Tackling Correctional Corruption

"This is an engaging and timely book about the 'inconvenient truth' of the abuse of entrusted power in prison by staff, what causes it, and what might prevent it. The authors address systematic, structural and cultural drivers, as well as personal vulnerabilities, showing how the increasing role played by drugs, resource constraints, population growth, and punitive politics make the promotion of 'good power' in corrections more difficult. They raise many critical questions, such as where the line between 'building trust' and 'confiding too personally' with prisoners might lie. Their concepts of correctional integrity and correctional trustworthiness are important and challenging, synthesising purpose, action, competence, values and outcomes. The authors - well established in the field of policing and police corruption - deserve congratulations for bringing together new ideas, informative and inaccessible data, sociological analysis and a range of proposals for future deliberation in the 'normatively complex' field of corrections. Policy-makers and practitioners, as well as scholars and students of the prison, should read this book." (Alison Liebling, Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Cambridge, UK) "With illegal drugs more available in many US prisons than medically prescribed pharmaceuticals, cell phones becoming nearly as ubiquitous behind bars as outside, and sexual misconduct rampant, correctional corruption is emerging as one of the sleeper issues of the mass incarceration era. Goldsmith, Halsey, and Groves avoid the trap of instrumentalism and rightly trace the issue to the core values of the correctional enterprise." (Jonathan S. Simon, Adrian A. Kragen Professor of Law, University of California Berkeley, USA) "Corruption in corrections is an inconvenient truth with jurisdictions across the world frozen in denial. The authors are to be commended for their thorough forensic analysis of the problem: no stone is left unturned. Corruption is an insidious plague threatening every aspect of corrections. This book is unique in bringing the issues out of the shadows. It is essential reading for all those responsible for prisons or attempting to reform them." (John Podmore, Professor of Applied Social Sciences, University of Durham, UK) "With the concept of "correctional integrity", the authors have created a rigorous theoretical structure within which to consider such disparate types of corruption as assaults upon prisoners, unauthorised release of information, inappropriate relationships, drug trafficking and kickbacks. This approach enables realistic and practical assessment of the extent to which correctional corruption can be prevented and managed. The book is essential reading for everyone involved in correctional policy and administration." (Richard W. Harding, Emeritus Professor, The University of Western Australia) "This is an interesting, readable and valuable book on issues of corruption and integrity in correctional institutions. The authors fruitfully mine this under researched area, drawing on Australian data but also US and UK material and the wider organizational deviance literature. Some themes indicate continuity with earlier sources - as control is always problematic - but new features are covered including private prisons, use of social media and increase in female staff. This highly insightful but also practical book deserves a wide readership." (Maurice Punch, Visiting Professor, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK)

Corruption is a problem in prisons about which we hear very little, except when there is an escape from custody or other scandal that makes the media. The closed nature of correctional institutions has made the activities that go on within them less visible to the outside world. While some persons might be inclined to dismiss correctional corruption as an issue, this view ignores the scale of criminality and misconduct that can go on in prison and the impact it can have upon not just the good order of the prison or the rights of prisoners but on the prospects for successful reintegration of ex-prisoners into society.
This book is the first to examine the phenomenon in any detail or to suggest what might be done to reduce its incidence and the harms that can arise from it. Andrew Goldsmith, Mark Halsey and Andrew Groves argue that it is not enough to tackle corruption alone. Rather there should be a broader attempt to promote what the authors call ‘correctional integrity’.