CORRECTIONAL BOOT CAMP FOR YOUTHS

This paper was written Nov 16, 2006 for my UFV Crim 101 (Introduction to Corrections) course, taught by Kim Polowek.

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INTRODUCTION

Boot camp refers to facilities or programs that emphasize military-style discipline, physical conditioning and teamwork in their attempts to rehabilitate young offenders. People who believe that youth today lack discipline and respect for authority tend to be attracted to the idea of boot camp. For governments, boot camp offers a cost-effective alternative to incarceration (Bell, S. J., 2003. Young Offenders and Juvenile Justice, 2nd edition, pp. 303 & 305).

CANADIAN FORCES MILITARY MODEL

The regimen of the military prison is quite different from that of other correctional institutions. Inmates rise at 5:30 a.m. and follow a tightly controlled schedule until 9:00 p.m. The facility operates on strict discipline; both the guards and the inmates move through the day with military precision. Conjugal (overnight) family visits are not permitted. New inmates cannot speak to one another during the first two weeks of confinement. Activities such as watching television and reading are privileges that inmates must earn. Unlike civilian institutions, the military prison has a low incidence of violence, and contraband weapons and drugs are unknown. Less than five percent of the inmates are repeat offenders (Griffiths C. T., 2004. Canadian Corrections Second Edition, p. 163).

BOOT CAMP FOR YOUTHS

In 1997, the Ontario implemented the first boot camp programs for juveniles. Alberta also followed suite in 1997. The primary motivation for the camps was financial; the diversion of “less serious” youth offenders from institutions to boot camps provided a cost-effective solution to overcrowded juvenile institutions.

A militaristic discipline and structure can be useful for some youth. Youth who need a highly structured and controlled environment can benefit if boot camp is combined with rehabilitative programs designed to meet their educational, psychological, and emotional needs. They provide the following recommendations with respect to future boot camp programs:

1. There should be community acceptance of boot camp, combined with a commitment and involvement in aftercare facilities and programs;

2. Given that recidivism rates were highest for youth who had been held in custody in the past and for those involved in the least serious offences, boot camps would be more successful for young people involved in moderately serious offences who have not been in custody in the past;

3. There should be careful screening and selection of staff at the beginning of the program, as well as ongoing staff training. Activities of staff in all phases of the program must be coordinated, as should program philosophy;

4. The transition between boot camp and aftercare should be less abrupt. At least in the beginning, aftercare should be more structured and disciplined and should also provide some form of required participation;

5. There should be coordination among the various community agencies involved in aftercare, as well as an understanding and commitment to the program philosophy and procedures of the boot camp aftercare;

6. All staff and all agency participants should have a clear understanding of the rationale for the various aspects and activities of the program (Bell, pp. 305-306).

Scared straight is another program with widespread public appeal. Numerous scared straight programs were implemented throughout the United States in the late 1970’s and early 80’s, and many people are still intrigued by the idea. A well-known and highly publicized scared straight program was implemented at the New Jersey Rahway State Prison 20 years ago.

The purpose of the program was to expose young offenders to the “realities” of life in adult prisons by having them participate in confrontation sessions with adult male prisoners. Between 1976 and 1981, over 13,000 young offenders attended confrontation sessions at the Rahway State Prison, a maximum-Security Prison for men.

According to the 1978 film documentary Scared Straight, 90 percent of the youth who participated in the program did not become involved in further delinquency. Scared Straight is a disturbing film that documents how participating youth were subjected to intensive verbal abuse and threats of physical abuse and assault (Bell, p. 306).

Typically, boot camp programs involve a three-month residential program for youth followed by six to nine months community programming. Programming can include a combination of the following:

1. Cognitive skills;

2. Life skills;

3. Treatment programs;

4. Self-awareness, goal setting, self-reliance, problem solving, & trust;

5. Basic military knowledge and discipline (including drill).

Boot camp programs would be used in lieu of community service programs. Prerequisites for young offenders participating in boot camp programs would include the following:

1. The accused comes under the YCJA;

2. The accused is a first-time offender;

3. The offense is non-violent;

4. The accused qualifies for the Restorative Justice program;

5. The accused has participated in Restorative Justice prior to participating in the boot camp program;

6. The accused also participates in a scared straight program.

Boot Camp staff would include a combination of military (or ex-military) and correctional staff. The military staff would have a background in combat arms and be qualified regular and reserve military Drill Instructors. Former Drill Instructors could be hired by the provincial government and current Drill Instructors could be on contract through the Department of National Defence.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE MODEL

The criminal justice model that could be applied to correctional boot camps for juveniles is the Crime Control Model. This model includes: protection of society; law and order in society are paramount; state responsibility for maintaining order; crime/status offences; punishment; determinant sentences; right to legal counsel, criminal justice professionals; responsibility; accountability; determinant; protection of society; retribution, deterrence; maintenance of social order (Bell, p. 53).

FIVE PRINCIPLES OF YOUTH BOOT CAMP

Deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation, punishment and cost control. First, programs like these correctional camps are to act as a deterrence to first-time offenders from offending again. Incapacitation means confinement, restricting the offenders' freedom and activities. Rehabilitation through physical military type training and educational awareness about a variety of issues facing teens today.

Punishment, giving the youth meaningful consequences for his/her actions. And finally, cost control, making sure that it is worth the cost and that it is more cost-effective than sending the offender to a long-term institution like prison (Koch Crime Institute White Paper Report, 2002. Part two).

THE COST FACTOR

It costs anywhere from $80,000 to $120,000 per year to keep one young offender in custody. Actual costs vary depending on the facility’s level of security (Bell, p. 311). The Koch Crime Institute reports that the average cost for juvenile boot camps that operate a three-month cycle is $8,370 and for the six-month cycle the cost is $16,740. That works out to an average boot camp cost per youth per year of $33,480 (Tyler, J; Darville, R; Stalnaker, K. Juvenile Boot Camps: A Descriptive Analysis of Program Diversity and Effectiveness Social Science Journal; 2001, Vol. 38 Issue 3, p445). Boot camps are cheaper to maintain than secure-custody correctional institutions (Bell, p. 311).

ISSUES AND CONCERNS

Several issues have been raised with respect to the desirability of using shock incarceration. The innovativeness of boot camps is even questionable. Mackenzie and Parent (1992) note that for decades, middle- and upper-class parents have been sending their unruly children to military school. They also note that it was not uncommon for judges to offer young men the choice between going to jail or joining the army. Strict discipline and physical labor has long held a position within the correctional framework (John Howard Society of Alberta, 1998. Boot Camps: Issues for Canada).

Historically, prisons enforced strict codes of silence and long hours of hard labor. Boot camps represent a further extension of military style social control into the criminal justice system. Another issue is the offender's ability to voluntarily join and drop out of the shock incarceration program. Boot camp programs vary according to whether participation in the program is voluntary and whether participants have the option to drop out of the program.

Some research suggests that voluntary participation is an important factor in producing positive changes in offenders. Many other studies have found a positive relationship between voluntary participation and positive program outcomes. There is mounting evidence that the eligibility criteria built into the design of these programs are often ignored by judges, who tend to use them for low-risk offenders who would not in fact be sent to prison.

Only half of the offenders sentenced to a boot camp are estimated to be diverted from prison; the other half are diverted from probation. This practice is known as "net- widening." For penalties to be genuine alternatives to imprisonment and actually reduce the size of the prison population, they must target offenders who have been sentenced to regular prison terms.

One analyst estimates that to save prison space, at least 80% of boot camp participants would have to be drawn from the prison-bound.

Many boot camp programs have contributed to net-widening by setting criteria for boot camp offenders as those believed most likely to be deterred from further criminal behavior such as young, non-violent offenders who have never been incarcerated (John Howard Society of Alberta, 1998).

REFERENCES

Bell, S. J. (2003) Young Offenders and Juvenile Justice, 2nd edition

Griffiths C. T. (2004) Canadian Corrections Second Edition

Koch Crime Institute White Paper Report (2002) Canadian boot camps A look at the implementation of Canadian youth correctional boot camps. Retrieved April 19, 2006http://wiwi.essortment.com/canadianbootca_rgih.htm

Tyler, J; Darville, R; Stalnaker, K. Juvenile Boot Camps: A Descriptive Analysis of Program Diversity and Effectiveness Social Science Journal; 2001, Vol. 38 Issue 3, p445, 16p

John Howard Society of Alberta (1998) Boot Camps: Issues for Canada. Retrieved April 19, 2006 http://www.johnhoward.ab.ca/PUB/C34.htm