Prioritizing prisons

A couple months ago there was a program on television about prison overcrowding, and it got me thinking about this seldom discussed issue. The page one story by Douglas Wright in this week’s paper reminded me of it again. And once again, it left me an ashamed American for how our prisons incarcerate their prisoners.

A lot of people avoid thinking about what’s going on in our prisons. But, like it or not, prisons are a reflection of society. Think of the British. They cast their prisoners as far away from their “civilized high society” as possible – all the way down under to Australia. The hardnosed Russians were brutal sending their prisoners to Siberia to freeze and die of starvation. What will be America’s legacy? Unfortunately, how we treat the uncivilized in our society reflects back on the civilized who send them there. How then will we, average Americans, be remembered?

Yes, we will be remembered for allowing our inmates to have televisions and ruling in their favor on silly lawsuits charging lousy food and care. But we will also be remembered for allowing overcrowding and dangerous conditions inside. Can we really call ourselves a civilized society when our prisoners fear for their lives and are stabbed and harassed by a culture of violence within the jail walls? Seeing a nasty jerk get his due has a sort of sweet justice feel to it, and that’s how we rationalize brutality in prisons, but what about the innocent and those who are turning their lives around while in jail? The system fails when any one of these, deserving or not, is injured, killed or even threatened.

I have to admit, I’m speaking as one who is deathly afraid of going to jail. I try to keep my nose clean, but it’s probably every American’s fear of being wrongly accused and having to go to a jail where incivility and intimidation rule. Give me solitary, I’d say! Give me solitary or give me death. That’s how I see it.

I also had a roommate who spent two years in jail. He had plenty of scary stories to tell. Overcrowding was one such problem. He felt like a cow being led to the slaughter, or maybe he was in the process of being slaughtered. He was part of a cold system that we shouldn’t be surprised to hear breeds colder criminals than when they first go in. It seems good sense to make sure these people come out better. If that means more guards, then so be it. If that means building bigger and better jails then let’s do it. If that means getting rid of the infamous group showers, then let’s do it.

The statistics of jail overcrowding in Maine show we need to address this issue. The answer is not to decriminalize crimes. Any drug use should be punished harshly. The answer to overcrowding isn’t to dumb down the legal system. The answer is to prioritize it and make a system we can be proud of. That’s the job of our governor and Legislature, and ultimately the people of Maine: to require better jails. Then it’s the job of the county and state to man the facilities with competent guards and staff. Not nurses who have sex with inmates, as happened last year at the Windham facility. That’s shameful. It just adds to the incivility and inhumanity within jail walls. These inmates need to be exposed to discipline and order, not taunting guards and unsafe conditions.

I’m not advocating treating criminals with kid gloves. Fear of jail can be an effective deterrent. I know it’s helped me to stay straight – that and the thought of my mother going to church and telling everyone her youngest son is a convict! But once these people are in jail, they shouldn’t be in fear for their lives, and they shouldn’t be packed in like sardines. It’s time Americans wake up to the realities of jail life and take action to correct what has become a blight. Even lowly prisoners, who have wronged society, have to be treated well.

The horror stories we hear about jail life need to be addressed and corrected. It isn’t just Abu Ghraib we have to be ashamed of. Americans have to wake up and care because a good society doesn’t forget about its inmates. That almost sounds silly, but if you chuckled at that last sentence it proves how far we are from what our goal should be: providing a safe atmosphere where hopefully these criminals can change their lives around. Perhaps we can petition our legislators to demand more humane conditions in Maine jails. Perhaps we should open our wallets and build more jails. There are more criminals now and we need to make room for them.

Fighting jail overcrowding is a worthy cause. Because, ultimately, it reflects back on ourselves as a society.