Corrections_Today_January_February_2020_Vol.82_No.1

Bookshelf

should remind us that it is prison which is the punishment. There are two aspects of his journey which stood out. One was the kindness of his fellow inmates, especially those at the county jail, and the second reiterated the poor job we in criminal justice do in preparing the first-time and white-collar offender for confinement. Many times, I have, at the request for defense counsel, met and discussed with first-time offenders what to expect. If possible, a former white- collar offender joins me. This chapter told me again such information is rarely given. There are all sorts of literature

describing the difficulty of first-time offenders and Watson’s experience is not unique. What most do not remember is that the deprivation of freedom is the same for a first timer at a camp as it is for a higher security offender doing his or her second or third bit. Of course, I did not like it when he bashed my former agency, but even that is worthwhile as it reminds us of the different experiences between those who are confined to those who administer. Perhaps we as a profession need to work on this more. We can all remember the confusion of a first-time, middle-aged

man or woman who experienced confinement for the first time. I do take exception to the comment that new equipment was thrown away to allow for institutions to get more money. In my 19-plus years as a warden, I never saw this happen. But the important thing was to understand the difference in perception. The third chapter of the book is an introductory text in criminological theory and a history of prisons. Except for getting through the requisite criminology course for most criminal justice majors, those who work in prisons are not too

ACA Seeks Book Authors Do you have experience in corrections and the desire to inform others about what you have learned? If so, you are a potential ACA author. We are seeking corrections professionals to submit book manuscripts for review and consideration on a variety of subject matter.

Possible topics include • Ethics in corrections. • Effective mental health treatment. • Sex offender monitoring and treatment. • Financial management in corrections. • Programs for long-term offenders. • Staff training. • Greening of corrections: innovative strategies. • Preparing offenders for reentry. • Incarcerated women: reducing recidivism.

Your suggestions for books on other topics are welcome. For more information, please contact 800-222-5646, ext. 0194.

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