Instructions

Week 4 Project: Prisoners’ Rights

An offender was sentenced for two years for his third grand theft, and was moved to a state prison. During his second week, he was subjected to abuse and humiliation—hazing—from some other prisoners. This treatment continued unchecked, so he informed prison guards on two separate occasions of the abuse during his third week. The prison guards ignored his complaints because they did not want to upset the customary prison ritual of older prisoners scaring the new ones. The guards assumed that he would eventually fit into the prison culture.
However, his complaints led to him being beaten up by other prisoners. He pleaded with a prison guard to transfer him to another wing in the prison because of the continued abuse he was receiving. The authorities denied his request. He was ultimately raped and beaten repeatedly by several prisoners over a span of two weeks before being transferred. He also contracted two sexually transmitted diseases during the assaults. Subsequently, he brought a suit against the state for cruel and unusual punishment.
Conduct research about prisoners’ rights, conditions of the incarcerated, and prisoner abuse. Using Microsoft Word, submit a 4- to 6-page analysis of the case that answers the questions listed below.
Use case law to support your answers.

• Explain the conditions under which prisoners have a right to sue the state based on violations of their constitutional rights. Specify the constitutional rights granted to prisoners. In which conditions are these rights denied?
• Describe the concept of “legitimate penological objectives” and how it figures into inmate lawsuits.
• Did the prison officials show “deliberate indifference” to the prisoner in this scenario under Wilson v. Seiter (1991)? If yes, can the prison guards be held responsible individually for the harm caused to the prisoner due to their indifference? Explain. If no, why?
• Could the victim win a lawsuit against the state by seeking protection under the Eighth Amendment? Use the case law of Farmer v. Brennan (1994) to frame your response.

Cite any sources using APA format on a separate page. Let’s learn how to cite sources using APA guidelines.
Name your document SU_MCJ6410_W4_A2_LastName_FirstInitial.doc.
Submit your document to the Submissions Area by the due date assigned.

While on routine patrol for the Anytown Police Department, you notice a group of what appears to be three underage male teens and one female teen standing along the outside wall of a local convenience store in a poorly lit area. Because it is 1 a.m. in the morning on a Thursday night, which is in violation of your city ordinance regarding curfew, you decide to investigate. When you turn into the driveway of the convenience store, your patrol car headlights illuminate the group of four teens—you notice a cigarette in the hand of the lone female of the group and it appears to you that two of the males are holding beer cans. After asking for identification, you began your investigation and realize that several decisions will have to be made regarding the underage youths. In an APA-formatted paper of 650–800 words, discuss the following:

• In a list that you make in your report, specifically identify the status offense laws that are being violated by each of the underage teens.
• Identify how you are going to process each of the underage teen violators at the scene, and then explain in detail why you made the decision to handle the status offenses in that specific manner.
• Describe how you would handle any of the teen-status offense violators who is being uncooperative at the scene. How would this affect your decision on how to handle this status offense case?
• If you have one or more uncooperative parents who refuse to come to the scene and pick up their child, would this affect your decision on how you handle the case, and if so, what would you then do with the teen?