A prisoner is an individual that has been convicted of a crime and has been sentenced to serve out a period of incarceration as punishment. A prisoner will usually serve out a sentence in a prison or jail, and the length of time in which the prisoner will be incarcerated will depend on the laws or statutes that were violated and the severity of the crime. A prisoner can also be a person that has been captured by the enemy during a time of war.

Prisoners will serve out their sentence as best fit and determined by the court and legal system. During the period of incarceration, prisoners will be restrained to remaining within the grounds of a correctional facility. The level of security of the facility in which a prisoner may be placed will usually be concurrent with the type of crime that was committed and how severe such a crime is. 

For example, murderers will usually be placed in maximum security prisons, where it is crucial to have constant surveillance of the prisoner population due to the danger they may pose to other prisoners and correctional staff. On the other hand, individuals that are convicted of lesser crimes, such as those that can be classified as “white collar crimes,” will usually be placed in minimum security prisons. These prisons will not have constant surveillance of the prisoners and their personal liberties may not be as restricted as those prisoners in higher security facilities.

When it comes to the governing and overseeing of the correctional facility and prison system in the United States, it can be said that it is delegated between two delegations, the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Department of Corrections. The Federal Bureau of Prisons is the law enforcement agency which is a branch of the United States Department of Justice which is responsible for the administration and governing of the federal prison system in the United States. 

The Department of Corrections refers to the local agency of state or local governments which are responsible for the treatment of inmates in state facilities. Though both may seem to be one in the same, the Federal Bureau of Prisons is strictly responsible for those facilities that are controlled by the federal government, while the Department of Corrections will be controlled by the state. Each state in the country will have its own Department of Corrections and inherent laws and regulations.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons was first established in 1930, with the ultimate goal providing for inmates on a more human and professional manner. Furthermore, the Bureau was also developed in order to provide for a more centralized governing body for the eleven federal prisons that exist in the United States. 

The Bureau, aside for overlooking the federal correctional facilities and prisons, is also in charge of carrying out all of the federally ordered executions in the United States, for the exception of those mandated under military law. The correctional facility that holds the execution chamber is located in Terre Haute, Indiana, which is entails executions to be carried out by lethal injection. 

The Federal Bureau of Prisons is the federally government agency that is in charge of the administration of the federal prison system in the United States. The Federal Bureau of Prisons, or FBOP, is a considered to be a branch of the United States Department of Justice, and is also responsible for handling inmates that committed federal crimes in the District of Columbia as well. 

The Federal Bureau of Prisons was established in 1930 in order to provide a more concise and centralized faction to govern the eleven federal prisons that existed in the country at that time. The FBOP was originally intended to provide a more professional service and organization of the federal prisons, while also allowing for a more humane treatment and care for inmates of federal prisons and facilities.

As of today, the Federal Bureau of Prisons has its central headquarters in Washington, D.C., though it also has six regional offices. The FBOP currently is in charge of over 119 institutions and facilities that currently handle nearly 208,000 federal prisoners. Furthermore, the FBOP is also in charge of over 28 community corrections offices and has two training centers. 

Due to the large system of facilities that the Federal Bureau of Prisons overlooks, a sub-section known as the National Institute of Corrections was created in order to assist with the local and state correctional agencies and facilities. The NIC was first established in 1974 by the United States Congress and plays a more important role with the various State Department of Corrections that are in place today. 

When a person becomes incarcerated in a prison, his/her life is going to change quite dramatically. Life in prison will be very restricted, for personal liberties that one may be accommodated to or has taken for granted will most likely be stripped. However, prison life will vary depending on the nature of the person’s crime and what kind of facility one is meant to serve out their sentence. Generally speaking, prison life is constructed based upon schedules. Furthermore, every kind of activity, particularly those carried outside of the holding cells such as eating meals. 

A typical day in prison life can be outlined as follows: breakfast, work or school, lunch, work or school, dinner, free time, showering, and finally sleep. This kind of a strict scheduled routine is meant to establish control and order in a prison facility while also promoting a sense of self-control in the inmates themselves.

Much of life in prison spent within the confines of the jail cell, which is usually a eight by six cell. The jail cell will have a sink and toilet and a metal bed that is secured to the floor or to the wall. In some cases, some jail cells will hold two inmates, where a bunk bed may be found in a similar fashion.

However, due to the nature of the inmates and their lives of crime, prison life may not be completely as it intended to be by the correctional system. It is well documented that inmates will often times gravitate toward those they have things in common, particularly those that were members of gangs prior to being incarcerated. Furthermore, many prisons will have networks of commerce among the inmates where certain items–whether illegal or not–are often traded and/or bartered. 

Within the prison systems of the United States, inmates will usually be issued a particular job in which money can be made during their stay in the penitentiary. However, wages will prove to be quite minimal and are intended to provide inmates with an income that can be used after they are released from prison or within the prison itself. Prison commissaries are found in most prisons, where inmates can purchase certain items while in jail. The Prison commissary is usually like a warehouse where items that have been approved to be used by inmates can be purchased. This may include items such as cigarettes, books, and other types of leisure items.

Purchasing items from the prison commissary will usually entail a very particular and regimented process. Inmates will receive a list of the items and goods that are available at the commissary, and fill out the list for the desired items. Inmates will be designated a certain day in which they can go to the commissary and purchase these goods. 

Commissaries are usually run by prison guards or corrections officers, though other prisoners may also be employed for the position. Because cash is not allowed in prisons, commissaries deduct the prices of the items from the accounts that are set up for each prisoner where their earnings from the prison jobs are stored. Some commissaries and jails issue inmates ID cards which are used similarly to debit cards. Also, prisoners are also allowed to receive money from family and friends on the outside, which is placed into such an account. 

All prisoners in the United States will usually be granted visitation rights, at least when a prisoner first enters a prison. When a person is person first enters the penitentiary, part of the paper work that must be filled out will include a list of family members and friends that are allowed to visit the prisoner during the incarceration sentence. 

Visitation rights will be limited on a monthly basis and each person listed for visitation privileges must be approved prior that actual visitation. Those not included in the list may also be allowed visitation, though they must be approved and may entail a waiting period before visitation rights are granted.

Visitation rights are to be considered more along the lines of privileges due to the fact that they can be revoked. Furthermore, in some cases, visitation privileges may not be granted to some inmates due to the nature of the person’s crime. However, once in prison and visitation rights are granted, an inmate can be limited visitations and even have them suspended on the basis of behavior while incarcerated.

Visiting hours in most prisons will usually coincide with those of a normal work day, typically on a 9am to 5pm schedule, though this will vary depending on the facility. At lower level penitentiaries, visiting hours are held in what resembles a waiting room, with many others having visitors at the same time. In maximum level prisons, visiting hours are done through a glass window with the use of telephones. Such visitations are always supervised by guards and those visiting may be subject to search before and after each visit. 

False imprisonment can be defined as the restraining of an individual within a particular area without any proper justification or consent. False imprisonment is considered to be a violation of both tort and common law in the United States, and can apply to both governmental agencies as well as private parties. False imprisonment can also be viewed in the eyes of the law in terms of the intent to commit such a crime, and is also punishable by law. 

In order for false imprisonment to occur, a person does not necessarily have to be confined to a room or cell. To be falsely imprisoned can be applied in terms of an individual being restricted from their normal actions simply out of fear from suffering injury or harm. An example could be a person that is suspected of shoplifting and is kept within the ground of the business against his/her will. Upon finding no evidence that such a crime has ensued, the person that was involuntarily held can press charges.

False imprisonment that occurs when a government official or agency is involved, such as the local police department, it is considered to be false arrest. This can occur, for example, when a person or suspect is arrested without having the proper warrant issued by the court of law, or by using an invalid warrant. 

A person that is falsely imprisoned can bring about charges against such an agency. In order to have a case, the person that is falsely imprisoned must be able to prove that will detention by the opposing party has occurred and was without the consent of the involved individual, and that such detention is not under the authority of applicable laws.

  

In many criminal court cases, the issue of the defendant standing trial for certain crimes may often times be required to undergo a psychiatric evaluation, which is conducted by a forensic psychologist. The purpose of the psychiatric evaluation may be many, though typically it is to understand the motivating factors that would make an individual commit a crime. 

Psychiatric evaluations may also be conducted in prisons under certain circumstances. Such an evaluation of resident of federal penitentiary may or may not be court ordered, and may not necessarily be related to the person’s history of crime. Psychiatric evaluation of prison residents may sometimes be conducted in order to get a better understanding of the criminal mind for studies in forensic sciences.

However, a psychiatric evaluation of a prison resident or inmate may be required in order to evaluate the mental state or capacity of a particular individual. Such a case will prove to be important when a prisoner may be up for parole. Depending on the nature of the crimes and sentenced served, a psychiatric evaluation may be required of an inmate in order to deem such an individual capable of functioning in the outside world, while also considering the possibility of a relapse to a life of crime. 

A psychiatric evaluation of an inmate may prove to be crucial in the case that a criminal has served the imposed sentenced and is about to be released. Knowing the state of mind of such individual may require extra provisions and considerations of the legal system in order to ensure safety of the public, as well as the inmate him/herself.  

Most prison facilities will allow for families and friends to send loved ones that are incarcerated certain items that the inmate inside may need. These are generally known as inmate care packages. However, depending on each correctional facility, there are certain regulations in place that will restrict certain items that cannot be included in inmate care packages. 

It is important for those seeking to send inmate care packages that the regulations and restrictions be known in order to make sure that a particular inmate will receive everything that is sent. Correction facility officers and staff will always check the contents of inmate care packages to make sure that illegal contraband such as drugs or weapons will not make their way into the facility.

The materials and items that can be included in inmate care packages will be provided on a list by the facility. However, generally speaking, these items will usually consist of leisure materials and items, such as books, magazines, and, photographs. Clothing and food items can sometimes also be included, though these may be more restricted by the prison facility. 

Some penitentiaries will even allow for entertainment devices, such as radios, CD players, MP3 players, and hand held video games to be included in inmate care packages. Items that have either extremely violent or sexually explicit material are not allowed and prohibited.

Along with knowing the particular items that are allowed to be sent in an inmate care package, it is also important to know when such packages can be sent. Many prisons will have a deadline by which inmate care packages can be received, such as on a quarterly basis. Furthermore, inmate care packages may also be restricted to weigh less than the thirty pounds.

  

Prison rape is a term that refers to the raping and acts of sexual violence that occurs in correctional facilities that is done either by incarcerated inmates or the corrections staff. Prison rape most commonly occurs between those incarcerated in the prisons, though it has occurred on rare occasion that both the female and male staff has experienced prison rape, either by other members of the staff or those that are incarcerated.

The concept of prison rape, even though naturally a sexually inclined act, is generally thought more about establishing control, power, and dominance within the prison culture and lifestyle. Prison rape is often seen more in the context of a psychological attack rather one that is purely physical in nature, for the effects of a prison rape may be worse on the psychological level for many.

Prison rape is an unfortunate occurrence that happens within corrections facilities, with a total of over 140,000 inmates in the United States experiencing prison rape while incarcerated. Studies have shown that there is a certain correlation between age and race and prison rape as well. It has been found that prisoners that are young in age, particularly between the ages of 18 and 25, are more susceptible to be victims of prison rape. Furthermore, individuals that are being incarcerated for the first time may also be more prone to prison rape due to inmates wanting to establish control and power over those entering the general prison population.