NCJ Number
79635
Date Published
1978
Length
37 pages
Annotation
This 1978 annual report from the Massachusetts Governor's Advisory Committee on Corrections describes conditions in the State's correctional facilities, discusses the parole board, and proposes ways to deal with overcrowding, antiquated facilities, and lack of accreditation.
Abstract
An overview of the correctional system identifies its major problems, but notes that prerelease and furlough programs have reduced recidivism rates substantially. The most serious challenges faced by the system are its old, poorly maintained, and overcrowded facilities and failure to achieve accreditation from the American Correctional Association. Based on visits by the committee, the report then assesses the following correctional institutions: Bridgewater, Concord, Framingham, Norfolk, and Walpole. The areas of inmate programs, physical conditions, staff morale, and overcrowding are covered. The committee recommended that Walpole, a maximum-security institution with a history of violence, be closed and two smaller institutions be established for dangerous inmates. A favorable evaluation of the parole board's activities details its caseload and highlights successful programs, such as publication of a manual on parole guidelines, parole contracting, and services to retarded offenders. A discussion of community corrections focuses on prerelease centers and the furlough program, whose 1977 success rates were 99.6 percent. The Department of Correction's efforts to implement national and professional standards and assure its eligibility for Federal funding are reviewed, State attempts to enforce standards for county correctional facilities, overcrowding, institutional violence, and staff training, and 1980 budget requirements are discussed.