The two-volume Encyclopedia of Prisons and Correctional Facilities aims to provide a critical overview of penal institutions within a historical and contemporary framework. The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world; a fact that has caused lawmakers, advocates, and legal professionals to rethink punishment policies as well as develop new policies on prisoner education and rehabilitation. Issues of race, gender, and class are fully integrated throughout in order to demonstrate the complexity of the implementation and intended results of incarceration. The encyclopedia also contain biographies, articles describing important legal statutes, as well as detailed and authoritative descriptions of the major prisons in the United States. Comparative data and examples are employed to analyze the America system within an international context.
The encyclopedia's 400 entries are all signed and written by recognized authorities.There is an appendix containing a comprehensive listing of every federal prison in the US complete with facility details and service information.
Editorial Board
Stephanie Bush-Baskette, National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD)
Jeanne Flavin, Fordham University
Esther Heffernan, Edgewood College
Jim Thomas, Northern Illinois University