ABSTRACT
Prison has become ubiquitous in American society to the point that people's first thought of punishment is usually a prison sentence. There are currently more than two million people incarcerated in prisons and jails. Imprisonment rates include only state and federal prison populations, while incarceration rates include state and federal prisons and jails. During the prisoner rights era (1960-80), prisoner petitions increased tremendously and several groundbreaking cases during the Warren court era (when the chief justice was Earl Warren) advanced the legal rights of inmates. The 8th Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishment and has been the basis for outlawing corporal punishment (whipping) in prisons and any practices that result in needless harm. In 1790, the Society for Alleviating the Miseries of Public Prisons was able to get legislation passed that reformed the Walnut Street Jail. Sexual assault in prison occurs and fear of sexual assault is pervasive among new inmates.
