University of Nebraska at Omaha DigitalCommons@UNO Student Work 3-1-1974 Prison Riots as Agents of Prison Reform; A Sociological Study of Violence and Change Robert R. Jorgensen University of Nebraska at Omaha Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/studentwork Recommended Citation Jorgensen, Robert R., "Prison Riots as Agents of Prison Reform; A Sociological Study of Violence and Change" (1974). Student Work. 2180. https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/studentwork/2180 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UNO. It has been accepted for inclusion in Student Work by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UNO. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PRISON RIOTS AS AGENTS 0? PRISON REFORM A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF VIOLENCE AND CHANGE A Thesis Presented to the Department of Sociology and the Faculty of the College of Graduate Studies / University of Nebraska at Omaha In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts ■fcy Robert R, Jorgensen March 197^ UMI Number: EP73722 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI EP73722 Published by ProQuest LLC (2015). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Accepted for the faculty of the College of Graduate Studies of the University of Nebraska at Omaha, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts. uYwk 0M Chainna Depar t meritti Graduate Committee: %{jy^csktuJ AO Name s Department ii ACKNO w LSD GM h. NT S Tha writer wishes to rhank the directors and ccmmissloners of the state departments of correction for their cooperation, in providing specific information cn certain prison riots and d?.sturbancss. Kad it not been for their support, such information would have been difficult, if not impossible, to obtain. A special word of thanks is due Dr. Wayne Wheeler, Professor of Sociology at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Without his teaching, astute criticism, and friendly advice and consultation, this study could not have been written. Appreciation also goes to. Mr. Gaylon Kuchei, who was especially helpful at the beginning of the study by pointing the author in the right direction and putting him in contact with some of the nation's top penologists and authorities on prison riots. The writer is particularly indebted to his wife, Marlene, who in addition to looking after a home and two active sons, spent countless hours typing and retyping draft copies of the manuscript. During many trying and humiliating moments, she always had words of encouragement to offer, and these were often the inspiration and motiva­ tion needed to see the thesis through to completion. iii TABLE OF coin:SOTS o — CABLES ii ix. THE PROBLEM AND ITS IMPORTANCE .......... 1 THE PROBLEM . ................. 1 Statement of the Problem ............... 1 Importance of the Study ............... 2 THEORETICAL APPROACH TO THE PROBLEM . 3 RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES ........ 5 DEFINITIONS OF TERMS U S E D ............... 7 Prison .................................. 7 Prison Riot .... ................... 7 Violence . .............................. 10 Change and/or Reform ............... 11 A PREVIEW ................................ 11 SOME PERSPECTIVES ON VIOLENCE AND CHANGE . 13 LEGITIMACY OF VIOLENCE .... ........... 14 COLLECTIVE VIOLENCE AS A CATALYST OF CHANGE 16 Internal War (Revolution) ............. 16 Social Conflict ..................... 18 Mass Movements .... ................. 19 Social Movements ................... .. 21 iv Chapter Page SOME OTHER FUNCTIONS OF VIOLENCE . 22 Violence as a Social Response ........................ 22 Violence as a Danger S i g n a l .......................... 24 Violence as a Safety-Valve Mechanism ................. 25 Violence as a Form of T h e r a p y ....................... 26 SUMMARY . ....................................... 27 3. SOME CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF PRISON R I O T S ............. 28 PRISON RIOTS: AN HISTORICAL OVERVIEW ................. 28 RESULTS OF DATA COLLECTION.............................. 30 Oregon State Penitentiary . ................... 31 South Carolina .......... 34 North Carolinafs Central Prison ............... 35 Pennsylvania ..... ................................ 36 New York State Correctional Facilities ............. 37 Idaho State Penitentiary.............................. 41 Louisiana State Penitentiary .......................... 43 ‘ California State Correctional Facilities ............. 43 Vermont State Prison and House of Correction for Men . 47 . Maine State Prison .......... 48 Tennessee Prison for Women ..... ................. 50 Kansas State Penitentiary ....................... 51 Long Binh Stockade .......... 53 SUMMARY .................................................. 56 4. THE RIOT AT ATTICA: A CRITICAL EXAMINATION ........... 60 ATTICA BEFORE THE R I O T ......................... 61 The P r i s o n ................. 61 VI Chapter Page The Inmates ........................................... 63 The Correctional Staff .............................. 63 Prison Life in G e n e r a l .......... 64 Reforms Sought .......... 73 Attica during the r i o t ................... * . ......... 75 The Spark: Wednesday, September 8, 19 7 1 ............ 75 The Explosion: Thursday, September 9 ............... 76 The Riot Spreads ............ .................. 77 Rudimentary Inmate Society ........................ 79 Immediate Demands Drawn U p ................... 80 Negotiations Develop .' . .......... 80 The Assault ........................................... 83 The T o l l ............................................. 83 Use of Excessive Force ................... 84 ATTICA AFTER THE R I O T ............ 85 Credibility Gap ................................ 85 Treatment of the W o u n d e d .......... ...... 85 R e p r i s a l s ..................... 86 Prison Reforms Instituted ............. ....... 87 SUMMARY .............. .. 89 5. AN ANALYSIS OF THE CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF PRISON VIOLENCE . ........... .......................... 91 SOME THEORIES ON THE CAUSES OF PRISON RI O T S ............ 91 SOME BASIC CAUSES OF PRISON RIOTS— PAST AND PRESENT . 93 General Causes ....... z . ........... 95 Internal Causes ............. 98 Chapter Page External Causes ......................... 108 SOME FUNCTIONAL CONSEQUENCES OF PRISON VIOLENCE .... 114 Prison Reforms Introduced ...... 117 Proposed Pveforms Announced . ...................... 120 SUMMARY ...................................... ...... 121 6. THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES ON PRISON RIOTS ............... 124 RELATIVE DEPRIVATION ........ ...... 124 CULTURAL LAG . ................................... 132 THE CYCLICAL NATURE OF PRISON R I O T S ................... 137 PRISON RIOTS AS BALANCE -MAINTAINING MECHANISMS .... 143 SUMMARY ......................... 146 7. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS.................................. 149 SUMMARY ............. 149 CONCLUSIONS ........................... 152 IN R E T R O S P E C T ................................ .......... 155 APPENDICES ........................................................ 157 A. A Note About the Study and Its Author ............. 157 B. Listing of Proposed Demands at Attica ...................... 159 REFERENCES ............... 165 Jj Jl ST Oi? ■ T A B t i i o Table Page 1. A Comparison of the Causes of Prison R.iots: Past and Present ......... ...... 94 2. Causes of Contemporary Prison Riocs by Category ......... 95 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Main Cell Blocks and Exercise Yards Attica Correctional Facility ... ..... 62 2. Aspirational Deprivation........................... 126 3. Decremental Deprivation .............. 128 4. Progressive Deprivation ................................ 129 ix Chapter 1 THE PROBLEM AMD ITS IMPORTANCE Prison riots have long been recognised as persistent and pervasive problems in American society. However, the general orientation of prison administrators and correctional organizations has led them to view the riots as dysfunctional and disruptive, and to disregard their positive functions. In reviewing the literature on prisons, it became increasingly clear to the writer that an adequate science of prison violence must depend heavily upon the research skills and theoretical insights of sociologists who will bring them to bear on the prison community. Perhaps no more compelling evidence can be found of the failure of sociologists to taka advantage of the rich research potential of the field of corrections than the nearly total disregard by sociological Investigators of the series of prison riots that occurred in correctional institutions throughout the United States during the ya<nrs 1968 to 1971. Yet these riots ware among the more striking phenomena of collective violence which have occurred in the nation. THE PROBLEM Statement of the Problem. Of special interest to the writer are the functional, as con­ trasted to the dysfunctional, consequences of violence. Accordingly, the present, study examines some of the functions of violence*-