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State and Federal Prisons

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State and Federal Prison System
Hope Washington
CJS/230 Introduction to Corrections
May 19, 2013
John Feltgen

A federal prison and a local jail are built nearly the same, but the difference lies in what they are used for. A local county jail is used to detain/incarcerate offenders for one year or less; the state prison is very similar to federal prisons that both incarcerate/rehabilitate and execute offenders. States generally have industries where offenders work and make furniture, license plates and etc. for the state. Federal prisons have fewer jobs but they also have the super max prisons that are like "animal cages" where offenders stay 23 hours a day. 1 hour a day they get to exercise, shower and etc.
An example of a state prison system would be the Texas Department of Corrections located in Huntsville, Texas. This facility was established in 1849 and to this day is the headquarters of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. The growth of state prison populations is the result of “get-tough” legislation which sends more people to prison and keeps them there for longer periods of time. In my opinion, United States corrections professionals could solve the problem of exponential growth in state prison systems by implementing stronger rehabilitation programs. Upon entry in the state prison facility, inmates could be given an incentive to enter and complete one or more rehabilitation program depending on the degree of severity of the crime or crimes that the inmate committed. I believe that an inmate that sees a program to completion is possibly dedicated to changing their behavior in order to avoid becoming a repeat offender. The security levels in state and federal prisons are maximum-security, close-high-security, medium-security, minimum-security, and open-security. The differences in these levels are: (1) maximum-security prisons have more rigorous

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