Introduction to Corrections
Video and Multimedia
Click on the following links. Please note these will open in a new window.
Incapacitation
Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEqq34TpDT4
This YouTube video includes an interview with Dr. Lawrence Sherman who discusses why it is important to use research to create a more cost-effective prison system.
- How can some of the research Dr. Sherman cited be used for prison reform efforts?
Restorative Justice
Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8_94O4ExSA
This PBS video reviews restorative justice talking circles used in a Colorado high school as an alternative disciplinary policy.
- How does restorative justice differ from traditional disciplinary action?
- How can aspects of restorative justice be increasingly incorporated into more traditional corrections settings?
Reintegration
Audio Link: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=440516605&m=440770744
This NPR story profiles Richard Cabral, an actor who was formerly incarcerated and received rehabilitative services from Homeboy Industries, a gang prevention center.
- What does Richard’s story reveal about pathways to prison?
- What does Homeboy Industries’ services reveal about opportunities and rehabilitation for incarcerated people and formerly incarcerated people?
Mandatory Minimum Sentences
Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xW987dzOGA
This YouTube video discusses the implications of California’s three-strikes law, including its implications for non-violent offenders, prison populations, and corrections budgets.
- California’s three-strikes law passed by popular vote. What does this reveal about crime, public opinion, and its evolution?
- What type of philosophical underpinnings does this policy reflect?
Labeling and Social Reaction
Web Link: http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2015/04/28/399949478
This article discusses how labeling can contribute to self-fulfilling prophecies which can lead youth towards a path of success or incarceration.
- What does this article reveal about efforts for rehabilitation and reintegration?
- How can youth feel empowered or hindered by phrases used to describe them?
- What might authors of this article say regarding the implications of terms such as “ex-offender”?