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Deplorable Jail Conditions
Men, women, and children were often housed together within prison cells; and physical abuse and rapes were the norm. Guards were allowed to bring liquor into the prisons, and prisoners could trade their clothing or other belongings for the booze. However, the inmates were often left so bare that it left many vulnerable to the cold harsh winter temperatures. -
Pennsylvania Prison System Implemented
The Pennsylvania system is implemented, based on the concepts of isolation in almost total darkness and silence. This prison theory was based on the premise that by isolating the individual he will be separated from the “moral contaminants” of the outside world and could focus inward on their own conscious and rehabilitation. -
Pennsylvania to Auburn System
The Auburn prison system was based on the concept of inmates performing some sort of work/labor in workshops together with other inmates during the day and isolation/confinement at night. The purpose of this system was to remove the idleness inherent in the Pennsylvania system, and allow the inmates to practice at some useful skill or trade in the hopes of becoming a more productive and upstanding citizen once released by into society. -
First Prison Riots
The “prisoner rights movement” spawned the first prison riots at both Western State Penitentiary and Rockview, both located in Pennsylvania. With deteriorating conditions (including increased overcrowding) and the perception of substandard treatment of incarcerated criminals, this rebellion seems almost inevitable -
Reform Still Needed
There are more than 2.3 million people in jail or prison nationwide at a cost to taxpayers that runs to the hundreds of billions of dollars. Some reformers and government backers have surfaced proposals to deal with the increasingly high cost of incarceration by moving low level and non-violent offenders to probation or parole in an effort to save billions of dollars, but no action on these proposals seems imminent.
