Rehabilitation in Prison Essay

Prison rehabilitation programs are the methods stated by criminal justice authorities to keep prisoners away from committing further crimes. Previously, the purpose of such programs was to improve the character of prisoners but now it has been directed towards complete avoidance of crimes. These programs assist criminals to start new life free from criminal activities. There are several methods or disciplines of prisoner rehabilitation (Cartmell, 2011). Some prisons are into the faith-based prisoner rehabilitation wherein religion is used to encourage inmates to adapt some moral values. There are also prisons, which practice the nonreligious and nonmedical approach to prisoner rehabilitation. Some of their programs last for about six to eight months. This program does not use alternative drugs for its drug rehabilitation module, and the costs are extremely low compared to the other prisoner rehabilitation programs that use drugs and acquire the services of third party counselors (Cartmell, 2011). Although prisoner rehabilitation does not guarantee that a prisoner is release on the due date, if he or she will then follow a life of crime any longer, at least it will give him or her new perspective on life. It will ensure that prisoners do not go out with the same attitude they had when they came in (Cartmell, 2011). It will change their lives and give his or her hope that there is life waiting for them outside the prison walls. Parole is the discharge of an inmate, previous to the expiration of the inmate’s court-imposed sentence with a period of supervision to be successfully completed by observance with the conditions and terms of the release agreement ordered by the Commission (Christensen, 2003-2011) . The decision of the commission to parole an inmate shall represent an act of grace of the state and should not be considered a right.  There are several differences between parole and probation. Most of the misunderstanding regarding the words is that probation officers may also be called parole officers. Probation is part of a sentence for committing a crime. The judge decides how much time a person must serve in jail guided by the laws of the state and how much time after incarceration is spent on probation. Sometimes a judge will only sentence a person convicted of a minor crime to one to several years of probation (Christensen, 2003-2011). Although on probation, a condition of the sentence may be to have weekly or monthly meetings with a probation officer. The other conditions may be applied to probation (Christensen, 2003-2011). A person may not be able to drive, or might have a curfew. He or she must also not commit further crimes whereas on probation, or the probation may be violated. This empowers the courts to send the person to jail to serve the length of the original sentence, and to serve any additional time for new crimes. Parole, on the other hand, is granted to the individual placed in jail. With many crimes sentencing has a maximum amount of years imposed. These years in jail however can be shortened if the person convicted of a crime behaves well in prison. After a time, a person in prison â€Å"comes up† for parole. The decision to grant a person parole is made by a parole board. If the person has done well in prison, and early release is not contested, the parole board can shorten prison time. There is superior motivation to parole nonviolent offenders because many jails are overcrowded. When a person receives parole, he or she is often bound by many conditions. The violation of parole means going back to prison to serve out the rest of one’s sentence. When someone is on parole is quite similar to experiencing probation. One expects a greater degree of supervision and is bound by the parole board or the court to behave in an exemplary fashion (Christensen, 2003-2011). Probation is given as part of judge’s sentence during a trial. Both impose conditions on the person’s continued behavior. Violation of these conditions can result in serving some or serving more jail time. The Community Corrections Division supervises offenders who either been confined in a county jail or prison for felonies, convictions of more than a year, or sentenced to direct supervision in the community (Mangino, 2006) . Most offenders have conditions of supervision.  These conditions guides by public-safety considerations and engage each offender in programs to reduce their likelihood of re-offense. Offenders report to Community Corrections Officers and depending upon the offender’s history or crime is prohibited from acquiring contact with minors or victims. They’re also required to submit to urinalysis testing and to participate in substance abuse treatment programs. A range of sanctions imposed for noncompliance, up to and including jail time. The purpose of community corrections has many good reasons, overcrowding in jails and prisons can be greatly reduced, a person can remain a productive member of society and still serve his or her sentence. The risks involves with anything, the court must take those into consideration before placing someone in a diversion program, minor drug offenses are being dealt with in this fashion and in a number of cases proving to be successful in doing so (Mangino, 2006) . In deciding on the release from prison of a life sentenced prisoner, the Minister will always consider the advice and recommendations of the Parole Board of Ireland (Mangino, 2006) .The Board, at present, initially reviews prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment after seven years served. Prisoners serving very long sentences, including life sentences, are normally reviewed on a number of occasions over a number of years before any substantial concessions recommended by the Board (Mangino, 2006) . The final decision as to about a life sentenced prisoner is release solely with the Minister. The length of time spent in custody by offenders serving life sentences can vary substantially. Of those prisoners serving life sentences released, the average sentence served in prison is approximately 12 years. However, this is only an average, and there are prisoners serving life sentences in Ireland who have spent in excess of 30 years in custody. In conclusion, criminal experts believe the need for prisoner rehabilitation programs so that cases of prisoners won’t continue. Although prisoner rehabilitation does not guarantee that a prisoner, or that he or she will not follow a life of crime any longer, at least it will give him or her new perspective on life. Prisoners serving very long sentences,  including life sentences, are normally reviewed on a number of occasions over a number of years before any substantial concessions recommended by the Board. The final decision as to about a life sentenced prisoner is rests solely with the Minister. Criminal experts believe the need for prisoner rehabilitation programs so that cases of prisoners re-offending will be pointed. The length of time spent in custody by offenders serving life sentences to a large extent. References Christensen, T. (2003-2011). Conjecture Corporation. : Mangino, Mathew ProQuest Newspaper Database. , p. (2006, December 6 Cartmell, P. (2011). Rehabilitation