
A new report by the Prison Policy Initiative examining disciplinary rules and punishments in all 50 state prison systems has found that “in practice… prison discipline is a system of petty tyranny with devastating, long-term consequences.”
“Corrections officers enforce rules arbitrarily, often doling out punishments for mundane behaviors and survival strategies while interrupting access to programming and services that can make a meaningful difference in people’s lives,” reads the report, entitled “Bad Behavior: How prison disciplinary policies manufacture misconduct.”
”Harsh sanctions are handed down following unfair and unaccountable proceedings wherein it is nearly impossible to defend oneself from the charges. The end result is a disciplinary system that plays a key role in keeping people in prison longer.”
The misconduct records that prisoners rack up as a result of prison disciplinary systems result in the denial of parole and clemency, while punishments within prisons — such as solitary confinement — increase the chances that a person will be rearrested later in life, the report argues.
Among the issues with the disciplinary systems are the sheer number of rules, some of which are extremely vague.
“This includes redundant rules against rule-breaking, such as ‘violating a rule,’ ‘disrupting the orderly operation of the institution,’ or ‘disobeying an order,’” the report found. “Nearly every incarcerated person we heard from said these rules against rule-breaking were among the most common charges found on disciplinary reports…forcing people to adhere to a long list of rules enforced using the broad discretion of an officer adds stress to an already stressful situation and makes inadvertent and minor violations practically inevitable.”
The report also found that despite the fact that most infractions are for minor rule violations, prisoners are frequently subjected to harsh and punitive punishments, such as solitary confinement, loss of good time credits, fines and fees, forced labor, and lost access to programming and services.
The disciplinary processes are also unfair and unaccountable, the report argues. “Disciplinary systems are frequently called ‘kangaroo courts’ because of their basic lack of fairness and safeguards for the accused. Incarcerated people routinely feel railroaded into punishment by this system.”
People who charge and prosecute alleged misconduct in prisons are colleagues, the report notes, and are assumed to be credible, while prisoners are not. People in prison are also prevented from obtaining facts and evidence that would be relevant to their defense.
The report recommends that prison disciplinary systems have fewer misconduct rules — particularly vague rules; implement more constructive responses and an end to inhumane punishments, including ending solitary confinement; limit the influence of misconduct records on release decisions; institute basic fairness, impartiality, and accountability; improve transparency through regular reporting; and subject fewer people to the harms of the disciplinary process by incarcerating fewer people.
“It’s bad enough that the criminal legal system routinely criminalizes and incarcerates people for low-level offenses,” the report notes, “but disciplinary systems make that bad situation worse by making it harder for people to get out — and often subjecting them to additional harm and trauma that makes it more likely they’ll be re-arrested when they’re eventually released.”
Comments