Draft of Introduction and Literature Review Follow the directions below for the completion of the introduction and literature review draft assignment. Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to beg

Running head: PRISON REFORM 1

Research Proposal Assignment

Prison Reform

Robert Benders

English Composition II

Columbia Southern University

05/10/2020

Prison Reform

The Topic

The initial purpose of prisons was to help law breakers to transform and learn on the importance of being law abiding citizens. Incarceration was meant to be some sort of isolation from the society where people found guilty of committing a crime would be taken, thereby promoting the safety of the community while convicted felons were in isolation. Prisoners are taken through a rehabilitation process so they can learn how to rejoin society after extensive programming. There hasn’t been a single time that prison was meant to violate human rights, cause death of inmates, or even turn criminals into more hardened criminals. Over the years, there are a lot of malpractices that have been embraced and applied in the prisons which have compromised the levels of accuracy and justice in the criminal justice system, as well as the effectiveness of incarcerations. It is a fact that these malpractices are currently deep rooted in all prison systems to the point where society fears prisoners being released after serving their sentence, as they feel that these prisoners might not have transformed (Toman, 2019). For a long time, many people and societies have fought for prison reforms and some measures put in place, however they never took effect. It is for this reason that this essay is making a proposition that prison reform is the way out and efforts should be put in place to ensure they work.

The controversy

Many people have argued that prison reforms would only open loopholes for more lawbreaking to take place while others have claimed that prison reforms would only create a comfortable environment for wrong doers. Hence, many claim that the current state of prisons is the right environment for prisoners as a way of discouraging people to engage in crime as they are aware of the hardships and challenges they will face while in prison (Kreager, & Kruttschnitt, 2018). Many raise questions and issues as whether it is logical or non-logical for a criminal to be granted a good environment in prison while he/she caused pain and grief to innocent people.

Pro side of controversy

It is a fact that prison reforms would bring sanity and some comfort in prisons. It means the amount of cruelty that prisoners are exposed to would be eliminated and the environment made much habitable. However, this would be good for society because prison by itself means no freedom to do whatever one wishes. It means the life of that individual is in some sort of stagnation and that alone is a punishment (Duwe, 2017). Researches have proven, even the hardest criminals require a healthy environment for their mind to transform back to a normal way of thinking and develop a sense of remorse for their actions. Counseling will be required to help those individuals realize their mistake, show how it has significantly affected them, and how to avoid such instances and make better choices in life. It is in a friendly environment that prisoners can be taught how to cohabitate with others and be a productive citizen. (Duwe, 2017). Reforms would also make it possible for prisoners to be admitted back into the society with the skills learned, help them to cope and get by without engaging in future crime.

Tentative thesis statement

Prisons are important as they help offenders to reform and resume to the society better. Prison reforms are important as they would help in improving the transformation process of the convicted.

References

Duwe, G. (2017). The use and impact of correctional programming for inmates on pre-and post-release outcomes. US Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice.

Kreager, D. A., & Kruttschnitt, C. (2018). Inmate society in the era of mass incarceration. Annual review of criminology, 1, 261-283.

Toman, E. L. (2019). The victim–offender overlap behind bars: Linking prison misconduct and victimization. Justice Quarterly, 36(2), 350-382.