Correctional Officers’ Perceptions about the Safety and Control of Prohibited Items Entering into Prisons and Penitentiaries

The smuggling of prohibited items is one of the significant problems faced by prisons worldwide. This research explores the smuggling of prohibited items into Thai prisons by examining the perceptions of 20 correctional officers, who are directly involved in the prevention and suppression of such issues, by using qualitative research techniques. The results reveal that although measures have been put in place to prevent the smuggling of prohibited items and avert any prison searches, there are still channels for smuggling items in medium and maximum-security prisons. Finally, how other strategies may be employed by correctional administrators to control their facilities and environments are discussed

Cybersecurity & Correctional Institutions

Cybersecurity is becoming an increasingly important aspect of correctional operations. To properly maintain security, more jails and prisons are using comprehensive cyber protection techniques. Correctional facilities face risks that were perhaps unimaginable only a few decades ago. Many organizations have used information technology to help them run their businesses, but few have the resources or vision to foresee and adequately manage the cyber dangers that come with it. Institutions need to be more aware of these hazards, as well as have more information security experts on staff

Incarcerated students' experiences of UNISA’s open distance e-learning at one Medium Correctional Centre

Technology mediated pedagogies of the 21st century present new and unprecedented challenges for incarcerated tertiary students. The researchers, employing a qualitative exploratory research design, sought to explore the learning experiences of UNISA students incarcerated at Baviaanspoort Medium Correctional Centre. Six participants were sampled purposively and recruited to participate during a focus group interview. Qualitative content analysis revealed the ever-changing landscape of higher education due to the advent of digitised e-learning; the unique challenges encountered by incarcerated students studying at tertiary level; strategies for overcoming barriers associated with ODeL; and that lastly, in the context of imprisonment, student-centeredness is still primarily informed by a constructivist approach to ODL. The study concluded that students’ learning experiences, and by extension, academic success, can be enhanced provided learner support is augmented for incarcerated tertiary students

Behind bars: the truth about drugs in prisons

The consumption and dealing of drugs has long been a criminal offence, so how are drugs finding their way into prisons that are meant to be secure places of law enforcement? To be able to confront the problem, an in-depth understanding is needed on the current situation of drugs within prisons. This review focuses on three aspects, firstly looking at the main ways drugs are trafficked into prisons, secondly looking at the issues linked to the use of drugs within prisons and finally evaluating what is being done to try to tackle the problem. Drugs find their way into prisons in numerous ways, which causes problems for the prison system. Prison officials need to be able to keep up with the creative and inventive ways inmates are developing to traffic drugs into prisons. A third of prisoners in England and Wales claimed it was easier to get hold of drugs in prison than it was outside. This undermines prison security and creates problems with violence together being linked with reoffending. Two in five prisoners in England and Wales are known to commit offences in order to get funds to purchase drugs. Health risks are created by inmates sharing syringes, leading to the transmission of infectious diseases. This in turn causes the costs of treatments and detection methods to spiral out of control. Governments are constantly trying to proactively find ways to tackle drugs in prison; these include the use of sniffer dogs and employing more thorough searches by staff. But more needs to be done to eradicate drugs completely

Prisons and Drugs: A global review of incarceration, drug use and drug services. Report 12

Prisons play an important role in drug policy. They are used to punish people who break drug laws and they also hold a large number of people who have experience of drug use and drug problems. They therefore have an important part to play in attempts to reduce the harm caused by drugs. Imprisonment itself can be seen as one type of harm, as it causes problems for prisoners and their families and creates a large financial burden for taxpayers. Theseharms and costs are difficult to calculate, but there is little evidence that large scale imprisonment of drug offenders has had the desired results in deterring drug use or reducing drug problems (Bewley- Taylor, Trace, & Stevens, 2005). In this paper, we examine the international prevalence of drug users, drug use and related problems in prisons and we report on the problems that are related to the issue of drugs in prison. We go on to examine the international guidelines and effective responses that have been developed in this area in the last decade. The paper is a review of the literature, based on a search of bibliographic databases, including Medline, PubMed, ISI as well as EMBASE and contacts with researchers and practitioners in the field up to January 2007

Effect of In-Custody Remandee-Convict Interactions on Reintegration of Acquitted Remandees in Kakamega County

More recently, a growing body of research has examined how peers in prison can influence reentry outcomes. Although existing research on the role of prison peers in the reentry process is somewhat limited, or "incomplete" findings from studies that do exist on the topic mirror trends in the broader literature as higher levels of peer criminality relate to higher rates of crime, substance use, and as consequence recidivism, hence unsuccessful reintegration of remandees upon release from prison. This study investigated the effect of in-custody remandee-convict interactions on reintegration of acquitted remandees in Kakamega County, Kenya. The study was underpinned in the Labelling theory and Social Learning theory and adopted a descriptive survey design employing a mixed method of data collection.  The study used a stratified random sampling technique to obtain acquitted remandees and purposive sampling to get Correctional Officers, Assistant Chiefs and community members who took part in the study as key informants. A sample of 400 acquitted remandees was selected from a population of 1,427 using Yamane's sample apportionment formula. In addition, 9 Correctional Officers working within Kakamega County, 8 community members and 8 assistant chiefs from Sub-Locations with the highest number of returning remandees in Kakamega County were included in the study as key informants. Study data were collected using a questionnaire for acquitted remandees, interviews schedule for Prison Officers and Probation Officers, and Focus Group Discussion guide for community members and Assistant Chiefs. Validity of the data collection instrument was ascertained through expert review and reliability of the study questionnaire was ascertained using the internal consistency method where Cronbach's Alpha Coefficient of Reliability of 0.874 was achieved. Quantitative data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 28 for windows. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used in the study. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically where identified themes informed discussion lines. All statistical measurements with regards to quantitative data were performed within 95% confidence interval. Findings revealed a statistically significant relationship between in-custody remandee-convict interaction and reintegration of acquitted remandees in Kakamega County, Kenya (r=0.683; P<0.05). Regression analysis revealed a coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.317 which implied that 31.7% of the variance in the reintegration of acquitted remandees in Kakamega County was attributed to in-custody remandee-convict interactions. Based on the findings and conclusions of the study, a recommendation was made that deliberate efforts be made to minimize if not eliminate in-custody remandee-convict interactions. This can be achieved through adequate funding by the state department for correctional services to build separate facilities for released remandees and convicts. Keywords: In-Custody, Remandee, Convict, Interaction, Reintegration DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/134-09 Publication date:July 31st 202

Study of the South Carolina Department of Corrections

The purpose of this oversight study and investigation is to determine if agency laws and programs within the subject matter jurisdiction of a standing committee: are being implemented and carried out in accordance with the intent of the General Assembly; and should be continued, curtailed, or eliminated

Digital Competence and Family Mediation in the Perception of Online Risk to Adolescents. Analysis of the Montenegro Case Study

Da diversi anni il dibattito scientifico e politico internazionale ha manifestato un interesse sempre più crescente sulla digital literacy e la digital education, quali strumenti di tutela del minore rispetto ai rischi derivanti dall’utilizzo incontrollato e inconsapevole di diversi mezzi di comunicazione. Contemporaneamente, diversi filoni della letteratura scientifica hanno approfondito i temi dei rischi e delle opportunità legate all’utilizzo della rete, da cui spesso sono stati promossi interventi territoriali politici, di sensibilizzazione o di formazione per arginare gli effetti potenzialmente nocivi e incrementare quelli positivi, legati soprattutto alle opportunità di crescita individuale e di inclusione socioculturale che le tecnologie possono contribuire a determinare. Il paper si inserisce all’interno di questo quadro per riflettere sul modo in cui il possesso o meno di alcune competenze digitali possa influenzare o meno il comportamento di fruizione mediale dei giovani, incrementando o meno il rischio di esposizione mediale all’interno di un contesto socioculturale circoscritto. Per intraprendere questo tipo di riflessione, il paper focalizza la propria attenzione sul caso di studio del Montenegro e analizza alcuni risultati della ricerca Eukids on line del 2016, per riflettere sulla relazione fra competenze digitali e livello di rischio espositivo dei bambini compresi fra i 9 e i 17 anni all’interno di aree territoriali socioculturali circoscritte.For several years, international scientific and political debate has shown increasing interest in digital literacy and digital education as tools to protect minors from the risks associated with the unmonitored and unaware use of various media. At the same time, various strains in the scientific literature have more deeply analyzed the themes of the risks and opportunities associated with using the web; this has often resulted in the promotion of political, awareness-raising, or educational interventions on the local level, to contain the potentially harmful effects and augment the positive ones linked especially to the opportunities for individual growth and sociocultural inclusion that these technologies can help bring about. This paper enters into this framework to explore how whether or not digital competence is possessed can influence young people’s media use behaviour, while increasing or not increasing the risk of media exposure within a circumscribed sociocultural context. To undertake this kind of reflection, this paper focuses its attention on the Montenegro case study and analyzes some results of the 2016 Global kids on line research work, to consider the relationship between digital competence and the exposure risk level of children between 12 and 17 years of age within circumscribed sociocultural areas

Perceptions of Correctional Practitioners on Contraband Prevention in Maryland Adult State Prisons

AbstractAlthough contraband trafficking has been a focus of scholars since 2013, researchers have yet been able to establish a more reliable contraband control strategy. The present study was based on the perceptions of correctional practitioners of Maryland State Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS). These perceptions were necessary in devising a strategy to prevent the flow of contraband items into Maryland’s adult state prisons. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of 10 correctional practitioners from Maryland correctional facilities, with the goal of providing insight into which efforts are most effective in preventing contraband from state prisons. The theoretical framework for this study was based on Beccaria and Bentham’s theory of deterrence, which is the process of transmitting information to discourage violation of the law. Using the case study method, data from participants were collected virtually via telephone, Zoom, LinkedIn Facebook and WhatsApp, and the interviews lasted between 30 to 60 minutes. Data were analyzed through hand coding, with the help on NVivo software. The following themes resulted from data analysis: (a) security loopholes within the facilities that facilitate contraband trafficking, (b) correctional practitioners’ risk-taking tendencies, and (c) the search for an ideal contraband intervention model. By promoting the goal of protecting the public, the correctional employees, and the inmates, the perceptions expressed by the participants have the potential of creating positive social changes within the individuals themselves, the DPSCS, and society. The results may be used as the basis for future pilots to evaluate other prisons throughout the United States