Prison Privatization

INTRODUCTION�JUSTICE SYSTEM PRIVATIZATION

The American criminal justice system is a mess. High costs for police, the court process, and those for incarceration continue to be the case for many states, cities, and individuals. Adding to this dilemma are the overcrowded nature of our prison system, the backlog of cases headed for court, and the fact that we live in such a litigious society that people successfully sue corporations who serve them too "hot" coffee or who provide tooth brushes whose bristles irritate gums. Further adding to this situation are the realities of corrupt lawyers and police brutality, an ever more expensive court trial system, and the fact that rising numbers of incarcerated Americans create a drain on state funding for existing and newly needed prisons at the expense of more beneficial projects to society like new or refurbished schools.

Because of the above scenario, there has been a continuing push for privatization of the criminal justice system. Today, many privately-owned prisons are in operation or planned to be in operation, a great many people seek out alternatives to court trial, such as privately owned mediation companies, and many organizations and other community functions like rock concerts or athletic contests now hire their own private police services. This analysis will discuss privatization of the criminal justice system through its three main classifications: police; courts;

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emove an undesirable youth from a shopping mall, but the youth is now only a non-problem of the guard and the client that hired him. No one bothers to ask in a privatized system where this displaced youth is displaced to: "In the present hard crime prevention climate, its simply doesn't matter�if these are troublesome youths, they are now someone else's problem and thus someone else can take up the options the market offers�that is, more CCTV, more private patrols, and more entry security" (Francis et al 111). COURTS Anybody who has ever been involved in a lawsuit understands the often slow, labyrinthine and always expensive nature of the process with no guarantee of an outcome whether one is in the right or in the wrong. As a result different forms of adjudication have arisen that are an alternative form to the traditional court process. From mediation services like the Florida Mediation Group and Tennessee Mediators Network to more innovative programs like California's Community Conflict Resolution, more and more individuals are seeking to resolve their disputes through alternative adjudication methods. Individuals or corporations may choose to do so for a variety of reasons, but the common two reasons are to save time an

Category: Government - P