International perspectives on the privatization of corrections

Abstract

Research Summary:In this article, we provide a global snapshot of the recent (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015)(2016)(2017)(2018) expansion of the private sector's involvement in both institutional and community corrections systems. Variation in the use of private-sector organizations to manage both institutional and community correction populations is examined within and across global regions, with a focus specifically on the utilization of privatization in the 50 countries with the highest prison populations. The key private-sector organizations in each global region are also identified, and the "new technology" acquisitions by these companiesdocumenting the expansion of prison-based organizations into community corrections-are considered. In addition, the available evaluation research on the comparative effectiveness of private-versus public-sector management of both prisons and community corrections is reviewed. Based on this review, we offer our assessment of the available data on global developments in the privatization of corrections, as well as the available research on the comparative performance of public-sector and private-sector corrections.Policy Implications: Policy makers considering the advantages and disadvantages of privatization in either their institutional-or their community-based corrections system need to consider not only whether performance improves when the private sector gets involved but also pendent, high-quality evaluations in countries currently using privatization to help manage prison, jail, and/or community corrections populations. K E Y W O R D Scommunity corrections, prisons, privatization DATA AND METHODWe begin our review by highlighting privatization initiatives in each global region based on available databases, published reports, newspaper articles, and other publically available documents in which the public sector's role in corrections is described. We caution the reader that our review is preliminary and that our ability to document the expansion of the private sector into community-based corrections systems varied both within and across global regions. 3 Next, we examine the utilization of privatesector companies by corrections systems in the countries with the 50 largest prison populations. More than 90% of the world's prison population is located in these 50 countries.A third area of inquiry involved the identification of the key players in the global private corrections market, with a focus specifically on whether the global expansion of private prisons and community corrections programs has its roots in the two largest U.S. private prison providers-GEO Group and CoreCivic. 4 By examining the recent technology and community corrections facility acquisitions by GEO Group included in the company's most recent filing before the Security and Exchange Commission, the movement of these prison-focused companies into the community corrections arena can be documented. We conclude our review by summarizing the resu...

Corrections and Crime in Spain and Portugal during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Impact, Prevention and Lessons for the Future

“…A final relevant issue here is to what degree the impact of the pandemic in the correctional context has been able to affect the private sector that provides services and technology to the correctional system. There is a growing international trend toward the privatization of the correctional systems, regarding the management of both institutional and community corrections (J. M. Byrne et al, 2019;J. M. Byrne et al, 2015).…”

“…But so is it, as J. Byrne et al (2019) have documented, that in various countries, including Spain, some services related to food, health care, maintenance of facilities, rehabilitation, and video surveillance have been privatized. For example, in Catalonia, part of the rehabilitation and reintegration programs (drug addiction, community reintegration, care for the disabled, residential units in the community, etc.)…”

The Social and Environmental Implications of the Novel Coronavirus on Institutional and Community Corrections in South Africa

“…The DCS operates 235 active corrections centers which are divided into six regions across South Africa. The country has two ultra-maximum security correctional centers, Pretoria Central and Kokstad, and two privately run centers, Mangaung in Bloemfontein (operated by British company G4S) and Kutama Sinthumule in Limpopo (operated by American company Geo Group; Byrne et al, 2019;DCS, 2020a;Makou et al, 2017). Each region is divided into different management areas that controls correctional centers in their respective jurisdictions.…”

Privatized corrections in the 21st century

“…Private companies also implement aspects of operations within public prisons, including food and commissary services, medical care, and drug treatment (Camp & Camp, ). Such forms of privatization exist in America but also exist across the world (see Byrne, Kras, & Marmolejo, , this issue).…”