I just love statistics, polls, and television documentaries. Real evidence that prisons do not rehabilitate can be found working in prison. Anyone who is associated in the correctional field, have heard inmates tell them "when I get out, I'm never coming back". I am here to tell you that I have heard this promise from many inmates and they keep coming back.
I work for the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. Recidivism (inmates leaving prison and returning) is at all time highs. Inmate programs are in place at our facility to rehabilitate offenders. Ask most inmates and they will tell you that they complete these programs as a stipulation of early release or parole. These inmates can sleep through these programs as long as they attend and get a certificate of completion.
To be fair, there is a small fraction of inmates who take these programs seriously. I will add, that most inmates do not take courses because they are still in denial for their crime. Some inmates feel that taking a certain program would be an admission of guilt for their crime. I see this mainly with sex offenders and pedophiles. Being a child predator in prison is not the best reputation to have.
Convicted pedophiles, do not want to be seen in a program pertaining to their crime, in fear the crime they committed will be obvious to other inmates. There are some baby rapers who take the programs so they can get back to the nearest elementary school bus stop with a bag of candy.
Money Wasted
There are many institutions that provide lifers (inmates serving life sentences) the opportunity to earn college degrees. I'm sure there are many readers out there that think this is a good thing. How many good kids, with a clean record, cannot afford to go to college? We have criminals, who have committed heinous crimes, throwing their caps at college graduation, while good kids are not accepted or cannot afford college.
Courses made available for inmates include : heating/refrigeration, plumbing, electrical, and many others. Although these courses are taught by skilled instructors, not many employers on the outside hire ex-cons. Another startling fact is that most criminals return to their former lives of crime. These criminals may be learning to install a toilet during the day, but planning a drug networking system in his cell at night.
Inmate programs, that are intended to promote rehabilitation, are nothing more than a mandatory prerequisite for release. These programs are dangled over inmate heads. It's like telling a kid if they finish their dinner, they can have dessert.
Camp Christmas
Why would a convict return to prison over and over again? Is prison tough? In some states, prison may still be a place felons do not want to return to. In Pennsylvania, many convicts enjoy the resort type atmosphere that is provided for them. Why not return to jail? In many cases, prison is a better life for inmates.
Who wouldn't want five dollar medical co-pays, sixteen dollar cable bills, free meals, free lodging, flat screen televisions; the sky is the limit. We give, give, give, in an effort to keep prison violence at a minimum. Still, inmates continue to be who they are, criminals.
I continue to write about life inside the fences, because our story as corrections officers is never told accurately. Our knowledge on the effects of policies, inmate rehabilitaion, and prison life continues to fall on deaf ears. Inmate rehabilitation is great in theory, yet it continues to be a means to an end for early release. Rehabilitation lies in ones heart. One has to desire to be rehabilitated. In this lies the problem of failed prisoner rehabilitation.