How Much Time Should be Spent in Prison?

 By Laci Schlatz

JRN 100 – Staff Writer

The public is currently divided over whether people convicted of crimes spend too much or too little time in prison. According to a study done by John Gramlich at the Pew Research Center, most citizens believe that the convicted spend the right amount of time in prison, although public opinion has been affected by “party affiliation, ideology, race, and ethnicity” said Gramlich.

John Gramlich said in this study how, “28% of U.S. adults say people convicted of crimes spend too much time in prison, while 32% say they spend too little time and 37% say they spend about the right amount of time.” During this study, people were asked generally about sentencing time rather than being asked about specific crimes.

In an interview conducted with Kevin H. Wozniak, a lecturer in criminology at Maynooth University in Maynooth, Ireland, and an expert on public opinion about criminal justice and its interactions with wider political forces in the country, he provided his expertise.  

Wozniak pointed out how when doing surveys similar to this one, the questions are often broad rather than specific which affects the answer of the public. He said that “a lot of what gets talked about in American public opinion is reductive”. This shows that this isn’t only an issue that applies to criminal justice but in numerous areas. Wozniak provided an example of people being asked whether they support or don’t support the death penalty, people automatically assume it is for a violent crime rather something such as a misdemeanor. To help get more of an accurate answer from the public, Wozniak said to ask more specific questions such as “Do you prefer the death penalty over people on parole?” A question like this can bring more thought to the person and possibly provide a different answer. 

When people are asked questions like these most of the people asked have never been in prison or gained a sense of the conditions. This can affect how the subject answers because they don’t understand the conditions in which the convicts live.

When presenting Wozniak with these statistics, he noted how Americans have grown to become progressive over time, but the overall public still treats criminals poorly. There are many things in our economy regarding criminal justice that are going to impact society. Maxwell W. Passas, an Equal Justice Works Fellow sponsored by the Vertex Foundation, who has an attorney position, working in the Boston College Innocence Program, has provided ways in which people can be affected by criminal sentencing.

According to the Department of Justice, the mission of our criminal justice system is, “to seek punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior, and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans.” Numerous people are impacted when someone gets convicted, not only the convict but their family and whomever else has a prominent role in their life.  Passas helps people who were wrongfully convicted and looks for ways to prevent future wrongful convictions. Passas had said, “When these mistakes that are systemic happen, we aren’t putting enough resources into how to prevent it.” This is why, “it is important to be knowledgeable about our justice system as it is very integral to our country right now” Passas said. She said our justice system has been created and normalized by people when it is something that can change. 

The public can help change the justice system in numerous ways such as voting for and questioning their elected officials. Along with asking hard questions that you want the answers to because individuals are affected by what laws and actions take place in their community. Learn about how it can impact both convicts and citizens. 

This study from Pew Research Center also found that Democrats are more likely to say that people spend too much time in prison, while Republicans are more likely to say the opposite. When presented with this information, expert, Kevin Wozniak, has said how public opinion is not responsive to the crime itself, but only to criminal rhetoric. 

The public responds to what is said by officials about a crime, rather than the crime itself. Along with how Republican punitiveness is higher than Democratic voters, and the Republicans haven’t budged for decades. While liberals and independent voters are more likely to respond to the crime rate, this can also impact the views a location has. The rural areas in our country are growing more conservative while urban areas are moving to be more progressive. Incarceration rates are slowly declining in urban areas and rising in rural areas (for local jails, not prisons). Wozniak said that politics possibly influence people's thoughts regarding our criminal justice system. For example, Donald Trump had a famous name before becoming president, if it wasn’t for his name, would the dynamics be the same? 

Passas of the Boston College Innocence Project said about these statistics that, “human rights shouldn’t be political because it is just fundamentally deciding whether people participate in society and whether or not human needs are met.” Continuing that if people believe in human rights no matter the politics, the public should believe that we are using incarceration more often than needed. What Passas has noticed was that a lot of younger people have been calling for some type of change, especially the ones on the Democratic side. In general, democrats call for certain things that Republicans don’t, but either way, it is important to interrogate who is saying and doing what.

The public is divided in their opinion on criminal sentencing, to obtain a more accurate picture of the public would be to ask more specific questions and educate oneself more about our justice system and prison conditions. Many prisons are overcrowded, violent, and have poor conditions. Both Passas and Wozniak agreed on how many human rights are violated in these prisons. Educate yourself on the topic, vote, and question your elected officials to encourage change.