Our penal system, and the uses and abuses of punishment

September 30, 2007

CHRISTOPHER SHEA captures an important truth when he observes that the penal system is not just "a reflection of society, but a force that shapes it" ("Life sentence," Ideas, Sept. 23). The United States has undertaken a vast social experiment of mass incarceration with human subjects, and the limits of damage to individuals and society are not fully known. The use of punishment as the preferred method to address medical problems such as mental illness and substance abuse is one area where reforms of the penal system are overdue. High incarceration rates of these populations represent a failure by society to effectively provide access to treatment before crimes are committed. In both these areas, effective medical treatment is available. From a medical point of view, there are more humane and cost-effective ways to spend limited resources in addressing risk factors to incarceration.

Dr. SCOTT A. ALLEN
Dr. JOSIAH D. RICH
Providence

The writers are with the Center for Prisoner Health and Human Rights at the Miriam Hospital.

FOLLOWING RECENT events in Jena, La., Christopher Shea's spotlight on the prison system was welcome.

Indeed, many people, not just "hard-left liberals," have tried for years, with little help from the media, to draw attention to myriad fronts, such as how the drug war is stacked against the poor and people of color, and how courts have been used to hobble political foes going back to J. Edgar Hoover.

As a guard at the Dorchester juvenile lockup, I saw how young people are socialized in jail. Their self-esteem is eroded, they learn dysfunctional behaviors, and then they head back out to teach their peers and children.

By axing mental health, detox, and education programs both inside and out, and blocking legal employment with overbroad CORI checks, we prevent healthy reentry and promote recidivism. Why aren't we focusing on cheaper alternatives to prison that could break the cycle?

Of course, one unspoken barrier to change is profit. Too many politicians and their corporate friends benefit financially. And communities see new prisons as life savers.

How long will we let this myopia and profiteering ruin lives and destroy our society?

ALEX PAPALI
Jamaica Plain