comparison of treatment between women and men within a police department. However, under the law, they should be treated equally. 

2. Are certain criminals treated worse than others?

- All people should receive equal justice under the law.  However, there are differences in the management of the more dangerous offenders when considering safety and security. For example, the bond might be much higher for a dangerous defendant to ensure public safety and an increased likelihood of future court appearances. Also, if convicted, the more dangerous and violent offender will be given a longer sentence by the courts for retribution and accountability.   Next, when in prison, the more dangerous/violent offender will be placed in a more secure or higher security prison facility and will probably have closer controls and supervision.

3.  Do offenders get sentenced to longer terms than their crime is worth? If so, why do you think that is?

- In many cases, offenders who possess or distribute certain types of illegal drugs will receive longer sentences. For example, people who are convicted of possessing, using  or distributing crack cocaine will get a much longer sentence than those who use, possess and distribute powder cocaine. This sentencing disparity within the law has caused much concern among lawyers, judges and the public in general. 

4. How do offenders act towards correctional officers?

- Typically inmates abide by the inmate code or culture within a prison and maintain a certain distance from correctional officers.  Most inmates remain respectful but not friendly toward correctional officers. 

5. How are female correctional officers treated in a male prison?

- Female correctional officers are typically treated no different than the male officers.  Their work assignments cannot be based on gender and discrimination is a violation of the law. Therefore supervisors are very careful to not show differences in the treatment of correctional officers based on gender. Additionally, inmates typically see all correctional officers as government employees and     
do not think the female officers are any different than the male officers when it comes to carrying out their official responsibilities.  

6. Do male offenders assault female correctional officers?

- There are occasions when male inmates assault female correctional officers. However, this is not predominate because inmates are aware of the legal consequences for assaulting any officer within a prison. They can receive an additional sentence for assaulting a state or federal officer.

7. Does a supervising official (Unit manager) treat women workers different than male workers in prison?

- Supervisors and unit managers cannot treat female workers any differently than the male workers. As previously stated, there are legal consequences for discrimination and creating a hostile work environment. Like any other occupation, sometimes people discriminate and cause harm to subordinates or co-workers. If this discrimination or treatment is reported, an investigation must be launched by the agency to determine if wrong doing occurred. If there is a finding that confirms wrong doing by the supervisor, the supervisor may be fired and sometimes prosecuted.  

8. When giving someone a sentence does a judge discriminate based on the crime that was committed?

- While judges have discretion, they typically sentence offenders within the guidelines identified with the offense. Most cases are appealed by the offender and therefore judges are usually very careful and thoughtful when issuing a sentence.    

Dr. Calvin Edwards