Penal Disenfranchisement

This paper considers the justifiability of removing the right to vote from those convicted of crimes. Firstly, I consider the claim that the removal of the right to vote from prisoners (or serious offenders) is necessary as a practical matter to protect the democratic process from those who have shown themselves to be untrustworthy. Secondly, I look at the claim that offenders have broken the social contract and forfeited rights to participate in making law. And thirdly, I look at the claim that the voting ban is essential part of the justified punishment of serious offenders. These arguments have in common the feature that they attempt to articulate the sense in which rights imply responsibilities, particularly that voting rights should be conditional on one’s having met one’s civic responsibilities. I argue that the only interpretation of this view that could justify prisoner disenfranchisement is that which thinks of disenfranchisement as fair and deserved retributive punishment for crime. Against widespread opposition to, and confusion about, the importance of retributive punishment, I offer a brief defence. However, I conclude that even if legitimate retributive purposes could in principle justify prisoner disenfranchisement, the significance of disenfranchisement is such that it should be reserved for the most serious crimes.     

The Limits of Criminal Disenfranchisement

Abstract

This article begins with the assumption that criminal disenfranchisement is at least sometimes theoretically defensible, as a component of punishment. From this assumption, I argue that it is only legitimate in a constrained set of cases. These constraints include: implementing disenfranchisement only for serious crimes; tying disenfranchisement to both the electoral cycle and to the length of imprisonment imposed for an offence; and assessing a background condition of sufficient justice present within the state that wishes to disenfranchise. Once these constraints are considered, I argue that there are very few instances in which disenfranchisement is defensible. To prove this, I examine both current disenfranchisement practices and the commonly present factors that undermine the constraints outlined above.     

Co-Corrections in the United States of America, 1970-1990

Abstract

A comprehensive review of the impact of co-corrections on women prisoners is reported on here. An exhaustive search of the literature found nine studies that report on the impact of co-corrections for women prisoners. The general finding across all nine is that co-corrections offers women prisoners few, if any, economic, educational, vocational, and social advantages. Co-corrections benefits male prisoners and system maintenance.     

Prisoners with psychosis in England and Wales: diversion to psychiatric inpatient services?

The prevalence of psychosis among prisoners in England and Wales is ten times that in the household population and UK government policy is that prisoners should receive equivalent care to those in the community. This study investigated the implications of policy to divert more from the criminal justice system for psychiatric treatment. Psychotic prisoners were compared with psychotic persons in households and with other prisoners in two surveys of psychiatric morbidity in representative samples of the UK population. Psychotic prisoners were younger, more from ethnic minorities, with comorbid anxiety, substance misuse, ASPD, and childhood behavioural problems compared to psychotic persons in households. Less than a third had received previous inpatient treatment. Psychotic prisoners had similar criminal histories and higher psychopathy scores than non-psychopathic prisoners. Diversion is unfeasible without improved screening for psychosis and increasing bed numbers at higher levels of security to accommodate more patients who would pose high risk to the public. Future research should investigate why UK psychiatric services fail to identify psychotic prisoners and provide aftercare.     

美国服刑人员诉诸司法之权利的宪法保护研究——以美国宪法判例为对象

在美国,服刑人员诉诸司法之权利是一项受宪法保护的基本权利。这一权利的基本权利性质并非来自于宪法文本的明文规定,而是由宪法判例加以确认的。从服刑人员诉诸司法之权利领域的案例法发展历程来看,美国联邦最高法院的司法判断决定了服刑人员诉诸司法之权利受到保护的层次、程度和范围,其中1977年的邦德斯案具有里程碑意义。虽然立法和行政对这一案例法的发展状况也产生了一定影响,但司法的独特功能是实现对服刑人员诉诸司法之权利进行宪法保护的根本保障。     

Psychiatric disorders and personality characteristics of prisoners at regular prison wards

BackgroundDutch correctional officers are trained to observe prisoners with severe mental disorder. This ‘behavioural’ approach is assumed to detect psychiatrically disordered prisoners with striking symptoms. On the basis of this screening procedure about 10% of the Dutch prison population is classified as needing special care or control. In the current study, what psychopathology can still be found among the remaining 90% prisoners residing at regular wards is investigated and which personality traits characterize them. When the prevalence of major mental illness would still turn out to be high in this group, the question arises whether the current, rather unstandardized, way of screening prisoners is sufficient.AimsTo assess the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among adult Dutch prisoners on regular wards, and to determine the concurrent and convergent validity of self-report measures and their screening characteristics in such a sample.Method191 randomly selected prisoners admitted to the general wards were administered a number of tests (SCL-90, NEO-PI-R, MINI) during the first weeks of their incarceration.ResultsIncluding substance abuse, 57% of the participants suffered from one or more Axis I disorders. About seven out of ten detainees with psychopathology as assessed with the MINI did not receive professional help. The concurrent and convergent validity of the SCL-90 and the NEO-PI-R turned out to be reasonable. The predictive validity of self-report measures in detecting prisoners with an Axis I disorders or suicide risks was moderate.ConclusionsThe Dutch ‘behavioural approach’ seems to be quite accurate in detecting prisoners with psychotic disorders. Most prisoners with other mental disorders on regular wards, however, did not receive professional help. The current study suggests that self report scales such as the SCL-90 and the NEO-PI-R may be helpful in screening detainees on important DSM-IV disorders.     

论监狱在押服刑人员人身权保障限度

自由刑对于在押服刑人员权利剥夺和限制的应有的必要限度,究竟在哪里？对于监狱在押服刑人员人身权的具体内容,究竟哪些应该保障,究竞应该如何保障？如何在在押服刑人员人身权保障和合理监禁与惩罚两者之间形成有效平衡？对此,很多人的认识并不够清晰;而观念的模糊以及制度、体制等各方面原因,导致了在押服刑人员人身权在监狱行刑实践中的缺损。由此,就我国监狱在押服刑人员人身权保障的应然限度进行深入探讨,对于进一步澄清模糊观念,进一步强化监狱工作者们对于在押服刑人员的权利保障意识,具有一定的理论和实践意义。     

Unpaid debt to society: exploring how ex-felons view restrictions on voting rights after the completion of their sentence

The Supreme Court has asserted that ex-felon disenfranchisement is not a punishment. Regardless of the Court’s interpretation, however, many ex-felons perceive restrictions on voting rights as punitive. Therefore, felony disenfranchisement should be examined in terms of criminological theories of sanctions. In Florida, ex-felons are prevented from voting after the completion of their sentence until they go through a lengthy and in some cases impossible process of rights restoration. The consequences of this policy have resulted in hundreds of thousands of Floridians who have completed their sentences, but are unable to vote. This research employs 54 semi-structured interviews with men convicted of felonies in Florida who have lost the right to vote, but have completed their sentencing obligations to the state. Our purpose is to better understand the meaning former offenders attribute to the loss of their civil rights. Findings from this study suggest that many former offenders view this type of punishment as illegitimate and are angered by both the complex system of restoration and the inability to participate in democratic life. Other ex-offenders are embarrassed or fatalistic about their loss of rights. The implications for criminal justice policies and practices are discussed.     

Same Difference: The “Dilemma of Difference” and the Incarceration of Transgender Prisoners

This article examines the “dilemma of difference” transgender prisoners pose and face within a sex‐segregated prison system organized around the pursuit of safety and security. Our analysis uses data from a study of the culture and experiences of transgender prisoners in four men's prisons. Using qualitative data from interviews with transgender prisoners, focus groups with prisoners, and focus groups with staff, our findings reveal a common contention that transgender prisoners are (according to staff) and should be (according to prisoners) treated like everyone else, despite their unique situations. This further demonstrates the stakes that this dilemma carries for the prison regime and transgender prisoners’ roles in challenging it without engaging in overt resistance—which carries high stakes for them. Accordingly, we elucidate how the rigidity of an institutional structure built on inherent contradictions can have the potential to complicate the achievement of institutional goals.     

Penal harm medicine: state tort remedies for delaying and denying health care to prisoners

In prison and jail subcultures, custodial personnel are committed to the penal harm movement, which seeks to inflict pain on prisoners. Conversely, correctional medical personnel are sworn to the Hippocratic Oath and are committed to alleviating prisoners' suffering. The Hippocratic Oath is violated when correctional medical workers adopt penal harm mandates and inflict pain on prisoners. By analyzing lawsuits filed by prisoners under state tort law, this article shows how the penal harm movement co-opts some correctional medical employees into abandoning their treatment and healing mission, thus causing denial or delay of medical treatment to prisoners. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Revalidating the salient factor score: A research note

In conjunction with a system of explicit decision-guidelines, the United States Parole Commission uses an actuarial instrument as an aid in assessing risk of recidivism. Known as a “salient factor score,” the instrument currently employed by the Parole Commission was constructed on a sample of federal prisoners released in 1970, and initially validated on two samples of federal prisoners released in 1971 and 1972. Since the power of any predictive instrument may change over time, periodic revalidation is essential. In this note, revalidation of the salient factor score, using a sample of federal prisoners released in 1976 (N = 1260), is described.     

Symptoms of trauma, perceptions of discrimination, and anger: a comparison between Australian indigenous and nonindigenous prisoners

Although the need for the development and provision of culturally appropriate rehabilitation programs for offenders is widely acknowledged, there is a lack of empirical data that can be used as a basis for the development of new programs. This article reports the findings of a comparison of indigenous and nonindigenous male prisoners on a range of measures relevant to the experience of anger by indigenous prisoners in Australia. The results suggest that indigenous participants are more likely to experience symptoms of early trauma, have greater difficulties identifying and describing feelings, and perceive higher levels of discrimination than nonindigenous prisoners. The implications of this work for the development of culturally appropriate and effective anger management programs for indigenous male prisoners are discussed.     

Grounds for professional abstention in capital cases

This article responds to Brodsky's critique of the author's views on forensic evaluation of capital defendants and condemned prisoners. It discusses whether objective assessment is possible in a context where personal values are so strongly held, and whether the criteria for assessing competency of condemned prisoners are too vague to permit objective application. And it concludes that evaluations of competency of condemned prisoners to waive opportunity for leniency are more problematic than evaluations of “competency to be executed”.     

The criminal justice system in a social justice society would look very different from the current system

I learned my most important lessons about criminal justice reform more than 30 years ago while working on what has become known as the Attica Prison rebellion. The Attica Prison rebellion took place in September 1971 in the maximum security prison in upstate New York. Led by prisoners with a broad social justice agenda, the prisoners’ demands were focused on basic human rights, including the right to organise, the right to be free from abuse from prison guards and the right to basic living conditions – health and sanitary conditions among others. The rebellion was ended when then Governor Nelson Rockefeller sent in state troopers to retake the prison by force, resulting in the death of 39 prisoners and prison guards. A political and legal struggle to defend prisoners charged in the uprising ensued, eventually resulting in the dismissal of the charges against the prisoners. In 2000, the people who had been prisoners at Attica during the 1971 rebellion were awarded an $8m settlement from the State of New York.     

Prison structure, inmate mortality and suicide risk in Europe

Suicide presents a major complication during imprisonment and greatly contributes to the high mortality rate of prisoners. All international studies have found increased suicide rates among prisoners compared to the general population. This study examines risk factors for suicide and mortality in prisoners using supranational data from the Council of Europe Annual Penal Statistics (Statistiques Penales Annuelles du Conseil du L'Europe or SPACE) from 1997 to 2008. Macrostructural risk factors for prison suicide are analyzed from this supranational data set and the identified indicators are further evaluated on the single country level. Sexual offenders, offenders charged with violent crimes and prisoners sentenced for short- and long-term imprisonment are considered to be at an elevated risk for suicide. In addition, prison mortality is associated with overcrowding.     

Psychologists as ‘the quiet ones with the power’: understanding indeterminate sentenced prisoners’ experiences of psychological risk assessment in the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT

Prisoners serving indeterminate sentences in the United Kingdom do not know when or if they will be released from prison. Release and progression decisions are determined by the risk the ISP presents of reoffending. This makes the assessment of risk a high stakes business for ISPs. Whilst there is a large body of literature focused on prisoners’ general experiences of prison, there is an absence of specific empirical exploration of prisoners’ experiences of risk assessment. This paper aims to address this gap by reporting the results of a qualitative exploration of ISPs’ experiences of psychological risk assessment. Interviews with 10 ISPs were conducted and analysed using Grounded Theory methods. Analysis indicated that prisoners experienced the prison environment as characterised by violence, volatility and suffering. Psychological risk assessment is embedded within this emotionally and physically challenging context but also contributes to the experience of suffering. Within this context, prisoners felt stuck, powerless and out of control in relation to risk assessment, and experienced psychologists as untrustworthy yet powerful. Understanding prisoners’ experiences is the first step in resolving some of the long-reported difficulties in working relationships between psychologists and prisoners as well as making the process more procedurally just.     

DOES IMPRISONMENT ALTER THE LIFE COURSE? EVIDENCE ON CRIME AND EMPLOYMENT FROM A NATURAL EXPERIMENT

Ex‐prisoners consistently manifest high rates of criminal recidivism and unemployment. Existing explanations for these poor outcomes emphasize the stigmatizing effects of imprisonment on prisoners seeking postrelease employment as well as the deleterious effects of imprisonment on prisoners’ attitudes and capabilities. However, these explanations must be distinguished from selection effects in the criminal sentencing process, which also could explain some or all of these poor outcomes. To distinguish between criminogenic and selection explanations for ex‐prisoners’ postrelease experience, I analyze data from a natural experiment in which criminal cases were assigned randomly to judges with sizable sentencing disparities. Using these exogenous sentencing disparities, I produce unbiased estimates of the causal effects of imprisonment on the life course. The results of this analysis suggest that selection effects could be sufficiently large to account for prisoners’ poor postrelease outcomes because judges with large sentencing disparities in their use of imprisonment had similarly high caseload unemployment and criminal recidivism rates.     

徒刑中自由内容与结构初探——从中国囚犯劳动报酬获取权利之实际状态切入

徒刑到底剥夺或限制着罪犯哪些自由目前并不清楚。以囚犯劳动报酬获取权利之实践来论述徒刑中被依法剥夺的自由类型和结构，就是一种很好的尝试。刑法除了规定囚犯必须参加劳动外，并未提及劳动报酬获取权，但规定只要罪犯劳动表现和贡献符合法定标准，就可获得减刑、假释，以劳动成果换取自由是一项制度实践；但此做法目前实际上还只专用于少数人而不普遍适用于一般服刑者，这表明从学理上揭示徒刑被剥夺的自由类型与结构有重大的实践意义。     

Psychiatric morbidity among Finnish prisoners with special reference to socio-demographic factors: results of the Health Survey of Finnish Prisoners (Wattu Project)

The present study is part of the Health Survey of Finnish Prisoners (Wattu Project). The project dealt with a sample of 1099 Finnish prisoners, of which 82% participated in the study. Because of the representativeness of the sample the results can be generalized to all Finnish prisoners. The methods used consisted of questionnaires, interviews, a clinical examination by prison physicians and gathering of register data. The total prevalence rate of psychiatric cases was 56%. This is much higher than the rate for the Finnish population in general. The high number of mental disorders was due to alcoholism (43%) and personality disorders (18%). These disorders became even more prevalent as the number of prison sentences increased. There was no difference between the prisoners and the general population in the prevalence of psychoses and neuroses. Alcoholism is the most important mental disorder in Finnish prisoners, while drug abuse is rarely found among them in comparison to prisoners in many other countries.     

Movie review

An invisible population exists which is doing time with prisoners serving sentences in New York state prisons. Mothers, fathers, wives, husbands, sisters, brothers, and children of prisoners suffer the same isolation, discrimination, and financial and emotional burdens that the prisoners do. The writer, who once served as a chaplain to prisoners receiving care in hospital, tells of her experiences, including her marriage to a prisoner who died within the walls. She discusses his medical care, death, and how she was able to set him free at last. While most of society believes prisoners to be dangerous sociopaths, another segment recognizes their similarities to the rest of us and loves them. Finally, the author calls for understanding and compassion and a restorative approach to justice.