Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Prisons and Prisoners Lectures > Lecture 20: Comparative Penology - United States > Flashcards

Lecture 20: Comparative Penology - United States Flashcards

1
Q

What characterizes the U.S. political economy?

A

Neo-liberalism

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What is the U.S. approach to social welfare benefits?

A

Minimal means-tested

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What best describes economic inequality in the U.S.?

A

High

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What is the U.S. Congress comprised of?

A

A bicameral legislature

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What characterizes the U.S. Supreme Court?

A

Political appointees

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What was the average prison sentence length in the U.S. in 2017?

A

9 years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

When were federal sentencing guidelines introduced in the U.S.?

A

1980s

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What contributed to longer sentences under the 1994 Crime Act?

A
  • Mandatory minimums
  • Three strikes law
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What ruling confirmed 25 years to life under three strikes laws is constitutional?

A

Ewing v California

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What reforms have California voters supported?

A
  • Reducing non-serious third strikes
  • Reclassifying felonies as misdemeanors
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

How many U.S. states impose life without parole (LWOP) sentences?

A

49

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What purpose do extremely long sentences in the U.S. serve?

A

Expressing outrage

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Approximately what percentage of prisoners in the U.S. are people of color?

A

43%

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What type of U.S. prison houses pre-trial detainees?

A

County jails

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What differentiates supermaximum security prisons in the U.S.?

A

Solitary confinement

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What Supreme Court case confirmed supermax conditions are constitutional?

A

None

17
Q

What is a key effect of felony disenfranchisement in the U.S.?

A

Loss of voting rights

18
Q

What percentage of African Americans in the U.S. are disenfranchised (not allowed to vote)?

A

16%

19
Q

Which practices makes reintegration more difficult after release?

A
  • Stigma
  • Housing restrictions
20
Q

What factor encourages increased punitiveness and spending on prisons?

A

Special interests

21
Q

What rhetoric promotes conflictual partisan politics on criminal justice issues?

A

Liberal leniency

22
Q

What percent of Americans are disenfranchised from voting due to prior felony convictions?

A

2.3%

23
Q

What gave rise to the first American supermax prison for high risk prisoners?

A

Alcatraz closure

24
Q

What Supreme Court ruling upheld sex offender registration laws as constitutional?

A

Smith v Doe

25
Q

What characterized politics on criminal justice issues in the U.S.?

A

Polarisation

26
Q

What key force shocks public opinion on criminal justice?

A

Victims’ families

27
Q

What Supreme Court case barred juvenile life without parole?

A

Miller v Alabama

28
Q

What helps explain the expansion of U.S. prison populations since the 1980s?

A
  • Higher crime rates
  • Stricter drug laws
  • Longer sentences
29
Q

What is not a purpose of solitary confinement in supermax prisons?

A

Rehabilitation

30
Q

What is seen to encourage the ‘prison industrial complex’ in the U.S.?

A

Public-private partnerships

31
Q

What is the ‘prison-industrial complex’?

A

The interconnection between the CJS, political system and economic system - profit from incarceration

32
Q

What is a supermax prison?

A
  • For ‘the worst of the worst’
  • Brutalist design
  • 23 hours of solitary confinement
33
Q

Why are people of color disproportionately affected by growth in imprisonment?

A
  • Higher recidivism rates
  • Concentrated urban poverty
  • Underlying racism in the legal system
34
Q

What has the government’s ‘war on drugs’ contributed to since the 1980s?

A

Racial disparities in imprisonment

35
Q

What helped lobby for passage of the 1994 Crime Act?

A
  • Prison guard unions
  • Gun manufacturers
  • Victims advocacy groups
36
Q

What makes U.S. imprisonment rates the highest in the world?

A

Harsh sentencing laws

37
Q

What do comparative studies show about the use of imprisonment in different countries?

A

It indicates societal values on punishment

Prisons and Prisoners Lectures (18 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions