Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's move to shackle Arizona prisoners while they work and have them live in tents is being promoted in New Zealand. Despite superficial appeal, both methods on analysis are shown to be ineffective.
The question is not whether prison treatment should be 'harsh' or 'soft' but whether it works to make the community safer.
Independent experts state that there is no credible evidence supporting the use of such treatment to encourage prisoners to go on to lead law abiding lives.
In 1998, a study commissioned by Sheriff Arpaio himself and conducted by Arizona State University found that Arpaio's policies had been totally ineffective in reducing re-offending rates in Maricopa County.
There is growing evidence that Sheriff Arpaio's methods are not working as a deterrent either.
The prison population of Maricopa County has grown each year of his tenure and now stands at over 10,000.
Phoenix, Maricopa County's largest city, has an increasing crime rate that now tops both Los Angeles and New York.
Prisons have three key roles.
The first and most important is to keep offenders who present a risk to the community out of circulation.
Second, a prison sentence is punishment for a crime committed.
Third, Corrections try to deal with the cause of offending so that a finally released inmate is less likely to offend again.
New Zealand's sentencing laws are tough by comparison to most other Western countries. And they were made tougher by the Bail Act in 2000 and by the Sentencing and Parole Acts of 2002.
This is obvious from prison numbers.
In 10 years they have gone up from 4500 to 7700, a 71 per cent increase.
That's why we have had to build four new prisons, and added 2300 beds.
But being tough on its own is not enough. To be effective in reducing crime we have to address the causes as well.
Corrections is working to address prisoners' addictions.
Six new drug and alcohol treatment units have been created in prisons, given that 83.4 per cent of offenders have had drug or alcohol abuse or addiction problems at some point in their lives.
More prisoners are also being put to work, with around 66 per cent of sentenced inmates now working.
Work habits, skills and a job to go to on release reduces re-offending rates.
At the new Special Treatment Units prisoners confront their actions and learn to avoid past mistakes.
Outside of prisons, a great deal of work is underway to steer people away from crime, tackle organised crime and prevent offenders from progressing to worse crimes.
The Effective Interventions legislation means some lower end offenders are receiving alternative sentences to prison, such as home detention, which means they can repay their debt to society without being subjected to the daily influence of hardened
criminals.
Proposed changes to liquor licensing laws, new tagging legislation, 2000 extra police and methamphetamine now being a Class A drug are also critical steps.
Parliament is also considering Bills which double the maximum penalty for participation in an organised criminal group from five to 10 years, gives Police more powers to investigate gangs, and makes it easier to confiscate the assets of criminals.
We have to do more still to address the problem of violence and poor parenting in dysfunctional families.
Early intervention programmes have been steadily increased to deal with this problem.
Community action also has a role to play and I welcome the efforts of people working with Police to promote zero tolerance of criminal elements in our community who do so much damage.
Crime is a complex problem. It requires sound thinking, good policies and adequate resources over time to fix, not Maricopa Country's much cited answers of pink underwear and tents in the desert, which not surprisingly have not made a difference.
Got a story for Corrections News or want to request the print edition?
Email commdesk@corrections.govt.nz or phone (04) 460 3365.
ISSN 1178-8453