Pubdate: Sat, 28 Oct 2006
Source: Winnipeg Sun (CN MB)
Copyright: 2006 Canoe Limited Partnership
Contact:  http://www.winnipegsun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/503
Author: Tom Brodbeck

BOOT CAMPS BEST OPTION

The first thing the pointy-headed social-worker types tell me when I 
propose correctional boot camps for hard-core young offenders is that 
they don't work.

"All the research shows boot camps are a failed experiment," they 
tell me. "They were set up for political, knee-jerk reasons in the 
U.S. but they actually hurt kids."

I love that when they trot out the "all the research shows" line.

In many cases, they haven't read the "research." They just heard 
about it somewhere or read someone else's interpretation of it.

The truth is, the "research" on boot camps in the U.S. -- for adults 
and youths -- shows that boot camps do change behaviour and if 
they're run properly, even reduce recidivism (crimes committed after 
release from custody) in some cases.

One of the most comprehensive studies in the U. S. by the National 
Institute of Justice in 2003 (a U.S. Department of Justice agency) 
concluded 10 years of studies of boot camps "produced mixed results."

What the study found was that boot camps did a very good job at 
changing offender behaviour, including improving self-esteem and 
skills and reducing anti-social attitudes and anxiety.

"Boot camps were almost universally successful in improving inmates' 
attitudes and behaviour during the course of the program," the study 
found. "The camps' disciplined structure and therapeutic programs 
eliminated idleness and created a safer environment, which in turn 
improved inmate attitudes and behaviour."

The trouble is, that positive behaviour doesn't always continue after 
release into the community. As a result -- overall -- boot camps have 
not reduced recidivism, the study found.

However, it did reduce recidivism in some cases (this is the part the 
pointy-heads conveniently ignore), including in programs with 
lengthier stays, better preparation for release and more aggressive 
supervision in the community, the study found.

"Chances of reducing recidivism increased when boot camp programs 
lasted longer and offered more intensive treatment and post-release 
supervision," the study says.

But because many states are also trying to reduce costs, those 
features are often lacking.

Most boot-camp programs in the U.S. have three objectives: to reduce 
recidivism, reduce costs and cut the prison population -- goals that 
often clash with each other, the study found.

The longer the stay in boot camp, the greater the chance of reducing 
recidivism, but the higher the cost and the higher the prison 
population (at least in the short term).

"Efforts to achieve multiple goals are likely the overall cause of 
boot camps' conflicting results," the study says.

So it's not that boot camps "don't work," as critics claim. Their 
success depends on how they're run.

The kind of boot camps we need in Canada are those with longer stays, 
strong post-release strategies and rehabilitation programs, such as 
drug and alcohol addiction programming.

Instead of two years at the Manitoba Youth Centre, where kid 
criminals just hang out with other kid criminals, why not two years 
at a boot camp -- or longer if necessary -- even if it costs more money?

It's a hell of a lot better than what we have now.
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MAP posted-by: Elaine