Prison System Vs. The American Correctional System

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The American correctional system is comprised of many different avenues of punishment and rehabilitation. The plan is to deter crime through punishment and rehabilitation whether it is through community-based programs or through incarceration. The correctional system of England is very similar in the fact that there are prisons and community based programs in which to deter criminal acts in their communities. The differences are not large between the two systems. In fact, the American system does reflect that of the England system (Net Industries, 2011). Both countries have prisons, probation, and community-based programs. In the early 20th Century, England’s correctional facilities began to use the borstal system. This system involved a…show more content…
In addition to prisons and jails, the United States has probation and parole programs and other community-based correctional programs. The prisons and jails in the United States are comprised of both public and privately managed facilities. Depending on the facility, there are different levels of security. There are also different types of facilities as well. There are work farm prisons and there are prisons where there is no work for the prisoners to do. Those levels range from the minimum security facility to the supermax security facility, like Alcatraz (Foster, 2006). The United States used probation the majority of the time for small crimes. It is felt that community-based programs and rehabilitation programs help ease the crime rates (Net Industries, 2011). By 2001, there were over two million people incarcerated in the United States (Net Industries,…show more content…
Their differences are the number of options for rehabilitation and treatment and the types of facilities that could benefit the system. The American system was designed by that of England but has more to offer the criminal that wants to be rehabilitated and released back into the public to live his or her life. The plan behind both systems is to keep the citizens of the communities safe and still treat the prisoner in a humane manner. These systems might be a world apart, but in all actuality, they are closer than many people believe in the aspect that they are very similar. If only the two systems could merge and become one great system, the crime rates just might go

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