CHAPTER 12: Discretion and Dilemmas in Corrections Lecture Slides prepared by Cheryn Rowell * Correctional Professionals Correctional officers and supervisors Treatment professionals (e.g., educators, counselors, psychologists, and others) * Discretion Correctional officers have a full range of control, including denial of liberty and application of physical force. Correctional officers have discretionary powers, such as charging an inmate with a disciplinary infraction versus delivering a verbal reprimand. Disciplinary committees also exercise discretion when making a decision to punish an inmate for an infraction. Treatment professionals have discretion in writing parole reports, making decisions on classification. * Correctional Ethics In the 1970s, prison guards adopted correctional officer as a more descriptive professional title. The period also saw such dramatic changes as:Increased on-the-job dangerLoss of controlIncreased stressRacial and sexual integrationUnionizationHigher standards of professionalismExpanded bureaucratization * Relationships With InmatesBoth guards and inmates prefer to live in peace.Both feel they must take sides when conflict occurs. Reciprocity: Officers become dependent on inmates for completion of important tasks. In return, officers may overlook inmate infractions and allow a degree of favoritism. * Officers have the power to make life difficult for inmates they do not like. If officers become personally involved (e.g., sexually), their professionalism is compromised. An alliance sometimes forms between guards and inmates that is not unlike foreman-employee relationships. Officers insist that “you can be friendly with inmates, but you can never trust them.” Mature officers learn to live with this inconsistency. Relationships With Inmates * Thinking Point In June of 2010, correctional officer David Francis of Charleston WV, was implicated for allegedly sexually abusing, harassing, and assaulting two female inmates over the course of two years. The inmates have filed suit against the officer as well as the West Virginia Department of Corrections for punitive and compensatory damages. Should the inmates profit from the unethical behavior of the correctional officer? What punitive action should be taken against Francis? Correctional Officer SubcultureMay consider inmates, superiors, and society in general as “the enemy” Accept use of force as a routine job element Show a tendency to redefine job roles to meet minimum requirements only Show a willingness to use deceit to cover up wrongdoing by staff * Types of Officers Violence-prone: use the role of correctional officer to act out an authoritarian role Time-servers: serve time in prison much the same as most inmates do (trying to avoid trouble and hoping nothing goes wrong on their shift) Counselors: seek to enlarge their job description; perceive their role as inmate counselor/helper * Use of ...

1. CHAPTER 12:
Discretion and Dilemmas in Corrections
Lecture Slides prepared by Cheryn Rowell
*
Correctional Professionals
Correctional officers and supervisors
Treatment professionals (e.g., educators, counselors,
psychologists, and others)
*
Discretion
Correctional officers have a full range of control, including
denial of liberty and application of physical force.

2. Correctional officers have discretionary powers, such as
charging an inmate with a disciplinary infraction versus
delivering a verbal reprimand.
Disciplinary committees also exercise discretion when making a
decision to punish an inmate for an infraction.
Treatment professionals have discretion in writing parole
reports, making decisions on classification.
*
Correctional Ethics
In the 1970s, prison guards adopted correctional officer as a
more descriptive professional title.
The period also saw such dramatic changes as:Increased on-the-
job dangerLoss of controlIncreased stressRacial and sexual
integrationUnionizationHigher standards of
professionalismExpanded bureaucratization
*
Relationships With InmatesBoth guards and inmates prefer to
live in peace.Both feel they must take sides when conflict
occurs.
Reciprocity: Officers become dependent on inmates for
completion of important tasks.

3. In return, officers may overlook inmate infractions and allow a
degree of favoritism.
*
Officers have the power to make life difficult for inmates they
do not like.
If officers become personally involved (e.g., sexually), their
professionalism is compromised.
An alliance sometimes forms between guards and inmates that
is not unlike foreman-employee relationships.
Officers insist that “you can be friendly with inmates, but you
can never trust them.”
Mature officers learn to live with this inconsistency.
Relationships With Inmates
*
Thinking Point
In June of 2010, correctional officer David Francis of
Charleston WV, was implicated for allegedly sexually abusing,
harassing, and assaulting two female inmates over the course of
two years. The inmates have filed suit against the officer as
well as the West Virginia Department of Corrections for
punitive and compensatory damages.
Should the inmates profit from the unethical behavior
of the correctional officer?

4. What punitive action should be taken against Francis?
Correctional Officer SubcultureMay consider inmates,
superiors, and society in general as “the enemy”
Accept use of force as a routine job element
Show a tendency to redefine job roles to meet minimum
requirements only
Show a willingness to use deceit to cover up wrongdoing by
staff
*
Types of Officers
Violence-prone: use the role of correctional officer to act out an
authoritarian role
Time-servers: serve time in prison much the same as most
inmates do (trying to avoid trouble and hoping nothing goes
wrong on their shift)
Counselors: seek to enlarge their job description; perceive their
role as inmate counselor/helper
*
Use of Force

5. Physical force is often necessary in prison situations.
Prior to the 1980s, overt physical force was used routinely in
U.S. prisons.
“tune ups”
“hanging up”
Hudson v. McMillian
Today, the incidence of excessive force is less common, but it is
still used in some institutions.
Inmates have more to fear from each other than from
correctional officers.
*
Detention Officers in Jails
In many respects, local jail officers have more difficult
responsibilities than state prison officers.
Jail population is transitory and often unstable.
Offenders may come into jail intoxicated, suffer from
undiagnosed diseases or psychiatric conditions, or be suicidal.
Visitation is more frequent, and family issues are more
problematic.
The constant activity and chaotic environment of a jail often
create unique ethical dilemmas.

6. *
Treatment Staff
The professional goal of all treatment specialists is to help the
client.
This goal may be fundamentally inconsistent with the punitive
prison/jail environment.
A dilemma of treatment programs is deciding who is to
participate.
Psychiatrists in corrections may feel that they are being used
more for social control than treatment.
*
Treatment in Prison
The fact that prisoners are captive audiences makes them
attractive subjects for experimentation.
Can inmates give voluntary and informed consent?
Treatment vs. custody issues
Issues with faith based treatment programs

7. *
Ethical Issues for
Prison PsychologistsConfidentialityProtection of psychological
recordsInformed consentCorroborationRefusal of
servicesNondiscriminationCompetenceKnowledge of legal
structureAccuracy and honestyMisuses of psychological
informationMultiple relationships
Probation DiscretionMake sentencing/revocation
recommendations.Write violation reports.Responsibility to the
offender’s family.Relationships/closeness to the
offender.Gratuities.Part-time employment.
Probation Officer “Types”The punitive law enforcer: officers
have a tendency to use illegal threats and violate due process
protections.The Welfare/therapeutic practitioner: officers
infringe on clients’ privacy because they are “helping” the
client. The passive time server: officers do not perform
assigned duties.
Parole
Supervision of parole officers is stronger than probation
officers. The parole officer usually manages a caseload of older
and seasoned offenders.
67 % of released inmates were charged with at least one serious

8. crime within three years.Studies indicate that the rate of
recidivism is worse than twenty years ago.Men, blacks, and
young people are the most likely to recidivate.Those who
participate in property crimes are most likely to return to
criminal behavior.
Causes of Probation/Parole Officer Burnout…Low
wagesIncompetent promotionHigh caseloadsCorrectional
ineffectivenessPoliticsEmotional Investment
CHAPTER 11:
The Ethics of Punishment and Corrections
Lecture Slides prepared by Cheryn Rowell
*
Elements of PunishmentTwo people involved, the punisher and
the one being punished
The punisher inflicts harm on the one being punished
The punisher is authorized by law to inflict the punishment
The one being punished has been judged to be in violation of a
criminal law
The inflicted harm is meted out specifically as punishment for
that violation of criminal law

9. *
Treatment
In correctional terminology, treatment is anything used to
induce behavioral change.
The goals of treatment are:
elimination of dysfunctional or deviant behavior
encouragement of productive, normal behavior
*
Protection of individual liberty
Minimal intrusion in criminals’ lives
Justification of each intrusion
Crime should be prevented according to the requirements of
justice
Suggested Guidelines
for Punishment
*

10. Punishment Rationale
The social contract provides the rationale for punishment and
corrections.
We avoid social chaos by giving the state the power to
control us.
The state is limited in the amount of control it can exert
over individuals.
For consistency with the social contract, the state
should exert its power only to protect.
Any further interventions with civil liberties are
unwarranted.
*
Correctional Goals
1. Retribution
2. PreventionIncapacitationDeterrenceRehabilitationReform
Can treatment and punishment occur simultaneously?
Can a punishment system in which “just” punishme nt is relative
and changes with time be ethical or moral?
*

11. Punishment and Corrections
Treatment programs created in the last hundred years assume
that offenders’ criminal activity can be reduced by:
treating psychological problems such as sociopathic or paranoid
personalities
addressing social problems such as alcoholism or addiction
resolving more practical problems, such as chronic
unemployment, with vocational training and job placement
*
Retribution: How Much Punishment?
Bentham: Criminal offenses deserve punishment that balances
the pleasure or profit of the offense
Neoclassicists: Characteristics of the offender should influence
the punishment decision
In today’s correctional climate:
Determinate sentencing focuses on the seriousness of the
offense
Indeterminate sentencing tailors the sentence to the individual
offender
Retributivists: Balance is restored when offenders have suffered
as much as their victims
*

12. Punishment
The Justice Model of punishment:
Promotes a degree of predictability and equality in
sentencingReverts to earlier retributive goals of
punishmentRestricts the state’s use of treatment as a release
criterion
The Just Deserts Model of punishment:
Bases punishment on “commensurate deserts”Incorporates
incapacitationEqually punishes offenders who commit similar
crimes
*
Prevention
Assumes that something should be done to the offender to
prevent future criminal activity
Preventive methods include:DeterrenceIncapacitationTreatment
*
Deterrence
Specific Deterrence:
Preventing a particular offender from deciding to commit
another offenseTeaching through punishment

13. General Deterrence:
Prevent others in general from deciding to engage in wrongful
behaviorTeaching by example
*
Incapacitation
Holding an offender until there is no risk of further crime
Because incapacitation is predictive:
We might release an offender who commits further crimes
We might not release an offender who would not commit further
crimes
*
Three Strikes LawsAre these laws justified under retribution,
deterrence, or incapacitation?
Supreme Court holdings of Lockyer v. Andrade and Ewing v.
California.
*
TreatmentTreatment is considered beneficial for both society

14. and the individual offender.
The control over the individual is just as great as with
punishment.
Courts define treatment as “that which constitutes accepted and
standard practice and which could reasonably result in a
‘cure.’”
Much of the treatment in the correctional environment is either
implicitly or directly coerced.
No single program works for all offenders.
*
Ethical Justifications
for Punishment
Utilitarianism: treatment, incapacitation, deterrence (we punish
to benefit the majority)
Ethical formalism: retribution (we punish because the offender
deserves it)
Ethics of care: restorative justice (we punish only if it is
necessary to meet the needs of all involved)
*

15. PunishmentThe American criminal justice system has adopted
prison as a standard form of punishment.
Imprisonment does not carry the physical pains of flogging or
mutilation.
Imprisonment is painful because it involves:banishment,
condemnation, separation from loved ones, deprivation of
freedom, and an assault on one's self-esteem.
Prisons are extremely expensive.
*
Cruel and Unusual Punishment
Unusual (by frequency): Punishments that are rarely used
become unusual.
Evolving standards of decency: Punishments acceptable in the
past (flogging) may not be acceptable today.
Shock the conscience: A punishment is cruel and unusual if it
shocks the public conscience.
Excessive or disproportionate: Any punishment that is
disproportionately administered or excessive to its purpose is
considered wrong.
Unnecessary: The purpose of punishment is to deter crime; only
an amount necessary to do so should be administered.
*

16. Thinking Point
In May of 2010, the US Supreme Court ruled that
sentencing a juvenile to life imprisonment without parole is
considered cruel and unusual punishment when the crime is not
murder. Until the recent Graham v. Florida ruling, judges
around the country could sentence anyone under the age of 18 to
life in prison for crimes such as aggravated robbery, rape, and
murder.
Did the Supreme Court make the right decision? Why?
“Shaming” Punishments
Stigmatizing shaming rejects the individual and may have
negative effects.
Reintegrative shaming rejects only the person's behavior, thus
creating a healthier relationship between the individual and his
or her community.
*
Prison authorities have long segregated the most notorious
prisoners into special units.
Today, some states have constructed the most secure facilities,
referred to as supermax prisons.
Supermax conditions are extremely harsh, including individual
separation of all inmates around the clock and limited

17. recreational activity.
Challenges due to conditions, procedures, and who is sent there
(non-violent, mentally ill)
Supermax Prisons
*
Private Corrections
Private prisons are built by a private corporation, then leased to
the state or actually run by the corporation, which bills the state
for the service.
What ethical issues do you think arise with the privatization of
prisons?
*
No ethical issues listed
Evaluating Private CorrectionsA General Accounting Office
study found that private and public institutions cost about the
same
Private corrections tend to pay lower salaries than state
corrections departments
Officers often transfer to state corrections departments after
they are trained
Turnover is high in both private and state corrections
Where is incentive to rehabilitate?

18. *
Public support
1966: 44 percent
late 1990s: 75–80 percent
2008: 63 percent
Who is in favor?
Whites
Fundamentalist Protestants
Politically conservative
Men
Capital Punishment
Ethical Justifications
RETENTIONISTS
Utilitarianism: deterrence
Ethical formalism:
proportional harm
Religion:
“an eye for an eye”
ABOLITIONISTS
Utilitarianism: deterrence ineffective
Ethical formalism:

19. categorical imperative
Religion:
“turn the other cheek”
Capital Punishment
Does failure to apply capital punishment
fairly invalidate its use?
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against executing: the
mentally ill the mentally handicapped juveniles (under 18)
*
Recent Challenges“Fast track” death appeals (OK)
Lethal injection (OK)
Execution for rapists (Not OK)
Community CorrectionsMost offenders are under some form of
community supervision (probation or parole, halfway houses,
work release centers, and intermediate sanctions).
Community supervision poses different ethical challenges than
institutional corrections.
*

20. Formal Ethics for
Correctional Professionals
Common across all ethics codes: Integrity Respect for and
protection of individual rightsService to the public Importance
and sanctity of the lawProhibition against exploiting
professional authority for personal gain
*
Correctional Officer Subculture May consider inmates,
superiors, and society in general as “the enemy”
Accept use of force as a routine job element
Show a tendency to redefine job roles to meet minimum
requirements only
Show a willingness to use deceit to cover up wrongdoing by
staff
*
Subcultural NormsCynicism towards clients
Lethargy from heavy caseloads and poor pay
Individualism: an officer running his/her caseload in the manner
he/she sees fit

21. *
Anti-Asian Violence & Restorative Justice -
Creative/Experimental
Imagine what restorative justice might look and feel like in the
Vincent Chin case. Who do you imagine would be at the
restorative justice meeting in the Vincent Chin case? What do
you think the victims (Lily Chin, Vikki Wong, Jimmy Choi)
want to say to the offenders (Ronald Ebens & Michael Nitz)?
What steps do you think the people involved might decide to
repair the offenders' harm?
With this option, you will want to utilize the PRIMARY
DOCUMENTS (Who Killed Vincent Chin? (1987), "The New
Violence" by Helen Zia for Bridge, and Lily Chin's letter to
Detroit Chinese Welfare Council) provided in the module to
imagine what the people involved in the Vincent Chin case
might want to say to each other. You will also NEED to do
some additional research on restorative justice to understand
better how the restorative justice process works. Please provide
a citation for the resource you use in the brief explanation of
your project.
You will also want to include a Works Cited page using
the Modern Language Associations format, crediting the sources
that informed your thinking about your project.
POSSIBLE IDEAS: Short play centered on a dialogue between
Lily Chin, Vikki Wong, Ronald Ebens, and Michael Nitz; a
fictional letter exchange between Lily Chin and Ronald Ebens
using the principles of restorative justice; graphic novel; poem;
short digital video using footage from Who Killed Vincent
Chin?, etc.
Resources

22. · No One Is Disposable: Everyday Practice of Prison
Reform (Links to an external site.)
· Dean Spade & Craig Willse, "Confronting the Limits of Gay
Hate Crimes Activism: A Radical Critique, Seattle University
School of Law Digital Commons, 1/1/2000 (Links to an external
site.)
· Restorative Justice: Why Do We Need It?