NCJ Number
155953
Journal
Justice Report Volume: 11 Issue: 1 Dated: (1995) Pages: 10-12
Date Published
1995
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Views of the Correctional Services of Canada on prison overcrowding are addressed in terms of the scope of the problem and policy and management implications.
Abstract
After many years of 2.5 to 3 percent growth, Canada's federal inmate population has been increasing far more rapidly in recent years: 5 percent over the 12 months ending March 31, 1993; 8.5 percent by March 1994; and an estimated 5.5 percent by March 1995. Causes of this increase relate to the impact of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act of 1992, the steady increase in the number of lifers, rising prison admissions, longer prison sentences, declining conditional releases, and higher suspensions and conditional release revocations. Policy implications of prison overcrowding focus on the use of incarceration as a correctional tool, early intervention to redirect youthful and other criminals into prosocial behavior, and sentencing reform. Management implications of prison overcrowding are discussed in relation to increasing prison capacity and minimizing adverse impacts of imprisonment.