The Punitive Era (jan 1, 1935 – jan 1, 1945)

Description:

Date: 1935-1945
Philosophical Reason: Prison administrators, left with few ready alternatives, seized on custody and institutional security as the long-lost central purposes of the correctional enterprise. The punitive era that resulted was characterized by the belief that prisoners owed a debt to society that only a rigorous period of confinement could repay.

Important Information: Large maximum-security institutions flourished, and the prisoner’s daily routine became one of monotony and frustration. The punitive era was a lackluster time in American corrections. Innovations were rare, and a philosophy of “out of sight, out of mind” characterized American attitudes toward inmates. The term stir-crazy grew out of the experience of many prisoners with the punitive era’s lack of educational, treatment, and work programs.

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