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The issues associated with prison overcrowding are not new, but have been brewing for many years. During the War on Drugs, the states were left responsible for solving the prison overcrowding issue with a limited amount of money. Moreover, federal prison populations may increase if states adhere to federal policies, such as mandatory minimum sentences and the return to private prisons. On the other hand, the Justice Department provides billions of dollars a year for state and local law enforcement to ensure they follow the policies set forth by the federal government concerning U.S. prisons. Prison overcrowding has affected some states more than others, but overall, the risks of overcrowding are substantial and there are solutions to this problem.

Risks
Prison overcrowding could create a range of consequences that have become prevalent in the world today. First, prison overcrowding could affect resources per prisoner. The more inmates that are admitted, the less resources there are to distribute. Due to the lack of resources, inmates may be forced to spend large amounts of time doing nothing rather than becoming engaged in activity. The amount of resources continues to reduce as more prisoners are admitted, and social support services become more limited. With a small amount of space and resources within the prisons, prisoners progress more slowly through the steps to release, and their numbers accumulate more quickly. The combination of those two factors could lead to the prison system slowing down, and prisoners’ progress would also begin to move slowly. If the prisoners’ progress is slowed, then their exit is slowed as well. This will heavily increase overcrowding and results in a facility reaching maximum capacity at a faster rate.

Prison overcrowding comes with an opportunity cost. The amount of money spent on mass incarceration annually could be allocated to other areas of need, such as public safety or the reduction of crime Every year, $182 billion is spent on mass incarceration. Within that total, approximately $81 billion is spent on public corrections agencies and about $63 billion on policing. Much of this money is given to the staff to supervise large amounts of inmates for long periods of time. For example, in the state of Alabama, it’s possible to witness a correctional officer supervising up to 250-300 high-risk offenders for an extended period of time. These circumstances can result in the increase of prisoner violence. In 2011, there was an approximately 40% increase from the prior year in inmate violence that lead to some serious injuries.

In addition to Alabama, Delaware and California are also great examples of shown consequences due to prison overcrowding. In February 2017, a group of inmates from the James T. Vaughn correctional center in Delaware were involved in the hostage of four correctional officers. This resulted in the murder of Lt. Steven Floyd and the injury of many others. Vaughn is Delaware’s largest prison, and has been under much scrutiny for years; however, nothing has been done about the overcrowding problems within the state's corrections department. After the death of Floyd, more than 100 officers retired early or quit because of the increased dangers of working at Vaughn, thus leading to low staffing levels. Furthermore, by the end of 2010, California's prison facilities contained on average 175 percent over the required capacity, leading to the triple-bunking of prisoners. During the 2011 U.S. Supreme Court decision Brown v. Plata, the California prison system held about 156,000 inmates, which was twice as many as the requirement of approximately 85,000 maximum capacity. In ruling of Brown v. Plata, the Supreme Court concluded that California's correctional facilities violated prisoners' Eighth Amendment rights. Overcrowding in those prisons caused inmates to receive poor medical and mental health care, not including the inhumane conditions due to lack of resources and space.

Solutions and Alternatives
Despite its risks and consequences, prison overcrowding can be solved in many different ways. First, the use of diversion programs can aid in prisoners avoiding prison entry. Diversion programs are programs that divert, or turn prisoners away from prison time. This could also free up much space within the prisons and prevent faster maximum capacity. More programs that take on rehabilitative and restorative approaches are also needed to divert offenders from prison admission. Restorative justice is when the interaction between the offender and the victim aids in the healing of the victim and the community. This, along with other therapeutic approaches would be more effective than retribution. Other diversion programs consist of intermediate sanctions, such as fines, probation, restitution, and corrections.

Another alternative to prison overcrowding is the use of early release incentives. These are ways to encourage the reduction of prison populations, while motivating the prisoners who are eligible for early release programs. Some early release incentives may include: parole, house arrest, or good behavior, which are also referred to as “backdoor strategies” in that it strives to release prisoners earlier than their sentence expiration. In addition, the construction strategy is a good alternative to prison overcrowding. This comprises of building more prisons for more prison admissions. Furthermore, more space would equal better conditions for inmates because there would be more resources left to distribute within the inmates. These alternatives would save tax dollar money and lessen conflicts within the criminal justice system.

One solution the state of Alabama used to alleviate its prison overcrowding issues was the use of leased beds in 2008. Inmates were housed inside of leased facilities that had a strict capacity requirement under federal court order, which helped to reduce overcrowding within the main correctional facilities. In addition, Alabama expanded alternative sentencing options that consisted of community and rehabilitative programs primarily for nonviolent offenders who have drug/substance abuse addictions On the other hand, California initiated the transfer of approximately 33,000 nonviolent offenders from state to county jails in 2011, leading to an increase in early releases. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has also made the efforts of reallocating parolees and inmates safely to other areas to maintain the mandatory population levels within the facilities.