Solutions to Overcrowding of Prisons in Georgia (Essay Sample)

Running Header: SOLUTIONS TO THE ISSUE OF OVERCROWDING OF PRISONS IN GEORGIA
Overcrowding of prisons in Georgia
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Introduction
Prisons are meant to secure dangerous persons or wrongdoers in separate confines away from law abiding citizens. Different types of prisons exist depending on the level of crime. For instance, maximum security prisons house high profile inmates while minimum security prisons house petty offenders. Over the years, Georgia has experienced a growing population of prisoners in its correctional facilities resulting in congestion. Nonetheless, its department of corrections has substantially endeavoured to ease the situation by building triple beds for inmates (Pollock, 1997, p. 66).The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to explore viable solutions to the problem of congestion in Georgian prisons.
Alacrity of Trials
Prisons house not only convicted individuals, but also those on trial. The criminal justice system in Georgia could perhaps review how public defense attorneys operate. It is apparent that the delays in prosecutions are somewhat deliberate. The Georgian situation has been caused by judges who sleep on the job. The longer a case takes to prosecute, the longer the suspect stays in prison. Moreover, the situation gets worse when county jails become overcrowded with state prisoners (Pollock, 1997).
Granting of Bail to Petty Offenders
Most of Georgian prisoners are not actually criminals, but rather ordinary citizens who happen to brush sides with the law, some for the very first time. Many of these individuals are financially incapacitated hence may fail to pay bail, which may be as little as $50. Even those with enough money cannot pay for their release since they are already in police custody. Unless somebody places bail on their behalf, they languish in prison cells. Considering the fact that petty o...