Once it is established that an individual is guilty and they receive a prison sentence, the public generally concludes that the said individual should have limited rights. This was especially the case in the US before the 1960s where the state and federal courts paid very little attention to cases that sought to have prisoners be treated the same way as free people. The period is popularly referred to as the “hands-off” era, implying that the courts were very reluctant in involving themselves in prisoner rights issues. Inmates, to a larger extent, were viewed as slaves of the state. Some court decisions rebuked the inhumane treatment of prisoners, but these decisions did not have any significant impact as far as securing the rights of prisoners were concerned.
Nicole Smith in her article titled Issues Surrounding the Rights of Prisoners , published in 2011, explores the issues surrounding the rights of prisoners. She argues that for many years now, many have inquired about the rights that prisoners should have. Smith (2011) points out that the issue of rights of prisoners has become quite pertinent in the recent past given the alleged abuses that prisoners are exposed to in military prisons. Smith (2011) further opines that when an individual finds themselves in the prison system, they forego fundamental rights that involve liberty as well as some freedoms as a way of paying for the crimes they committed against the society. She adds that while the foregoing of these liberties is justifiable, a fine balance needs to be struck since all prisoners are human beings and thus have to be accorded certain rights. Lastly, according to her, while prisoners should be guaranteed certain rights, some fundamental rights should be limited because failure to do so would render the prison system useless. She states that people go to prison because they have committed a violation against the society in one way or another, hence have to pay for their crimes (Smith, 2011).
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Among the many rights that are limited for prisoners are conjugal rights. Busari Halimat Temitayo in his article Conjugal Rights for Prisoners: To be or Not to Be? 2018, discusses whether prisoners should be granted conjugal rights or not. He defines conjugal rights as the sexual privileges or rights that the law allows being practiced by married partners. For prisoners, these rights are usually practiced through visitation. Eligible inmates are usually allowed some time with their partners during these visits, during which they may decide to engage in sexual intercourse. Temitayo (2018) points out that some academicians argue that prisoners should not be deprived of their conjugal rights because after being sentenced to imprisonment, their only punishment should be staying behind the prison walls. Temitayo (2018) adds that the main basis of allowing conjugal visits in the modern day prison system is to allow for the preservation of family bonds and heighten the chances success when a prisoner finally returns to the free society.
Temitayo (2018) points out that there are only a few countries around the world that permit conjugal visits for prisoners. These countries include Canada, Denmark, Australia, the UK, Spain, and the US. In the US, conjugal visits are allowed in only four states namely New York, Connecticut, Washington, and California. For many other states, conjugal visits are taken as a privilege for those inmates who have shown good behavior while serving their term. The rationale for denying prisoners conjugal rights, according to Temitayo (2018), is that perks should not accompany punishment. He points out the making it hard for prisoners to get pleasures such as sex makes it possible for them to understand that committing crimes to come with tough repercussions including limited rights to liberty and pleasures.
References
Smith, N (2011). Issues Surrounding the Rights of Prisoners . Retrieved from http://www.articlemyriad.com/issues-surrounding-rights-prisoners/
Temitayo, B.H (2018). Conjugal Rights for Prisoners: To Be Or Not To Be? Retrieved from https://unilaglawreview.org/2018/01/21/conjugal-rights-for-prisoners-to-be-or-not-to-be/
