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Graying of Prison Inmates: Its Impact on Japanese Policy

NCJ Number
175568
Author(s)
E H Johnson
Date Published
Unknown
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This paper reviews the fundamental changes faced by the Japanese in the status of elderly persons, relates the demographic trends in Japan to the policy of making minimum use of imprisonment, describes elders' increased imprisonment and longer length of sentences, and discusses the greater need for social services for elderly inmates and parolees.
Abstract
The combination of lowered birth and death rates has produced a growing proportional representation of the elderly among the Japanese people. However, conditions associated with industrial growth and an increasingly urban population undermine the cultural and structural supports for the traditional respect of elders. In addition, although Japan de-emphasizes imprisonment as a response to criminality, the influx of elderly offenders is an exception to a remarkably low imprisonment rate. This trends raises doubts about the heavy reliance on prison industry as a justification for incarceration, the emphasis on recidivism in the criteria for sentencing, and the dependence on volunteers and the family for aftercare. Tables and 37 references