Freedom and Death Inside the Jail.pdf - The Action Program for ...

There is no
hierarchy among
the inmate-accused,
correctional officer,
social worker,
police, prosecutor,
and defense lawyer,
the judge and
justice, and other
actors in the system.
These practitioners,
therefore, should
regard each other as
equal in stature—
each being the expert
in his own field and
the authority in his
own domain.
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Freedom and Death Inside The Jail
In the community therapy, the inmates’ talents and
skills are maximized. Inmates are given work assignments
that could utilize their skills and keep them
preoccupied.
When the time comes an inmate is to be set free, he
is adequately prepared to be reintegrated into society.
Society, for its part, willingly embraces the individual
back to its fold. The individual is free to walk the
streets, interact with his community, or participate
in elections either by casting his vote or running for
public office. The individual is a citizen again.
Key Ingredients in the Ideal Criminal
Justice System
There are two key ingredients in making the ideal criminal
justice system work. These ingredients are reflective of the sociopolitical-cultural
context in which the system operates. The first
ingredient is the institutional capability of the criminal justice
institutions and the second, the cultural mentality of criminal
justice practitioners.
Institutions under the criminal justice system should comprise
an independent sector. The police, prosecutors, judges, and
correctional officers must be able to resist the influence of the
affluent and powerful members of society. They should be able
to pursue their mandate notwithstanding the political or social
interests at stake.
Moreover, criminal justice institutions should have coordination
in carrying out their respective tasks. The systematic flow
of the criminal procedure, access to pertinent information, and
delineation of functions and responsibilities are needed for these
institutions to come up with synergistic output, which will then
redound to the efficient implementation of their individual programs.
The ideal capability of criminal justice institutions is reinforced
by the cultural mentality of criminal justice practitioners. There
is no hierarchy among the inmate-accused, correctional officer,
social worker, police, prosecutor, and defense lawyer, the judge
and justice, and other actors in the system. These practitioners,
therefore, should regard each other as equal in stature—each
being the expert in his own field and the authority in his own