Jails and Prisons are often used interchangeably. From the perspective of someone who does not work within the corrections system, jails and prisons are not different from each other. While it is true that the policy behind the establishment of jails and prisons are the same, which is to treat and rehabilitate criminal offenders, the two terms provide for different means in achieving the policy.
Both jails and prisons are under the component of the criminal justice system which is called corrections. The corrections is the component of the criminal justice system which is in charge of the supervision of individuals within the criminal justice system, i.e., suspects and convicted offenders. Included in the corrections are the probation, parole, community corrections and incarceration.
Jails and prisons serve the purpose of housing the offenders. They are both places of incarceration for men or women. In other words, it is a place where one should not be in. The difference is that a jail is a place for the confinement of persons in lawful detention while a prison is a place where convicted prisoners are confined. Thus, a suspect who is awaiting trial or whose trial is ongoing is supposed to be confined in jail while a person who has already been convicted by a court of law and sentenced to imprisonment is supposed to be confined in a prison. In some states, first time offenders and those who are sentenced with minor offenses are usually placed in jails. In some states, an inmate is sentenced to 364 days or below by a court of law is required to serve time in jail.
Since a jail is only for persons who are awaiting trial it follows that the people who stay in jail are only there for a brief period while those who stay in prisons are supposed to say their for longer period of time, usually until the sentence is completely served or they avail of probation or parole (Marshall County Sheriff Department, 2005, p.1). It follows that when a person is in jail he should stay there only for one day, or one month or one year. But a person cannot stay inside a jail for more than one year and a half. On the other hand, a person who is in prison usually stays there for one year to life.
Considering that the confinement in jails compared to prisons is shorter, jails oftentimes are smaller and have lesser amenities than prisons (Margo Schlanger, 2003, p.1). The facilities in jails are oftentimes limited to bathrooms and small common areas for recreation and communication with visitors. It is common to see jails with no facilities for large recreation, group meetings or discussion or church services or bible studies. Persons confined in jails are usually bored because of the lack of adequate facilities. As a result, confinement in jails is considered less favorable to a person. On the other hand, the amenities in prisons are more extensive than in jails. These amenities include exercise areas, large common areas for eating, common areas for visitors and socialization, church facilities, and educational facilities
Also, since a jail houses only first time offenders and those offenders with minor offenses, the environment inside a jail, generally, is safer and less prone to violence (Lawrence Messina, 2001, p.1). Statistically speaking, there are lesser incidences of prison breaks and riots between inmates. On the other hand, some say that the environment inside jails is more chaotic than prisons. This is because the classification of prisoners inside jails are more haphazard, jail routines are less regular, jail time is more idle, and jail inmates are more likely to be in some kind of crisis (Margo Schlanger, 2003, p.1). Thus, the crowded facilities contribute idle time to making jails a very dangerous place. It is because of this reason that the second view is more acceptable.
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