Introduction
Ethical dilemmas have taken root in the permeation of criminal justice. At every section and levels of criminal justice, an individual has been seen exercising discretion that has impacted the fate of people in the community. The different laws and regulations, criminal justice policies, and operations have created drifts and distortion based on the decisions made. In most instances, the confrontations result in ethical dilemmas. Some of the questions that law enforcers faces include: what is the best course of action to take? What is the moral rationale of the decisions made, and what are some of the principles that are served? Some of the decisions made are morally right but are considered to be ethically wrong. It is within the responsibility of the individual deciding to think critically of the implication of each of the decisions they make.
Overcrowding in prisons is not a new thing as it has currently put the parole board on the best cause of action to take. The state’s prisons are overcrowded, and advocates have been threatening the system for correction with several federal suits (Specter, 2014). The situation is a dilemma as the critical challenge is the lack of a nesting strategy to use in the reduction of the state prison population. There is an alternative to enlarging the eligibility of the parole criteria so that more inmates can be released under community-based supervision. However, while reviewing the risk assessment level, there is a high chance that the inmates may re-offend, and the community will no longer be a safe space for people. A reduction of overcrowding in the state prisons will be the basis for the federal lawsuit, but several ethical implications are creating a dilemma of the direction to take.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Literature Review
If the federal suits are not successful, there is a high possibility that the inmates will be released following the central processes that are not within the parole board. The prisons are overcrowded. Prisoners are human beings, and they have the right of access to good food and survival. Hence, the overcrowding in prisons is hazardous to the inmates. Such is because, in such environments, diseases such as tuberculosis can quickly spread as they are highly contagious. If such occurs, the mortality rate in the state prisons will increase. Therefore, there is a need to protect the prisoners from such occurrences.
Also, when there is overcrowding in prisons, the officers in charge face challenges in maintaining law and order. The primary purpose of a prison is to rehabilitate the law offenders and make them acceptable again into society. It is within the responsibility of the officers to evaluate and monitor the actions of the inmates and correct them when they go astray. But with overcrowded prisons, it is not possible for the officers in charge to man the situation. Hence, inmates only spend their time in prison and will be released once they complete their jail term without any form of correction. That makes them repeat the same crime they did before upon release as they did not receive the punishment and rehabilitation needed while in prison.
Thus, releasing the inmates through increased parole eligibility will reduce the overcrowding and will correct the offenders as they will be under supervision in public. Also, when a prisoner is on parole, it does not mean that they are free as they will have to report to the officer in charge after a given period elapses. They will not be allowed to move out of their locality. The parole board should consider the release of only prisoners that have shown unsusceptible behavior from the time they were sent to prison (Specter, 2014). There is a need to categorically analyze the crime committed before the release papers are signed. From one side, if a large number of inmates are released on parole, inmates’ names will reduce in prison. The ones released will not come back into the jail as they will be operating under supervision. They will be required to sign papers promising not to repeat the crime for the time they will be on parole.
However, there is another side of the ethical issue of the dangers that releasing prisoners possess in the community. Drucker (2013) thinks that the prisons are already crowded, implying that there is little or no supervision. Thus, it is difficult to identify which inmates are behaving correctly for them to be granted parole. Also, if a large number of prisoners are released, the government will be forced not to consider which crime was used to incriminate the inmate. There is a high chance that they will re-offend with the aim of revenge to those who reported them. It will take a short time for them to get back to prison again for re-offending. Yes, it is that they will be under supervision. Still, Grattet, Petersilia, and Lin (2010) stipulate that the officer in charge will not be following the inmate everywhere they go and monitor everything they do daily. Therefore, the possibility of doing crime again is very high. In general, if the prisoner re-offends and sent back to prison, the ethical issue of overcrowding will not have been solved.
Analysis of the Problem
There are two sides to the ethical dilemma of overcrowding in prisons and how best to go about the situation. The dilemma is how the population can be reduced in prisons, and the other side is how that can be accomplished without posing a threat to society. Three primary rules are applicable in a parole situation. One is always to report back to the officer in charge as scheduled, avoid communicating with the ex-convicts, and stay out of trouble. However, the situation is challenging, as research indicates that several offenders in parole fail to adhere to the rule. They fail to submit the required urine test for alcohol and other substance abuse, and they fail to report to the officer in charge and even fail to attend the designated therapy sessions. If such is the case, then there is a need to make a critical decision as to whether releasing prisoners on parole will the best strategy to solve the overcrowding issues (Specter, 2014). If that is the decision made, then there is a need to consider some of the measures that can be put in place to ensure the parole is effective and efficient and does not pose a threat to the community.
Solutions
The best solution to the ethical issue is the funding of an emergency expansion of the prison. With an extension of the detention, there will be room for more inmates, and the problem of overcrowding will have been solved. Also, there is a need for the government to tighten its law and order enforcement in the streets. The main aim will be to reduce the number of the offender, and there will be no new inmate to be taken to prison (Ruderman, Wilson, and Reid, 2015). The security forces should work closely with the community to ensure that members are educated and sensitized of the effects of crime and prevent them from engaging in some. The largest population of inmates in state prisons are drug addicts and drug dealers. Also, those who are there for murder or other criminal activities such as rape has a connection with drug abuse. Instead of the parole board focusing on the identification of well-behaved inmates to be released on parole, they should focus more on rehabilitation.
The ethical issue of overcrowding can be solved if some of the inmates who are drug dealers are taken to rehabilitation centers for treatment. When they regain their right state of mind, it is implausible that they will commit the crime again and can be placed on parole, after which they will be released to the community. More so, the ethical dilemma can be solved through the implementation of strict laws and policies for re-offender. When verdicts such as life imprisonment with no parole of family visits are implemented on those on probation, they will be afraid to re-offend. Most of them re-offend since they know they will serve their jail term and will soon be out. But with a life imprisonment policy, they will have to think twice before re-offending while in parole.
Recommendation
I would recommend the proper staffing of the prisoners to ease the identification of the inmates that qualify for parole to reduce overcrowding. With adequate security personnel, it is possible to monitor the behaviors of the inmates at a close range, and selecting the ones that qualify for parole will not be a challenge. The officers will not be overburdened and will ensure the inmates have received the correction and punishment they deserve. With such a strategy, the inmates will not likely commit the crime while on parole, making it the best tool for solving the overcrowding problem. Also, parole should not only focus on releasing the inmates but should assist the inmate in reconnecting and reintegrating with the community. Overcrowding can only be reduced if the offender does commit the crime again, and that can be achieved if they are accepted back into society by the members (Ruderman, Wilson, and Reid, 2015). However, if neglected, there is a high chance they will be sent back to prison, and the problem of overcrowding would not have been solved. For instance, if someone who was convicted because of stealing is placed on parole, the government should focus on looking for a job for the individual to be able to sustain him or hers and be a responsible person in society. But if they are released and don’t have a source of income, they will steal again to earn a living and will still go back to the overcrowded prison. Lastly, those released on parole should be assessed and evaluated and be proven beyond a reasonable doubt that they have changed for the better and will not commit the crime again.
Conclusion
In conclusion, ethical dilemmas in criminal justice crop up all the time, and overcrowding in the prisons is one of them. The state prisons are indeed overcrowded, and there is a need to take relevant measures as the overcrowding poses a risk to the inmates. In crowded places, diseases such as tuberculosis may arise and might put the life of the convicted at risk. The ethical dilemma in such a situation is whether reducing the eligibility of parole will be the best strategy to solve the overcrowding issues. Researchers believe that reducing the eligibility of parole will make may law offenders qualify, and when placed on probation, there is a high possibility that they will re-offend. Research shows that a good number of people put on parole fails to adhere to the requirements, and the probability of committing the crime again is high. However, others believe that there is a need to give them a second chance but with strict policies and measures as the most effective way to reduce overcrowding.
To solve the ethical dilemma of parole and overcrowding in criminal justice, some of the solutions that can be used include the creation of an emergency fund for the expansion of the prisons. Another solution is to focus more on the rehabilitation of the inmates as a majority of them commit the crime under the influence of drugs. Also, the government should be at the forefront in assisting those in parole to reconnect with the community, and this will be useful in solving the ethical issue of overcrowding.
References
Drucker, E. (2013). A Plague of Prisons: The epidemiology of mass incarceration in America. New York: The New Press.
Grattet, R., Petersilia, J, & Lin, J. (2010) Multilevel and policy-focused analysis of parole violations and revocations in California,2003–2004. Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR), 12 (23): 34-56.
Ruderman, A., Wilson, D, & Reid, S. (2015). Does Prison Crowding Predict Higher Rates of Substance Use Related Parole Violations? A Recurrent Events Multi-Level Survival Analysis, PLoS ONE, 10 (10): 1-19.
Specter, D. (2014). Everything revolves around crowding: the state of California’s prisons. Federal Sentence Report, 22: 194–199.
