The United States sought to privatize prisons due to the cost of incarceration which had increased as a result of the increase in prison population. The government wanted to save money yet the capacity of prisons was increasing. Private corporations had the ability to build prisons and manage prison services at a lower cost that the government.
Private prisons boomed in the United States in the 1980’s but this was not the
beginning of private prisons in America. States throughout America had privatized prison labor at various times throughout the nineteenth century. Kentucky was the first state to actually privatize the whole operation of a prison facility in 1825. Many states followed Kentucky, however, privatization of prisons took a major decline due to unsuitable prison conditions and states took back the authority.
Although private companies still operated a variety of services, like foods service, vocational training and counseling services, private companies were not responsible for the entire operation of prison facilities again until the 1980’s. By 2000, more than 150 prison facilities in the United States were being operated by fourteen different private companies.
In the 80’s and 90’s, private prisons gained an unprecedented popularity. This likely was due to the increased population of inmates in America as a result of the War on Drugs campaign. Even the federal Justice Department contracted for the operation of private prisons which included the housing of illegal immigrants as well as inmates of high security priority. The largest private prison in the United States is the Correctional Corporation of America. Other private prison corporations include the GEO Group, Management & Training Corporation, Emerald Corporation and LCS Correctional Services. Today, of the nearly two million individuals incarcerated today, seven percent are held in private prisons. Private prisons are either operated entirely by private corporations today or operated by private contractors.
Private prisons receive much skepticism today. As the corporation running the facilities are only seeking financial gain, the humanitarian needs of the inmates are not high priority. The more inmates behind the bars of private prisons means more money for the corporations. Yet, violence, insanitary conditions and assaults are reportedly regular occurrences in private prisons. This is due to the fewer guards that are paid to work in the private prisons. The imprisonment of inmates in private prisons ensures less safety to the prison, but saves the government a substantial amount of money.
Today, the only verified advantage of having private prisons is the cost savings. Other advantages have proven difficult to verify which leaves the question as to the effectiveness and efficiency of privatizing prisons. Yet, even with the criticisms, private prisons in America continue to incarcerate a large number of inmates. Thirty states currently have prisons operated privately. Politics play a substantial role in maintaining the existence of private prisons. Corporations that run private prisons invest heavily in lobbying state and federal legislators to ensure the continued use of private prisons. The efforts also diligently any promotion of bills that can either reduce the number of private prisons or eliminate their use entirely.
References
Fulcher, P. A. (2012). Hustle and flow: Prison privatization fueling the prison industrial complex. Washburn Law Journal, 51(3).
Pozen, D. (2003). Managing a correctional marketplace: Private Prisonization in the United States and the United Kingdom. Journal of Law and Politics, 19, 253-284.
