Prisons and Jails - Everything Everywhere Daily: History, Science, Geography & More

Summary

Everything Everywhere Daily: Episode Summary
Title: Prisons and Jails
Release Date: November 25, 2024
Host: Gary Arndt | Glassbox Media

Introduction

In the episode titled "Prisons and Jails," host Gary Arndt delves into the evolution of incarceration as a primary form of punishment—a concept that is surprisingly modern in the grand scope of human history. The discussion examines how societies have historically handled crime and how the contemporary prison system emerged from these practices.

The Historical Context of Punishments

Gary begins by challenging the common perception that imprisonment has ancient roots. He explains that, historically, incarceration was nearly nonexistent as a formalized punishment system. Instead, societies relied on immediate and physical forms of punishment to maintain order.

"The concept of incarceration as a formalized punishment system is relatively recent in modern history," [00:44].

In pre-modern communities, which were often tight-knit and agrarian, punishing crime through imprisonment would have been economically and socially impractical. Resources and labor were crucial for survival, making the maintenance of prisons unfeasible. Instead, punishments typically involved fines, corporal punishment, banishment, slavery, or even death. These methods aimed more at establishing societal order rather than seeking justice or rehabilitation.

Differentiating Jails and Prisons

A critical part of the discussion focuses on distinguishing between jails and prisons, emphasizing their differing purposes and durations of incarceration.

"Jails are short-term facilities to hold individuals awaiting trial, sentencing or serving sentences of less than a year, often for misdemeanors. Prisons, on the other hand, are long-term facilities to house individuals convicted of serious crimes, serving sentences usually longer than a year," [03:15].

Historically, while jails existed in various forms across ancient civilizations—such as the carceres in Rome or temples in China—prisons as long-term punishment facilities were rare until the modern era.

The Evolution of Modern Prisons

The transformation from traditional forms of punishment to the modern prison system began in 16th century England with the establishment of workhouses. These institutions initially aimed to address idle poverty by exchanging shelter and necessities for labor, reflecting early notions of rehabilitation.

Influential Enlightenment thinkers like Thomas More, Cesare Beccaria, and Jeremy Bentham played pivotal roles in this transformation. More, in his seminal work Utopia, proposed that criminals should be put to work rather than executed. Bentham introduced the concept of the Panopticon—a theoretical prison design that allows a single watchman to observe all inmates without them knowing if they are being watched, thereby promoting self-regulation among prisoners.

Gary notes, "The Penitentiary Act of 1779 aimed to provide incarceration as a punishment instead of death or being sent to the colonies. The act mandated the construction of secure sanitary prisons where inmates would be housed in solitary cells, provided with regular work and subject to strict discipline" [07:50].

Despite these progressive ideas, the actual implementation was initially limited. However, in the United States, the Walnut Street Penitentiary in Philadelphia, built in 1790, marked the beginning of a structured incarceration system. This period saw the emergence of two distinct models:

The Pennsylvania System: Emphasized solitary confinement, where prisoners lived alone in large cells, promoting reflection and rehabilitation through isolation.
The Auburn System: Allowed inmates to work together in silence during the day, fostering a more communal environment while maintaining strict order.

"The Pennsylvania system became popular in Europe, where it influenced many prisons in countries like Germany and France. However, it declined in use due to high costs and concerns about the negative psychological effect of prolonged isolation," [14:30].

Ultimately, the Auburn System prevailed due to its economic advantages and efficiency in utilizing inmate labor, laying the foundation for most modern prison infrastructures.

The Rise of Supermax Prisons

The discussion transitions to the late 20th century, highlighting the emergence of supermaximum security prisons (supermax) as a response to heightened prison violence and the rise of powerful inmate gangs. Gary recounts the 1983 riot at the Marion Penitentiary in Illinois, where the Aryan Brotherhood gang killed two guards, illustrating the limitations of traditional prison systems in managing extreme cases.

"Supermax prisons were developed to manage inmates who exhibit extreme violence, are leaders of prison gangs or criminal organizations, have escaped or attempted to escape from high security facilities and pose significant risks to staff or other inmates or the public," [22:10].

Supermax facilities, such as ADX Florence in Colorado, are designed for maximum security and control, featuring:

Strict Confinement: Inmates are confined to their cells for 22 to 24 hours a day.
Minimal Interaction: Limited to almost zero interaction with other inmates.
No Rehabilitation Focus: These institutions prioritize containment over rehabilitation, often hosting high-profile and dangerous criminals.

Gary emphasizes the severity and effectiveness of supermax prisons by noting that no one has successfully escaped from ADX Florence, further solidifying their role in the modern penal system.

Modern Perspectives and Ongoing Debates

In the concluding section, Gary reflects on the ubiquity of incarceration in contemporary society and the ongoing debates surrounding the prison system. While incarceration is now almost universally accepted as the primary form of punishment, questions remain about its effectiveness, the appropriate prison population size, and the types of crimes that warrant imprisonment.

"There are still many debates about what prison should be, how many people should be in prison, and what crimes should require imprisonment," [33:45].

Despite the widespread adoption of prisons, alternative and rehabilitative approaches continue to be explored and implemented in various regions, signaling an ongoing evolution in criminal justice policies.

Conclusion

Gary Arndt's exploration of "Prisons and Jails" provides a comprehensive look into how incarceration became the predominant form of punishment in the modern world. From ancient and immediate forms of punishment to the structured and complex prison systems of today, the episode underscores the significant shift influenced by Enlightenment ideals and practical necessities. As societies continue to grapple with the challenges of crime and punishment, the prison system remains a crucial yet contentious aspect of maintaining societal order.

Notable Quotes:

"The concept of incarceration as a formalized punishment system is relatively recent in modern history." – Gary Arndt [00:44]
"Jails are short-term facilities to hold individuals awaiting trial, sentencing or serving sentences of less than a year, often for misdemeanors. Prisons, on the other hand, are long-term facilities to house individuals convicted of serious crimes, serving sentences usually longer than a year." – Gary Arndt [03:15]
"The Pennsylvania system became popular in Europe, where it influenced many prisons in countries like Germany and France. However, it declined in use due to high costs and concerns about the negative psychological effect of prolonged isolation." – Gary Arndt [14:30]
"Supermax prisons were developed to manage inmates who exhibit extreme violence, are leaders of prison gangs or criminal organizations, have escaped or attempted to escape from high security facilities and pose significant risks to staff or other inmates or the public." – Gary Arndt [22:10]
"There are still many debates about what prison should be, how many people should be in prison, and what crimes should require imprisonment." – Gary Arndt [33:45]

Production Credits:

Executive Producer: Charles Daniel
Associate Producers: Benji Long and Cameron Keever
Supporters: Special thanks to Patreon supporters, with exclusive merchandise available to top-tier members.
Community Engagement: Listeners can join the Everything Everywhere Daily Facebook group or Discord server for discussions and community interaction.

Additional Notes:

For more information, listeners are encouraged to visit the show’s social media platforms and check the show notes for relevant links.

Transcript

Gary Arndt (0:00)

There are many things in our world that have surprisingly ancient origins. And one of the things that most definitely does not have an ancient origin is the concept of prison and incarceration as punishment. Today, almost everywhere in the world, the primary form of punishment for crime is incarceration. Yet historically speaking, this form of punishment was almost never practiced until the modern era. Learn more about prisons and jails, their differences, and how they came to be on this episode of Everything Everywhere. Daily.

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Gary Arndt (1:44)

The concept of incarceration as a formalized punishment system is relatively recent in modern history. If you go back actually not too far in history, the idea of locking someone up as a punishment for a crime was absolutely unheard of. And this was true for almost all of human history, across every society and civilization in the world. Consider the live in some sort of community that mostly relies on self sufficient agriculture. Or maybe you even live with a tribe of hunter gatherers. Either way, your entire life surrounds providing food for your family and your community. Now let's suppose that someone commits a crime in your community. Perhaps they steal something or destroy something, or even kill someone. What do you do? Assuming that you believe there has to be some sort of consequence for your actions, and that's something that unifies pretty much every culture in history. What sort of punishment do you mete out if you decided that incarceration was to be the punishment? Think about what would be required by this community to do that. First, resources would have to be put into the construction of some sort of facility. Regardless of how elaborate or not this facility was, it would have to be built which would require Time and resources. Then the facility would need people to guard the prisoner. People who would not be defending your people or outgrowing food. In fact, they would require food and resources. Finally, assuming we had a penal system like we do today, the guilty party would be fed, housed and clothed, and wouldn't have to do anything. In a world where people are involved in backbreaking labor every day, such a punishment wouldn't be considered a punishment at all. It would actually be considered a reward. Most people would consider having all of their needs met, even if it meant living in a cell, to be preferable to their day to day lives. If a person were given such a sentence for a crime, it would probably cause resentment more than a sense of justice. So prisons as a form of punishment were simply not economically or socially feasible. In the ancient world. Punishments for crimes differed across civilizations and time, but there were common threads. If possible, fines or restitution to the aggrieved party would be normal. However, punishments were also physical. Corporal punishments of some sort, including whipping or mutilation, were almost universal. Depending on the person, banishment or exile might also have been an option. Someone could have been sold into slavery depending on the crime. And of course, the most universal form of punishment was death. The goal was not usually justice and certainly not rehabilitation. It was usually establishing societal order. The Code of Hammurabi in Babylon, Rome's twelve Tables, the laws of Manu in India, the legal systems in Greece and China all had somewhat similar punishments for crimes. Now, all of that being said, people were sometimes held in confinement. And this is where the difference between a jail and a prison comes into play. The primary difference between a prison and a jail lies in their purpose and the length of incarceration. Jails are short term facilities to hold individuals awaiting trial, sentencing or serving sentences of less than a year, often for misdemeanors. Prisons, on the other hand, are long term facilities to house individuals convicted of serious crimes, serving sentences usually longer than a year. A jail is someplace you hold someone awaiting trial or punishment, whereas a prison is the punishment. Jails can be found throughout history. There are reports from ancient China of people being held in temples before they were tried. The Romans had jails known as carceres, where people were briefly held before punishment or trial. There are a few examples of these holding facilities that survive because they were more often than not, not permanent facilities or were part of something else. What we do know are facilities that were built during the Middle ages in places like castles, because you know them as dungeons. The term dungeon derives from the Old French word donjon, which referred to the central tower or keep of a castle. Dungeons were fortified underground chambers or rooms used primarily for detention within castles or fortifications. Dungeons were not usually used as punishments for common crimes. They were usually used for political prisoners or aristocratic prisoners who were captured during a war and held for ransom. Dungeons were usually dark, cold and damp, and those who spent enough time in one probably didn't have a long life expectancy. Some castles eventually became dedicated facilities for holding political prisoners, in particular the Tower of London and the Bastille in Paris. The origins of modern prisons go back to 16th century England with the establishment of workhouses. Workhouses began as a remedy for idle poverty. Idleness was actually considered a crime at that time, as was being a vagabond. Workhouses offered shelter and basic necessities in exchange for labor, often in harsh and demeaning conditions. Over time, workhouses became seen as a place to put criminals, not just the poor. For the first time around this period, the use of workhouses for criminal rehabilitation was proposed. Thomas More, in his book Utopia, suggested that the government shouldn't kill criminals, but but should instead put them to work. As the Industrial Revolution took hold, more people moved to cities and crime exploded. In an effort to combat crime, Britain radically expanded the number of crimes where the death penalty could be prescribed. There were over 200 different crimes, sometimes rather petty, for which someone could be executed, and this became known as the Bloody Code. Such capital crimes included stealing goods worth more than one shilling, cutting down a tree, stealing a sheep or horse and writing threatening letters. The intent was to provide a deterrent to crime. However, it didn't work. Crime kept going up and people often just attended executions as a form of entertainment, not as some moral lesson. Juries were often reluctant to convict offenders for minor crimes, knowing that the sentence would be death. An alternative punishment was sending people to the colonies as indentured servants. And here I have to note that as much as we like to make fun of our Australian friends as being the place where convicts were sent, the first such colonies for criminals was actually the Americas. However, with the American Revolution, that option was taken off the table. Around the same time, Enlightenment thinkers like Cesare Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham questioned the morality and effectiveness of traditional punishments. Bentham, in fact, designed a theoretical prison that he called the Panopticon. Its defining feature is a circular structure with a central observation tower surrounded by a ring of cells. The design allows for a single observer in the tower to monitor all inmates in their cells without the inmates being able to tell Whether they are being watched at any given moment. All of this resulted in the Penitentiary act of 1779. The Penitentiary act aimed to provide incarceration as a punishment instead of death or being sent to the colonies. The act mandated the construction of secure sanitary prisons where inmates would be housed in solitary cells, provided with regular work and subject to strict discipline. The act emphasized rehabilitation over punishment, promoting religious instruction and moral reform. However, the prisons that were mandated in the act were never constructed. Over in the United States, many of the same Enlightenment era reforms are being adopted by the new country to establish its criminal justice system. In 1790, the Walnut Street Penitentiary, also known as the Walnut Street Jail, was built in Philadelphia. The term penitentiary actually came from the Quakers who believed that they would be places for penitents. Over the next several years, two different systems of incarceration developed in the United States. They were known as the Pennsylvania System and the Auburn System. They were named after the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, built in 1829, and the Auburn Prison in Auburn, New York, built in 1816. In the Pennsylvania system, prisoners were kept in total isolation in their cells at all times. Each cell was large, with a bed, table, toilet and sometimes a small personal yard for exercise. In the Auburn system, prisoners worked together in silence during the day, typically in workshops. Inmates were required to remain silent at all times, even when working or eating. Cells were small, intended only for sleeping, as inmates spent much of their time outside their cell. The biggest difference between the systems was prison as a solitary affair versus a communal affair. Both systems had the goal of rehabilitating prisoners. The Pennsylvania system became popular in Europe, where it influenced many prisons in countries like Germany and France. However, it declined in use due to high costs and concerns about the negative psychological effect of prolonged isolation. Ultimately, the Auburn system won out and the reason was primarily economics. Building smaller cells in communal spaces was simply more cost efficient. Also, having prisoners work together allowed for more effective assembly line type labor, which was impossible under the Philadelphia system. Today, most prisons follow at least the basic tenets of the auburn system. The 19th and 20th centuries saw the establishment of national penal systems all over the world and the expansion of incarceration as the dominant form of punishment. Alternate punishments such as mutilation, whipping and public humiliation fell out of vogue in most countries. Although there are still countries that practice this to one degree or another. Countries that still have the death penalty usually now only reserve it for especially severe crimes such as murder. Incarceration and imprisonment have become so widespread as a form of punishment that almost anything else is considered unusual. At this point, the Auburn system's success, however, was not universal. There has been a shift back to the Pennsylvania model of strict isolation for some prisons, at least in a few cases. On October 22, 1983, a riot at the Marion Penitentiary in Illinois resulted in the deaths of two prison guards by members of the Aryan Brotherhood gang. The killings were premeditated and executed with deadly precision and highlighted the increasing violence and power of prison gangs in high security facilities. In response, the Marion Penitentiary was placed on permanent lockdown. This permanent lockdown of the Marion Penitentiary became the model for what became known as supermaximum security prisons, or supermax. Supermax prisons were developed to manage inmates who exhibit extreme violence, are leaders of prison gangs or criminal organizations, have escaped or attempted to escape from high security facilities and pose significant risks to staff or other inmates or the public. Supermax prisons are designed to ensure maximum security and control over inmates. Key features include confinement to cells for 22 to 24 hours a day, very small cells with minimal furnishings, and almost zero interaction with other inmates. Supermax prisons make no attempt at all of rehabilitation, as almost no one who enters will ever leave. Perhaps the most famous supermax prison is ADX Florence, which is located in Fremont County, Colorado. It is informally known as the Alcatraz of the Rockies. As of this recording, the prison holds 344 male inmates, even though it could hold as many as 474. While the prison is small, its inmates read like a who's who of crime. Over the last several decades, the list of inmates has included the Unabomber, Ted Kaczynski, Terry Nichols, a co conspirator in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, the Olympic park bomber, Eric Rudolph, El Chapo Guzman, the former leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel, and the shoe bomber Richard Reed, as well as many more. To date, no one has ever escaped from a supermax prison. Prisons and incarceration have become so ubiquitous as a means of punishment that most people don't even realize that it's a rather modern innovation. There are still many debates about what prison should be, how many people should be in prison, and what crimes should require imprisonment. However, the very idea of incarceration in prison as a punishment for crimes, as opposed to the type of punishments that came beforehand, is almost universally accepted now, which is a radical change from what humanity practiced for most of its existence. And it's all due to the ideas of 18th century Enlightenment thinkers. The executive producer of Everything Everywhere Daily is Charles Daniel. The associate producers are Benji Long and Cameron Keever. I want to give a big shout out to everyone who supports the show over on Patreon, including the show's producers. Your support helps me put out a show every single day and also Patreon is currently the only place where Everything Everywhere Daily merchandise is available to the top tier of supporters. If you'd like to talk to other listeners of the show and members of the Completionist Club, you can join the Everything Everywhere Daily Facebook group or Discord server. Links to Everything are in the show notes.