Many gangs in correction facilities operate and engage in criminal activities. Such gangs are a threat to the effective management of a correctional facility. Many officials in the correctional facility use the word security threat groups to identify prison gangs.
This paper examines what constitutes a security threat group, reasons why inmates not affiliated with a gang outside the prison join these groups and a strategy to deal with such groups.
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A security threat group (STG) refers to an identifiable entity with three or more people and a leadership structure that threatens the safety of other members or inmates of a correction community ( Roth, 2017 ). A STG function within an incarcerated facility as a criminally leaning group that is considered as a threat to the orderly management of the facility. Inmates who belong to prison gangs mostly have identical language, values and norms and possess a unique code of behaviour among their members (Gaines, 2018). A STG is mostly organized informally based on ethnic or racial lines, mimics and mostly overlap with the structure of street gangs. Inmates join a STG either as a way to secure individual safety from other inmates or to gain economically. Members of a STG often rely on other members as members of a surrogate family.
It is possible for inmates that were not part of a gang outside the prison to join a STG while incarcerated. For example, an inmate may decide to join a STG for economic reasons ( Roth, 2017 ). Members of a STG mostly engage in different illegal activities, like prostitution, theft, extortion and selling drugs, to earn money (Gaines, 2018). Thus, the desire or need to earn money in prisons attracts new members that were not part of gangs to join a STG. Besides, many inmates join a STG as a way of security from possible violence at the hands of their colleagues or as a means to gain status in the facility ( Roth, 2017 ). Violence in prisons mostly occurs due to clashes between inmates. Members of a STG engage in violent activities when they feel vulnerable, threatened and powerless. Inmates align themselves with others, plan to fight back and improve their individual status and control by connecting to powerful entities (Gaines, 2018). Among inmates, violence is a way through which they can gain status from their colleagues and s STG offers both a way to perpetuate the violence and safety either from rival groups or from unaffiliated inmates.
One way to control and monitor a STG is to identify, segregate and track potential gang members. Successful identification of possible members of a STG is the first step to control their activities ( Roth, 2017 ). Upon entry into a prison, specialists trained to identify possible STG members can classify inmates for housing objectives. After the identification, potential STG members can be placed in different facilities to reduce interaction and violence. The identified members can also be taken through a disciplinary process whereby they are taken to separate housing from their colleagues. Then, the inmates can be disciplined, for instance by being denied privileges like having a single hour of outdoor recreational time every day. However, this can be revoked at the decision of correctional officers. The objective will be to punish inmates for being members of a gang and to prohibit interaction with other STG members to reduce violence. Then, a database of identified or potential gang members can be created to track and monitor them and their activities. A database will allow correctional facilities to share information with each other on gang members and with other agencies, which allow the police department to be involved. Information shared may include images of gang members and their scars or tattoos. It will be easy to conduct database searches using these identifying signs.
In conclusion, a STG encompasses cliques of prisoners who join together in an organization structure to engage in illegal activities. Many inmates decide to join such groups due to economic and safety reasons. A STG can be handled by identifying potential members, segregating them and tracking them.
References
Gaines, L. K. (2018). Criminal justice in action: the core . Boston: Cengage Learning.
Roth, M. P. (2017). Global organized crime a 21st century approach . Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
