Benevolent Repression: The Three Major Reformatory Systems - Term Paper Example

Benevolent Repression – The Three Major Reformatory Systems In his book Benevolent Repression, Alexander Pisciotta indicates the Elmira Reformatory was considered the founding institution for America’s reformatory system, as the concept of reform only entered other prison systems following its establishment and further systems were established either based on or inherently against this original idea. The concept of reform arose out of the concept of the ‘medical model.’ The medical model “presume[s] that the physician’s task is to diagnose diseases, to discover their causes and symptoms and design treatments. The treatments are aimed at eliminating or minimizing the symptoms of the disease, or the cause of the disease, or the disease itself” (Duchan, 2001). Applied to criminals and their lives of crime, this meant looking at the underlying reasons why these individuals deviated from their natural role in life. The original system grew out of the 37 principles listed in the Declaration of Principles drafted in 1870 from the efforts of the first meeting of the National Congress on Penitentiary and Reformatory Discipline. “The Declaration of Principles called for individualized care based on ‘scientific treatment’ and the ‘medical model’. To foster reform, delegates recommended indeterminate sentencing, a carefully calculated mark and classification system, intensive academic and vocational instruction, constructive labor, and humane disciplinary methods” (Pisciotta, 1994: 13). This concept further led to the founding ideas of the Elmira system and those that followed, that poor behavior was not simply a choice, but also caused by a variety of environmental, psychological and/or biological factors. The Elmira system featured a three-stage ‘process of individualization”. Prisoners, ranging in age from 16-30, upon entering the system had a one-on-one interview with Zebulon Brockway, the warden, to determine the various reasons why the prisoner had engaged in crime. Then they were assigned to a class in school and given a work assignment and cell. The second stage of the system consisted of a highly structured day of activity for the duration of the prisoners’ stay. Prisoners woke in the early morning to eat and clean their cells, then went to work at their various ‘jobs’ for a regular 8-hour workday with a one hour lunch break and a 30-minute dinner time scheduled as soon as work was finished. Interviews and special events were held after dinner and before school, which ended at 8:30 just before bedtime. “Elmira’s inmates received instruction in carpentry, bricklaying, plastering, stonecutting, blacksmithing and even fresco painting. Elmira offered 22 trades in 1888, 26 in 1890 and 36 in 1896. Brockway maintained that the ‘graduates’ of the ‘college on the hill’ received instruction comparable to the best schools” (Pisciotta, 1994: 23). Inmates were required to attend religious services on Sundays. In addition, prisoners were classified into one of three grades within the prison with second grade being the entry point. Good behavior earned high marks which could promote the prisoner to first grade while low marks would demote them to third grade. The grades were clearly characterized by comfort of uniform and cell as well as privileges allotted. High marks in first grade could earn an early release. The third stage of the system was parole, in which inmates were freed from the reformatory but had to follow strict rules of conduct for a specified period once they were out. A military system replaced inmate labor when it was prohibited in 1888, wages and fees replaced the mark system in 1889 and biogenic research and training led to the development of the Physical Culture class in 1886 and the use of recreation programs by 1890. “By 1900, correctional institutions across the United States were using recreational strategies to mold the ‘muscles and morals’ of their charges” (Pisciotta, 1994: 25). The Michigan Reformatory accepted prisoners of all types, not just first time offenders, and all ages. Sentences handed down were given for fixed periods that were non-negotiable and extended anywhere from six months to life. As a result, parole was not introduced into the system at any level. There was no classification system and inmates could only earn good time and release through good behavior. “Classification meant, at best, half-hearted attempts to separate misdemeanants and felons” (Pisciotta, 1994: 84). The facility wasn’t overly concerned with turning out prisoners readily educated to enter the third class workforce either. “At Michigan, labor took precedence over education. Inmates worked for over ten hours each day under the contract system with one aim in mind: profit” (Pisciotta, 1994: 84). A great deal of the philosophy behind this approach was based on the conviction that criminals made free, conscious choices to engage in crime and could thus only be reformed through punishment, discipline and hard work, what is referred to as a Beccarian approach. Beccaria wrote on several issues regarding crime and punishment. As to punishment, he felt “there should be a set amount of incarceration for each crime, individuals should be punished for attempting to commit a crime, accomplices working together on a crime should be punished equally, the harsher the crime the harsher the punishment, crimes against persons should be corporal and crimes of theft should be fines” (Greek, 2005). Another aspect of the Beccarian theory was the concept that the crime should somehow make reparations. This led to the additional point of view of the Michigan Reformatory which was to keep the costs of the prison to the taxpayers at a minimum by keeping the focus of work performed by prisoners upon profit even as the prisoners ‘worked off’ their crimes. Medical assistance was provided to the prisoners when necessary, but with significant consideration of their risk factors. “High risk inmates were not hospitalized until ‘it was evident that there were too sick to run away.’ Dr. Beckworth explained that ‘the possibility of losing a long-time man must always be taken into consideration’.” (Pisciotta, 1994: 99). This was because the hospital wing of the prison was not highly secure nor were the walls, at 17 feet tall, particularly restrictive, leading to high numbers of escapes – 27 between 1883 and 1884. The Massachusetts system also accepted a wide range of criminals in both misdemeanor and felony charges with no restriction to age. Placement in the reformatory was based on the same views as Michigan, nature of offense, prior record and age. The daily treatment and general path of reform had rehabilitation as its chief goal. Although inmates did work for profit, this was not the driving force of the program and inmates were given incentive for good behavior. “A modified indeterminate sentencing system was in place in 1884, and Tufts introduced a mark and classification system similar to Elmira’s. Academic, vocational and religious instruction received more emphasis in Massachusetts” (Pisciotta, 1994: 86). The educational and moral reform of prisoners was such an emphasis that prisoners were able to print a relatively long-running newspaper, Our Paper, which was distributed weekly and contained not only world, national and local news, but also essays, poems and prison-specific news (Manoli-Skocay, n.d.). Another advantage experienced by the prisoners in this system was a general distaste for corporal punishment, handcuffing or the ball-and-chain. Instead, the Massachusetts Reformatory liberally assigned time in solitary confinement to those who misbehaved, which took place in lighted rooms without the use of additional restraints. Superintendent Gardner Tufts reported as many as 75 percent of his prisoners had reformed in a system that “costs far less to maintain it than any other reformatory of like character and capacity in the United States” (Pisciotta, 1994: 87). Like other reformatories, though, Massachusetts had its share of security issues. A storm in 1890 for instance was able to blow down a 150-foot section of the outer security fence and one prisoner, attempting to escape his prison time, managed to jump the train that transported all prisoners to the grounds (Pisciotta, 1994: 100). These three systems present a continuum of prisoner reform initiatives ranging from the ideological liberal in Elmira to the grudgingly conservative reform in Michigan. In practice, none of these systems worked as idealistically as they are presented. A similarity shared by all three prisons was their focus on reforming the prisoners in their care into hard-working, Christian (primarily Protestant) gentlemen of the third class society, even though their methods for attaining this goal were vastly different. While Elmira presented a liberal approach focused on education, order, discipline and work ethic, its warden, Zebulon Brockway, administered cruel punishments and tyrannical tactics that undermined anything good that might have occurred had the system been approached with the spirit of true reform in which it had been born. The Michigan system, far from feeling that prisoners, who had somehow harmed society, should get a free ride, determined the best way to reform a prisoner was to introduce him to real hard work while the Massachusetts system strove to find a balance in the center of these two approaches, focusing on education and reform while still requiring prisoners to work toward reparation of some sort. The inherent nature of their business perhaps can be blamed for the high incidences of violence within the walls of all three reformatories, as well as high incidents of escapes or escape attempts, but reports of violence and uprisings seemed to be of lesser scale and intensity at the Massachusetts reformatory, where prisoners were still treated like men. Massachusetts also shared characteristics such as indeterminate sentencing and reward systems with Elmira whereas Michigan removed all sense that good behavior might lead to an early release. All three of these systems had to overcome issues with changing legislation aimed at bettering prison effectiveness and keeping inmates busy while becoming self- or partially supporting and not draining income away from the surrounding citizenry (Correctional Association of New York, 1994). Based upon the evidence presented in Pisciotta’s book and supported elsewhere, it seems as if the intermediate system employed by the Massachusetts Reformatory had the greatest chance of being effective. While there remained significant social issues, such as the continuing pressure to mold prisoners into a white Protestant ideal as well as issues of racism and blatant stereotyping as a natural by-product of the medical movement, the concept of treating prisoners like men deserving of human dignity and respect seemed to leave a lasting impression on the prisoners housed there. It was reported that fewer prisoners experienced feelings of hatred or homicidal tendencies toward their warden and the prison as a whole seemed to experience fewer behavioral problems overall. Perhaps the individualized approach that was attempted was the right direction carried out in the wrong way, needing to focus instead upon building men up into a potential good rather than molding them to shape a pre-established concept of the norm. Works Cited Correctional Association of New York. A Citizen Crusade for Prison Reform. (1994). February 14, 2007 Duchan, Judith Felson. “Learning Leveling and Leveling Learning.” Graduation Speech, Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences. (May 12, 2001). February 14, 2007 < http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~duchan/leveling.html> Greek, Cecil E. “Cesare Beccaria.” Criminological Theory. (November 22, 2005). Florida State University. February 14, 2007 from Manoli-Skocay, Constance. “The Massachusetts Reformatory Newspaper: 1909-1947.” The Concord Magazine. (n.d.). February 14, 2007 Pisciotta, Alexander W. Benevolent Repression: Social Control and the American Reformatory Prison Movement. New York and London: New York University Press, 1994. Read More