NCJ Number
139262
Journal
Forum on Corrections Research Volume: 4 Issue: 3 Dated: September 1992 Pages: 11-13
Date Published
September 1992
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Inmates in Canadian Federal prisons who kill or cause serious harm to a staff member or another inmate may be transferred to a Special Handling Unit (SHU) for assessment. These SHU's were introduced in 1977 to handle inmates who could not be adequately managed in a maximum-security institution because of the high level of risk they posed.
Abstract
The overall objective of these units is to modify these inmates' behavior, to reduce the risk they pose, and to reintegrate them into the facility as soon as possible. At the SHU, the inmate undergoes psychological and psychiatric evaluations, an educational assessment, and reevaluation of the correctional treatment plan. The typical inmate admitted to an SHU in 1991-1992 was serving a life sentence for murder or robbery; about one-third were serving their first Federal sentence. The inmate remains in the SHU until his social behavior has improved and until the objectives established in the correctional plan have been attained; most inmates are reintegrated into a maximum-security facility within 1 year. Substance abuse, educational, and vocational programs are offered in the units.