Marshaling Citizen Power
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If you have issues viewing or accessing this file contact us at NCJRS.gov. MARSHALING CITIZEN POWER . TO .. MODERNIZE . , ',. : \,I ! t! 'I: . THE PRESIDENTIAL CALL FOR ACTION TO MODERNIZE CORRECTIONS "At long last, this nation is coming to realize that the process of justice can,lot end with the slam ming shut of prison gates. "Ninety-eight out of every hundred criminals who are sent to prison come back out into society. t' That means that American concerned with every l stopping crime must ask this question: Are we " doing all we can to make certain that many more I men and women who come out of prison will become law abiding citizens? "The answer to that question today, after centuries r of neglect, is no. We have made important strides in the past two years, but let us not deceive our I selves: Our prisons are still colleges of crime, and not what they should be-the beginning of a way f back to a productive life within the law. "To turn back the wave of crime, we must have more effective police work, and we must have I court reform to ensure trials that are speedy and I fair. But let us also remember that the protection of society depends largely on the correction of the crimiral." President Richard M. Nixon First National Conference nn Corrections December 6, 1971 Order from: Chamber of Commerce of the United States 1615 H Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20006 (The foHowing includes mailing and handling) 1.9 copies .................... oc ......... 51.00 each 9.100. copies ............................. .80 each 100 or morc copies ...................... .70 each Make chec~s payable to Chamber of Commerce of the United States Library of '::ongres$ Ca'rd alta log Number 79·190493 Copyright C> 1972 by Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America FOREWORD Of the three components of the criminal justicE:! system (police, courts and corrections), corrections is perhaps the most critical. Yet it is often the least vis ible and least understood part of the system. Among other things, corrections involves detention, proba tion, prisons, jails, juvenile centers, and parole pro grams for adults and juveniles, both male and female. The correctional process is a massive operation, re ceiving more than 2.5 million new offenders a year at a cost of more than $1 billion dollars. It is burdened with a performance record which would plunge any business into bankruptcy. Corrections today is plagued by an overlapping of jurisdictions, contradicting philosophies, and a hodge-podge of organizational structures. It has grown piecemeal-sometimes out of experience, sometimes out of necessity. Lacking consistent guide lines and the means to test program effectiveness, legislators continue to pass laws, officials make poli cies, and both cause large sums of money to be spent on ineffective corrective methods. As is ~rue with many problems that face our nation today, businessmen can playa significant role in up grading the correctional system. This role includes counseling, employment of ex-offenders, supporting the changes that are needed in the correctional sys tem, and leadership in gaining the support of other citizens for these vital programs. Some of the success ful programs involving these and other areas are out lined on the following pages. Marshaling Citizen Power to Modernize Correc tions is the most recent in a series of National Cham ber publications designed to stimulate business and other citizen action to improve the components of our criminal justice system. It is intended not only to inform, but to show what we can all do to facilitate correctional programs that really correct. In developing this publication, the National Cham ber received the excellent cooperation of the Ameri can Correctional Association. Arch N. Booth Executive Vice President Chamber of Commerce of the United States TABLE OF CONTENTS PRESIDENTIAL CAll TO ACTION FOREWORD CORRECTIONS TODAY: AN OVERViEW...... 1 Legacy of Neglect. .. 2 Juvenile Offenders ............... , . .. 2 Probation and Parole-Unfulfilled Promises.. 2 The Jail Mess ........................... 3 Correctional Planning: By Guess and By Golly 4 Correctional Personnel: Manpower Development and Training Problems. .. 4 Contradictory Goals and Public Uncertainty.. 5 COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS: A CHEAPER AND MORE HUMANE APPROACH 5 Community Corrections Reduce the Need for Expensive Facilities. .. 7 Community Corrections is More Humane. .. 8 Examples of Successful Community-Based Correctional Programs . .. 9 I The Saginaw Project. .. 9 !I The California Probation Subsidy Program. .. 9 (I The Sacramento and Stockton Community Treatment Project ....................... 10 Pre-trial Intervention .................... 11 EX-OFFENDERS AND EMPLOYMENT: THE HIGH COST OF THE REVOLVING DOOR .. 13 Bars to Employment ..................... 13 Bonding Assistance Program .............. 14 HOW THE PUBLIC CAN HElP OR HINDER .... 15 BUSINESS lEADERSHIP ESSENTIAL ........... 16 Training and Employment ................. 16 Advice and Guidance in Employee- Management Relations .......... , ........ 17 Developing Positive Public Attitudes ........ 17 IN CONCLUSION .......................... 19 Panel on Crime Prevention and Control ..... 20 References ..... .. 22 CORRECTIONS TODAY: AN OVERVIEW Although the nation has neglected its criminal jus tice system as a whole, there is growing evidence of a new interest on the part of the public to improve the entire system, especially corrections. For example, the Congress has begun to allocate additional monies for corrections through the law Enforcement Assist ance Administration of the Department of Justice. The President has indicated a direct interest in the improvement of corrections and demonstrated this interest by convening the recent National Correction al Conference in Williamsb~rg, Virginia. Attorney General John Mitchell announced at that correctional conference that a federal program is being initiated to assist state and local governments in modernizing their correctional systems. The program calls for a National Corrections Academy to train federal, 'state and local corrections personnel, a National Clearing house for Criminal Justice Architecture ,lnd Design, and a National Clearinghouse for Correctional Edu cation. The Attorney General, Secretary of labor, and Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare recently communicated with the 50 governors, emphasizing that the highest priority be placed on the importance of correctional reform and the key role to be played by the individual states. All these efforts indicate that we can look forward to a better correctional system in the future. How ever, we must realize that much more needs to be done now for the following reasons: 1\1 Beyond any rational dispute, the Nation's correc tional system is ineffective. It In reality it is a "non-system"-a potpourri of fa cilities and programs which handles about 1.3 mil lion offenders on an average day. til Correctional operations are administratively frag mented among federal, state, county and local governments . .. 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