A Prison is an institution for the confinement of persons convicted of criminal offenses. You have two main categories of prisoner, the remand and the convicted. Throughout history, most societies have built places in which to hold persons accused of criminal acts pending some form of trial, this would be the remand prisoner who has not yet been found guilty of a crime but the crime is such that it is in his own interest or in the interests of the public that he is held in custody awaiting his trial.
This is often the case where it is reasonable to believe that he may repeat the offence or it is felt he might intimidate the witnesses.
Once the trial has taken place he is either found not guilty in which case he will be released or guilty in which case he may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment. . The idea, however, of confining persons after trial, as punishment for their crimes, is relatively new. In ancient times, and indeed through approximately the 15th century in Europe, the penalties for crime were generally some type of corporal punishment, ranging from whipping or periods in the stocks, for less serious crimes, to execution or enslavement, for serious offenses. Generally imprisonment was a sentenced reserved for someone committing a crime against the state. To lock that person up for many years or even for the rest of their natural life was reserved for nobility or someone sufficient high rank as a long term example. These were few and far between but for this purpose the Tower of London or in the Bastille in Paris may well have been used. This would have been done as an alternative death penalty.
In 16th-century England, vagrants and petty offenders were committed to correctional institutions known as workhouses. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the government began transporting convicted felons to the English colonies, a practice that continued for some 200 years. The punishment was initially thought of as the hard labor to which the prisoners were consigned; the housing provided for them was merely incidental. The idea, however, that persons convicted of crime could be punished (and confined), and then released after a relatively long period of time, was a new concept. Jails in England first served as collection points for criminals awaiting transportation.
The prison population of the England hovers around the 55,000 with seasonal dips and peaks. With the abolishment of the death penalty there is a slow increase in the number of offenders serving life sentences although to be fair the number of people who actually had the death sentence carried out was quite low in comparrison with the number recieving the sentence in the first place.
There are a number of different categories of prison in this country. We have the local prisons which are normally situated in major towns and cities which have a multi role. They would hold remand prisoners awaiting trial or during their trial. They would hold newly convicted prisoners who had recently been sentenced. Out of these the ones serving short sentences may well complete the whole of the sentence in this same prison. The inmates who are serving longer sentences, perhaps in excess of 12 - 18 months may well be accessed before being moved to another prison to complete their sentence. A local prison may well have a long term element where prisoners serving anything up to life may be housed. This would only be the case is the prison had some sort of work available for the inmates.
We also have training prisons such as Dartmoor which are very work orientated and give the inmate the opportunity to learn a trade ready for his release. These people would normally be serving in excess of 18 Months.
There are open prisons where prisoners who are nearing the end of their sentences may go. Also someone who has been sentenced for a non violent crime who previously had good character and is not considered either a danger or likely to re-offend may be relocated to an open prison. Open does not actually mean no locks or fences but reflects the regime. It may well be that some inmates do actually go outside the prison during the day to work returning each evening.
We then have the top security prisons where the most dangerous people are kept. Serial killers and terrorists and indeed anyone who would otherwise post a threat to the public will be kept within one of these establishments. The security measures taken at these prisons is of the highest standard and will include all the latest technology.
For more information contact:
Gregg Manning