Privatization Of Private Prisons

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Introduction
The privatization movement of jails and prisons begin in 1980, after the government could no longer afford to open new prisons. A private prison, jail, or detention center is a place in which individuals are physically confined or interned by a third party that is contracted by a local, state, or federal government agency. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, as of 2014 private ‘for-profit’ prisons housed 91,244 state prisoners, or 6.8 percent of the total state prison population. Companies operating private facilities include the Corrections Cooperation, of America, the GEO Group, Inc. and Community Education Centers.
Recently, private ‘for-profit’ corporations have been under great scrutiny. Individuals claim that they …show more content…
Several of the cost-cutting techniques that they use have resulted in dangerous consequences. It is apparent that they do not efficiently train their staff, which is extremely concerning. As a result of this, many individuals are not confident that staff will know how to handle alarming situations such prison riots, suicide attempts, and prison escapes. Private prisons do not treat inmates as human beings, and tend to see them as lost causes instead. There have been many reports of private prisons abusing their power. One of the most popular for profit organization, The Corrections Corporation of America was found by the grand jury to be using excessive force to control juveniles. Wackenhut Corrections Corporation was ordered by the US Justice Department to end the use of corporal punishment, excessive force, and mechanical restraints (Sekhonyane, 2003). Private prisons also have lower staff rates. The prisoner to officer ratio is inadequate, which can also lead to more violence in private …show more content…
For example, the “kids for cash scandal” in 2008, revealed that the builder of private juvenile detention centers bribed two Pennsylvania judges to give undeservingly harsh sentences to children who committed minor offenses. These children were given extended stays in the detention centers to increase the number of residents and ensure the private prisons get to receive more money from the government (James, 2012). Large cooperation’s do not care about anything besides making money. Their selfish ways are unethical and will not rehabilitate prisoners, which is the main purpose of prisons.
Conclusion
Private ‘for-profit’ corporations should not be allowed to run U.S. Prisons. In this case the disadvantages out way the advantages. There is not consistent evidence proving that private prison are more cost effective than government ran prisons. The short cuts that private prisons take can potentially endanger the lives of both the prisoners and the staff who work there. Moreover, private prisons are money hungry and have already been subjected to great scrutiny because of the scandals such as the “kids for cash”
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