Report finds many flaws in jail system

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Canadian jails do not rehabilitate; they offer little protection to society and do not deter people from committing crimes, says a report from the John Howard Society to the Canadian Sentencing Commission. Almost 90% of people that commit crimes do not go to jail for them. As well, there are unfair differences in punishments between provinces, and too many Indians are imprisoned, continues the report.

The criminal justice system exists for the "protection of the public," continues the report. It is supposed to do this through punishment, incapacitation, deterrence, restitution and rehabilitation." Yet, though punishment "may not be a noble purpose for civilized nations to pursue," this seems to the only role that prisons fill.

Punishment can be seen as an almost sick need for revenge on the part of society, whether they are actually hurt by the "criminal" or not. "Practically no one will admit to its being a proper concern, since we all recognize the primate and underworth nature of vengefulness. Yet, any thoughtful observation of our handling of offenders makes it clear that underlying our legal formalities there is a need for revenge which shows itself in the emphasis on a minimum denunciatory period of prison.

The report asks why, since punishment is what society wants, is it done through imprisonment? Jails are costly and not as satisfying. Corporal punishment is just as useless for reforming criminals, yet it is very satisfying (the turnout to the last handing in Scotland was phenomenal). In addition, it has "one community benefit which imprisonment never has and never will be able to match. Whipping is cheap.

The other objectives of "protecting the public;" that is, incapacitation, deterrence, restitution and rehabilitation, do not happen.

Incapacitation means that criminals will be kept away from the public for the safety of the public. Yet the federal solicitor general admits that 60% of major crimes are not reported. Of those that are, only 20% lead to convictions. This means that "over 95% of an indictable offenses are not punished by jails at all."

The people that do go to jail learn to survive in a violent place, which "corrodes, hardens and handicaps, many offenders, compounding their inabilities, and filling them with hate and a desire for retribution." Eventually, 99% of them get out; they are released from jail, "ready to do unlawful things with new skill and increased rage." Clearly this does not protect the public.

Prisons do not deter offenders. Many return to the same jail twice three times, and often over five times in their lives. The report suggests that people aren't thinking of jails when they commit crimes. Smart people can be very stupid when it comes to crimes.

"All the available evidence indicate that swiftness and certainty of punishment have a much greater deterrent effect than a long prison sentence. Punishment of a guilty individual may well give notice to the community that such conduct will not be tolerated, but...the protection granted is purely symbolic."

Finally, jail does not lead to rehabilitation or reform. "It is impossible to train men for freedom in a condition of captivity. "If anything, jail means lost jobs, family structure, and other problems.

Essentially, jail is good only for punishment, and revenge at that. Yet, despite a 5% conviction rate, the prisons are full. Canada imprisons - at great cost - 111 people per 100,000 population. This compares to rates of between 28 and 88 per cent per 100,000 for many other countries. Austria imprisons 114 per 100,000 while the U.S. imprisons 270, but these two, like Canada, appear to be exceptions.

The John Howard report proposes two main themes: first, that prison sentences be broken into "twelve categories of maximum prison sentences, extending from one to twelve years," which should result in similar penalties for similar crimes, and reduce the amount of wasted time spent in prisons. Secondly, it states again ad again that "imprison-ment should be used only as a last resort."

In avoiding imprisonment, the report suggests expanding the Diversion Program. "Diversion options offer the community the greatest potential for participation, and if successfully utilized for young offenders, could quite legitimately be applied to adults as well. The other range of alternative sanctions, either existing or proposed, i.e. absolute and conditional discharges, probation, restitution, forfeiture, community service orders and intermittent sentences, all have merit if fairly and consistently enforced."

Fines and community service both are part of the Diversion Program, but the John Howard report suggested that fines involve some problems and that it might be better to impose a community service order rather than waiting for the offender to ask for fine option.

The report also says that the Native admissions to provincial prisons are far too high. Native women, especially are over represented at 90% of the female prison population. "A minority group is being subjected to imprisonment for reasons not yet clearly understood or documented. The cultural and legal implications of this over representation of persons of Native ancestry in our prisons presents a critical problem in need of immediate attention," says the report.