Suchergebnisse

Prisons, reformatories, & training Sch's have been part of Western culture for about 2 cent's. In the main, they now reflect an inefficient, ineffective, & obsolete soc instrument-the total instit. The emerging model for dealing with offenders will feature many shades of community-based placement for both juveniles & adults. Total instit's segregated from the community may be necessary for a small % of dangerous people, housing a much smaller proportion of the total offender pop than that which is now kept under constant lock & key. In excess of 70% of all offenders can be placed immediately in community-based correctional activities. Another 15% may need short-term, community-oriented confinement. Programs for the remaining 15% requiring longer-term restraint should, nevertheless, be aimed at normal community life. Movement in this direction will require major diversification & strengthening of probation & parole & integration of correction efforts with general community rehabilitative activities. As a prerequisite to those changes, there is a need for signif educ of pol'al leaders, judges, public-interest groups, & public-information media concerning the potential of community-based corrections. HA.

Prisons, reformatories, and training schools have been part of Western culture for about two centuries. In the main, they now reflect an inefficient, ineffective, and obsolete social instrument—the total institution. The emerging model for dealing with offenders will feature many shades of com munity-based placement for both juveniles and adults. Total institutions segregated from the community may be necessary for a small percentage of dangerous people, housing a much smaller proportion of the total offender population than that which is now kept under constant lock and key. In excess of 70 per cent of all offenders can be placed immediately in community-based correctional activities. Another 15 per cent may need short-term, community-oriented confinement. Pro grams for the remaining 15 per cent requiring longer-term restraint should, nevertheless, be aimed at normal community life. Movement in this direction will require major diversi fication and strengthening of probation and parole and inte gration of correctional efforts with general community rehabili tative activities. As a prerequisite to those changes, there is a need for significant education of political leaders, judges, public-interest groups, and public-information media concern ing the potential of community-based corrections.

This article presents descriptive statistics on the 66 suicides occurring in federal institutions in Canada over a 4-year period. Criminological and institutional factors of those who committed suicide included lengthy involvement in the criminal justice system, a greater likelihood of being incarcerated for robbery or murder, and involvement in institutional incidents of a serious nature. In addition, 62% of the inmates who committed suicide had been transferred from other institutions within 6 months prior to suicide, though 59% evidenced no indicators of suicidal intent and 44% were not considered to be depressed at the time of suicide. Family problems (29%) were the most commonly hypothesized motivating factor in the suicides, followed by denial of a request for appeal, parole, or transfer (26%), fear of other inmates (24%), and substance abuse problems (21%). Current and planned suicide prevention and intervention strategies of the Correctional Service of Canada are discussed in the context of these findings.