Correctional facility........this made me feel so frustrated
Moms View Message Board: The Kitchen Table (Debating Board): Correctional facility........this made me feel so frustrated
This story was on "The Early Show" this morning. It really got under my skin.
These women even get "fieldtrips" to the mall for shopping.
There are indoor and outdoor playgrounds where the kids and moms can play together.
The moms get a private room for them and their kids. They went inside of one of the rooms, and it was VERY nice. A nice bed, with nice soft bedding for mom. A cute crib and dresser for baby. Wall decorations, the whole nine yards.
This is so very frustrating to me.
The news correspondant said "critics may say that this doesn't seem like punishment for a crime at all" The young mom replies "IT ISN'T" That right there should tell them that this isn't the best option.
Here is the link to the story :
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/12/22/earlyshow/contributors/tracysmith/main589830.shtml
Well, you can't keep the babies and moms together unless you treat the moms like human beings. IF you treat someone like an animal then they act like an animal.
It really should be about rehabilitation. I don't want to spend $30,000 -$ 90,000 a year to keep someone like an animal. I want them productive and in society. Of course that sometimes isn't possible.
If the moms are going to take care of the baby after they get out of jail in 6 months - 12 months then I would prefer that you give them parenting classes and let them be with their baby so they are bonded and the child don't have abandonement issues that last their entire life.
I was in foster care for 2 and a half years from birth so I guess I feel strongly about this.
I agree with part of what each of you has said. While I feel strongly that *punishment should fit the crime*, I also believe that many convicted of crimes can be rehabilitated - mind you, I'm not saying EVERYone can, and there are some I don't feel can be rehabilited, no matter what, they are just sick puppies, IMO, and should be put away where they can't harm anyone else.
That being said though, consider the cost of housing/feeding/clothing a prisoner over a year's time. I agree with Feona that if they are required to attend classes and LEARN something, and have a good chance to be rehabilitated, the money is much better spent.
Back to the other side of this coin though, there's a valid point made in that article, "They have all the benefits, they have all the advantages, they have all of the privileges that free women don't have and other incarcerated women don't have." Somehow, something doesn't seem right. And I have mixed emotions about the kids being raised in a prison vs. a foster home. There are cons to both of those options, as far as I can see.
I found this to be a key quote from the story:
"...What we find is that the recidivism rate is like maybe 15 percent, where at a traditional prison it's at 47 percent," says Robinson
I don't think anyone wants these people to re-offend and end up back in prison.
I agree that the punishment should fit the crime,and that we need tougher laws but should the baby be punished also. I say have the baby beds and allow them to stay there(unless it's murder convictions-non self defense); but cut out the cable tv,all of these candies and snacks they get for free, and things like that.
A lot of women who commit crimes were neglected or abused as children, or fall in with the wrong men, and end up commiting the crime for him, or taking the rap to protect him.
The cycle of abuse and neglect continues until it is broken. By having the Moms and kids together, perhaps they will LEARN how to become good Moms (something that was never modeled for them before). And maybe, just maybe, if we give them some nice amenities, and treat them like LADIES for the first time in their lives, their self esteem will improve, and they'll be more discriminating about their choice of men when they get out.
I'm still not for it. These women knowingly broke the law. The punishment should fit the crime. They should receive the same punishment as the next person. I don't feel that being treated like a lady, and given all of these extra perks is really punishment.
Let's say my next door neighbor, who is a man, was arrested on drug and forgery charges. (like the mother in the story) He wouldn't get to have his kids with him in a fancy "facility" with all the extra goodies to go with it. He would be in the county jail, in a jumpsuit just like the rest of the law breakers.
I agree with you but 9 times out of 10 the father is not the primary care taker and is usually never involved at all. So if you take the father away they still have their mother but if you take away their mother they usually have no one to turn to but the system.
So would you have a mother and child in a shared brick walled, cement floored cell with four bunked cots and an open toilet? They have lost their freedom. They have no choices when they awake or go to bed, what they eat, who they have contact with. What do you see as a fitting way to incarcerate these women?
You can take the children out of the equation, but where do you take them? ....to the overburdened foster care system? ....in a separate home on the grounds?
I think all prisioners get cable tv in most prisons. I guess it is cheap entertainment to keep the prisioners busy.
I think all prisioners get very good meals. The prisioners cook them themselves, and I believe there were so many riots about bad food that now the food is good.
I think all prisioners have access to computers. (Got that from the show OZ)
I didn't read anything about candy or treats. The kids need some treats because they are kids. I guess if you are feeding the kids a treat it would be hard not to give the adults a treat too.
I don't see the prisioners being given anything that wouldn't benefit the children.
I would have to say that I wouldn't have the children there in the jail. Children are a privelege (sp), and I don't think that these women should have the privelege of keeping their children with them. I don't.
I think depending on where you live, the foster system can be overburdened. I think that looking at other family members is an option, along with the standard foster care system. If child care is being provided for these kids while the moms are in classes, then it can be provided in other scenarios as well. Maybe if the child is placed with a family member or friend, then the state can pay for daily childcare while that family member or friend goes about their business.
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