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Private Prison Industry: Dilemmas and Proposals

NCJ Number
114030
Journal
Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics and Public Policy Volume: 2 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1986) Pages: 465-477
Author(s)
J G Miller
Date Published
1986
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This article proposes a privately-run, privately-contracted program for the nonincarcerative control of a specific group of felony offenders who would otherwise be incarcerated.
Abstract
All cases would be governed by the principle of the 'least restrictive alternative' consistent with public safety. Supervision techiques, ranging from maximum to minimal control, would include offender tags; electronic bracelets; house arrest; case management; tracking; third-party (individual and group) monitoring; intensive counseling; and daily, weekly, and monthly reporting. Parallel to the control regimes would be a wide range of services, including counseling, vocational training, employment assistance, transportation assistance, and alcohol and drug treatment. The relationship between control and services would be governed by the principle that the less control used, the fewer services offered; and the greater the control, the more services available. Program evaluation should be longitudinal, extending over a minimum of 4 years. The evaluation design should use a matched control group of clients who have completed their sentences or been given traditional parole. In cases where clients violate sentence conditions or are alleged to have committed new crimes, program staff should act as an advocate for the client in contacts with the criminal justice system.