Private prisons are here to stay irrespective of empirical findings for or against their existence in the corrections industry. It is necessary, therefore, to step back and consider them on a broader level to assess how they can benefit current penological practice. It will be argued that prison privatization creates an opportunity to reassess the…

Juvenile awareness programs like Scared Straight became popular crime prevention strategies during the 1970s. Juvenile offenders and at-risk youth who participate in these programs are taken to prisons where inmates use confrontational methods to recount stories about violence, sex, and abuse perpetrated by fellow inmates while living a life…

In recent years, increased legislative attention has been given to strategies to supervise sex offenders in the community. Among other policies, several states have passed laws calling for the use of electronic monitoring technologies to supervise sex offenders in the community. When initially developed, this community-based sanction was designed…

The relationship of 18 parolee characteristics to outcome of parole was investigated (N=254). Three variables predicted likelihood of parole violation: length of sentence; parole officer's assessment of risk; and previous parole (negative relationship). This study is discussed within labeling theory and its model of deviant career development.…

Evaluates the first 57 offenders who participated in an electronic monitoring (EM) program and compared them to offenders who went to jail. Analysis revealed no difference between the groups with respect to rearrest, revocations, and detainers filed. The overwhelming majority of EM offenders completed their period of supervision without incident.…

Provides an overview of physical and chemical castration and its use in controlling sex offenders. Discusses castration and sexual aggression, then focuses on the use of therapeutic physical castration in dealing with those who display unacceptable sexual behaviors. Details legal and ethical issues and the efficacy of testosterone-lowering…

Examines ways to change prisoners' violent urges. Suggests that consciousness-raising strategies be used to motivate incarcerated men to change, whereas coercion might be used with those clients who are most at risk of committing acts of family violence. Summarizes the characteristics of violent men and incarcerated populations. (RJM)

Analyzed 320 case records, interviewed offenders and staff, and made general observations to evaluate a nonresidential, anti-incarceration facility. Results indicate that successful graduates have the least serious criminal records, most have positive attitudes toward the facility, and participants receive much individual attention. Other findings…

Examines recidivism rates for 3,994 first-time, driving-while-intoxicated (DWI) offenders. Results indicate that convicted DWI offenders placed on probation had a 47% greater risk of a re-arrest for DWI than did individuals who completed a pretrial intervention (PTI) program. Discusses the utility of a PTI alternative. (RJM)

Deterrence through pain infliction and rehabilitation through therapy and training are often conceptualized as competing practices in crime control. With the resurgence of the diversion movement and therapeutic justice, increasingly more offenders are exposed to a particular combination of incarceration and treatment. Even for offenders diverted…

Examines the manner in which substance-using shelter tenants, many of them ex-offenders, who lived in an urban, single- room-occupancy neighborhood, engaged in the process of recommunalization. Identifies and describes eight developmental stages of recommunalization, and links recommunalization to proposals for solving the war on drugs. (RJM)

Provides an overview of a comprehensive, prison-based treatment assessment, including a six-month follow-up study. Results show that 80% of the inmates referred to the program graduated. Graduates demonstrated marked reductions in criminal and drug-use activity and had lower relapse and recidivism rates when compared to other parolees. (RJM)

Traumatic spinal cord injuries resulting from criminal violence is a growing public health concern. Citing the criminal justice system's failure to reduce violence and the costs of treating injuries, a public health-education approach is advocated. Approaches to prevention, gun control, and a comprehensive family policy are discussed. (Author/EMK)

Describes each of 20 cases briefly to show the pattern of killers who committed their crime in order to be executed. Concludes that the death penalty itself can serve as an invitation to murder, and asserts that legislators should vote against the implementation of the death penalty in order to save lives. (JPS)

Examines the current strategy to combat illegal drug use and its effect on corrections. Reviews three schools of thought on drug-control policy and explores the assumptions offered by the public-health generalists, the legalists, and the cost-benefit specialists. Concentrates on issues of race, class, and alternatives to correctional warehousing.…