The topic of supermax prisons leads to very controversial discussions with thousands of backers on both sides. This emerging issue drags more and more attention as it represents a list of significant drawbacks. There are those who believe supermax prisons should be disbanded as they pursue inhuman policies against the prisoners. However, there are many others who think that the abovementioned prisons are necessary for safety reasons.
Personally, I believe that supermax prisons should not be cancelled completely, yet they may undergo substantial reforms to meet the requirements of humanity. First and foremost, such facilities benefit from being able to provide better safety for the society, as they allow taking the riskiest inmates away from other prisons which are not suited to handle such cases. Moreover, such institutions provide solitary confinement and higher quantity and qualification of guards, leading to a smaller chance of inmates dealing any harm to each other. Furthermore, applying individual approach allows monitoring every prisoner on a better scale. Finally, fear of going to the supermax prison may prevent possible violent crimes in some cases. On the other hand, there are multiple reasons supermax prisons require restructuring. The first reason is that Supermax are extremely costly, as they involve higher numbers of guards as well as take more space and require expensive safety mechanisms. Second, such prisons conduct inhuman punishment and conditions leading to the development of inmate’s physical and mental health disorders. Additionally, there are almost no rewards for good behavior and no correctional aspect.
Conclusively, I believe that even though supermax prisons are needed to isolate high-risk prisoners, a list of significant changes should be applied to such facilities. The guards should get higher qualification to be able to make adequate decisions and actions. The main purpose of such prisons should be isolation and safety leading to correction instead of destruction of personal character or mental and physical harm.