The World's Overflowing Prisons

California is solidly within the public’s gaze this week as it embarks on a court-ordered mission to address the state’s chronic prison crowding problem. But when it comes to packed prisons, across the world, the state is far from alone.

My inbox, thanks to a google alert on “prisons and overcrowding,” is usually fairly overcrowded itself, but lately I’ve noticed a clear spike in news stories around the world on the topic. Italy is dealing with the problem, as is Australia. Prisons in 33 US states are over design capacity, and stories in the press this week looked at the problem in West Virginia and South Carolina. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Inquirer blasted a plan to privatize a local jail in southern New Jersey.  In the last two days, Te-Ping Chen has written about a proposed prison ship off the U.K.’s coastline and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s public daydream about sending undocumented prisoners to facilities in Mexico.

Prison crowding is a worldwide epidemic, and we've learned during this recession that building new cells won't solve the problem (through the Corrections Corporation of America may not agree). We need to confront this problem directly -- by taking steps to support alternatives to incarceration for non-violent offenses, to treat drug abuse as a health problem rather than a criminal one, and to make parole, probation and post-release services more effective in order to reduce recidivism. It can be done.

California may be among the more visible cases of overcrowding, but it's hardly on track to lead the way in resolving the issue. A little background: After California prisoners filed a civil suit against the state, a federal three-judge panel found that the state was violating prisoners' constitutional rights by denying them adequate health care. That court ordered the state to reduce its prison population by 40,000 in order to come into compliance. California appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, which recently dismissed the state's appeal, though it left the door open for further review. In other words, the case drags on.

But California's current plan for reform sets a poor example. There are facets of the plan that make sense -- such as reducing the number of nonviolent parolees sent back to prison for violations, for one. But other aspects of the plan could make the state's problem worse -- like Schwarzenegger's proposals to privatize some state facilities, and to put the corrections budget on autopilot.

As home to the U.S.'s most high-profile failure of a prison system, California has the unusual opportunity to lead the world as it addresses solutions to address overcrowding. But doing so would take a true commitment to reform. For now, count me unconvinced.

Photo Credit: .:elnico:.