¶ … prison gang is a select group of inmates with an organized chain of command and an established code of conduct. They operate in secrecy with a view to controlling their prison environment through intimidation and violence meted on non-members. Some of the oldest prison gangs in the U.S. were formed as early as 1950s. Some notable example is Gypsy Jokers that operated in Washington State prisons (Fleisher & Decker, 2001). Violence in correctional facilities in the United States is something that has been with us for quite a while. Prisoners and prison officers have both fallen victims to this violence.
Think of the San Antonio, Texas incident where 281 prisoners were stabbed and 13 slain (The Ledger, 1984). There was divided opinion on what motivated such heinous acts with some prison officials opining that prison gangs who were divided along racial lines were responsible. Some attacks were thought to be instigated by inmates who used coffee as the currency. Inmates in penitentiary institutions become members of prison gangs where they participate in gang activities. The rise of prison gangs should be blamed on America's criminal justice system and more specifically on individual State Correction Department.
It may appear far-fetched, but it is probable that gang leaders are most certainly gang members. The prison authorities should take an initiative and isolate gang members from non-gang prison population. This can in a way contain the influence of the gang members within the prison facility. The prison authorities can set aside separate housing units for gang members. It is only unfortunate that the idea of segregation has failed in certain states that have tried to implement it like California where California Department of Correction intentionally segregated new inmates by race to know whether inmates were racial extremists. Criminal justice system enhances the emergence and growth in membership of prison gangs in prison facilities. It is most certain that the criminal justice system has the necessary machinery to enable them know if an offender is a gang member or not long before they are incarcerated because the pre-sentence investigation report usually has this information. Moreover, local and state police state data can be used to ascertain this.
As a matter of fact, most prosecutors...
"Amongst the gangs were the Black Disciples, Spanish Cobras, Imperial Gangsters, Simon City Royals, Latin Eagles, Satan Disciples, and the Latin Disciples" (Folks Nation, n.d.). The term Folks was thought to be chosen as a name because of the word being an acronym. It stands for Follow the Orders and Laws the King Sets. The King at this time was Larry Hoover. He was the one who had the
Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 Supreme Court has held that deliberate indifference to the substantial risk of sexual assault violates inmates' rights under the Cruel and Unusual Punishments Clause of the 8th Amendment to the Constitution. In response, the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 is designed to systematically study the incidence of offender-on-offender and staff-on-offender assault in correctional facilities throughout the United States and to propose standards for preventing
Gangs The Issue of Gangs History of Gangs in the United States of America Northeast Region (specifically New York City Midwest Region (specifically Chicago) West Region (specifically Los Angeles) South Region First period Current Status of Gangs in the United States of America Types of Gangs in the United States of America Factors Triggering Indulgence in Gangs Impacts of Gang Activities on United States of America Recommendations for Community Response This paper will analyze the nature of gang membership within the
Prisons are correctional facilities where criminals are confided in order to rehabilitate them. Once a criminal has gotten out of the prison it is expected that they have learnt from their mistakes and not repeat these same mistakes or commit new crimes. They are expected to be changed people who are ready to be productive in the society. However, over the years this has not been achieved successfully. This is
Government Since gang-related crimes fall within the jurisdiction of state, this research will give an insight on the need to find solutions that increasingly include all levels of government. Congress needs to pass legislation that will change immigration enforcement laws and make more aliens deportable. In addition, the federal government should take a more active participation in helping local and state jurisdictions develop anti-gang responses. The local, state and federal governments
dealt with the issue of youth gangs and their prevalence in USA. Sociologists have been analyzing youth gangs in urban backgrounds for around 70 years. It has been debated that youth gangs were created in accordance with social events, and that gang members were of loose morals or inadequately socialized entities who tied up together to do delinquent activities in groups rather than as separate entities. This paper shall
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