How many people is too many people in the prison system? The American Criminal Justice system holds almost 2.3 million.
The war on drugs, tougher sentencing and increasing arrest are just a few of the reasons for overcrowding. For example, overcrowding causing inhuman living conditions for inmates. Many prisons and jails expose prisoners to dangerous environmental conditions like extreme heat or cold, contaminated food and lack of basic sanitation.
First hand, I had the opportunity to tour the Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland, Ohio. Due to overcrowding, inmates were forced to share cells that were originally designed for only one person.
This meant one or multiple inmates had to sleep on a thin pad on the floor. Toilets and sinks were also being shared by multiple people. If one stood, the other had to sit. They could palm both walls without fully extending their arms.The small area lead to odors being trapped inside without proper ventilation.
President Donald Trump in July of 2019 passed a bill allowing 3,100 federal inmates to walk out of prison. The mass release- the largest since The First Step Act was signed into law after a rare bipartisan push last year.
Trump allowed drug offenders and weapon violates to be released. While this bill was a great step in the right direction, it was a drop in the bucket compared to the problem of overcrowding. To end mass incarceration, reforms will have to go further than the “low hanging fruit” of nonviolent drug offenses.
So, heres the question I propose to you-
what is the solution for overcrowding?
The Ins and Outs of Prisons 