Assignment:
Writing Assignment
1. Look in to the dramatic growth in the American prison population in recent decades. What factors have contributed to that growth? In your opinion will the prison population continue to swell, or do you feel that the number of people incarcerated in prison and jails will soon begin to decline? Why?
2. Some people believe that increased incarceration rates are the driving force behind consistently declining crime rates, while others believe high incarceration rates are devastating to our communities. Choose a side to this debate issue and develop an ipinion on the topic. Do you perceive high rates of incarceration as a positive or a negative in our society? Why?
3. Research private prisons. What are the advantages of privately run prisons? What concerns are associated with these facilities?
4. Review the different styles of prison, from the standard prison with cells in a line to newly designed prisons. List suggestions that might keep prisons safe but might also allow for better conditions for prisoners. Are there ways to design prisons that can hold more prisoners or should other solutions to overcrowding be explored?
5. Choose a side! A hypothetical proposal to build a supermax prison in your area. One side advocates for the facility, while the other discusses the concerns associated with supermax prisons. Which arguments did you find most compelling.