The terms “jail” and “prison” refer to two different correctional facilities even though many people use them interchangeably. These two facilities have the same goals and objectives but differ in the means that they use to achieve them.
They both fall under the correctional facilities umbrella and offer different services that are meant to help offenders reform. However, many differences distinguish them. These include their mode of operation, the size of facilities, the source of funding and the length of sentence for offenders.
First, a jail is a place where people who are under lawful detention are apprehended while a prison is a place where convicted people are confined (Doak, 1999, p.29). Therefore, jails are for people who are awaiting trial for various crimes and misdemeanors while prisons are for people who have been convicted for committing crime (Doak, 1999, p.29).
In most cases, jail sentences last for less than one year. On the other hand, the length of a prison sentence is much longer than a jail sentence and may be even for a lifetime. Once convicted, a felon may serve a sentence that may range from a few months to several years.
Secondly, jails and prisons differ in the number of amenities they offer. Jails have fewer amenities compared to prisons because they confine offenders for short periods of time (Doak, 1999, p.30). Examples of amenities provided for people in jail include food, safety, clothing and housing.
Some jails offer additional amenities such as work release programs and vocational services to help offenders deal with personal problems such as drug and substance abuse. In contrast, prisons offer a greater variety of amenities to offenders.
These amenities include work release programs, recreation, vocational training, entertainment facilities, housing, food and clothing (Doak, 1999, p.30). These amenities are important because most inmates spend a greater portion of their life in prison.
Thirdly, prisons and jails differ in their source of funding. Jails often have limited funding because they are managed by counties and cities while prisons have more funding because they are managed by the state or federal government (Kelly, 1999, p.35).
Jails have fewer and smaller facilities and can only hold a limited number of people. Prisons have larger facilities and confine more people because they receive more funding. A prison holds more people than a jail does and the prisoners are grouped based on the type of crime they were convicted for (Kelly, 1999, p.35). This is measure is undertaken as a safety precaution because some prisoners are extremely dangerous.
Fourthly, the facilities found in prisons are larger and more tightly secured unlike in jails where facilities are smaller and less tightly secured (Kelly, 1999, p.38). In countries that allow capital punishment, prisons have facilities to perform capital punishment in addition to special housing facilities for these prisoners.
In contrast, jails lack capital punishment facilities and prisoners are not segregated as they are in prisons. Prisons are tightly secured to prevent escapes and violence between the different groups of prisoners (Kelly, 1999, p.38). In addition, prison staff is specially trained in order to be able to handle prisoners without confrontations.
In conclusion, the primary difference between a jail and a prison is their jurisdiction and the length of sentences served by offenders. Jails are managed by local authorities and are used to confine offenders for less than one year. In contrast, prisons are managed by the state and are used to detain convicted offenders with long sentences.
References
Doak, M. (1999). Crime Prisons and Jails. Philadelphia: Gale Publishers.
Kelly, Z. (1999). Correctional Facilities. New York: Rourke Publishing Group.