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Jail Administration: Officer Training, Inmate Supervision, and Contemporary Issues (From Corrections in the United States: A Contemporary Perspective, Third Edition, P 108-156, 2001, Dean J. Champion -- See NCJ-185013)

NCJ Number
185017
Author(s)
Dean J. Champion
Date Published
2001
Length
49 pages
Annotation
After discussing the various facets of jail administration, this chapter examines selected jail issues and jail reforms.
Abstract
In assessing jail organization and administration in most jails, the author advises that in most jurisdictions, sheriffs have the responsibility of selecting jail personnel and establishing jail policies. Jail correctional officer recruitment and training are deemed to be often haphazard. Almost every county jail has its own training standards, resulting in wide variation among U.S. jails. This chapter describes this process of selecting and training jail officers. The second part of the chapter identifies and discusses other jail-related issues, including the quality of jail personnel, inmate classification problems, jail health care services, small jails and their problems, jail overcrowding and megajails, and jail suicides. The chapter concludes with an examination of several jail reforms, including court-ordered jail improvements, accommodating special-needs offenders, jail architecture and aging jails, direct supervision and new generation jails, vocational and educational services in jails, and the privatization of jail operations. 2 figures, key terms, questions for review, and 5 suggested readings