The Real Cost of Prisons Weblog

The inmates, many of whom are serving life sentences at the state prison here, said they owe it to their communities to repair the damage they did while living there. They also want to make the streets safer for their families, who still live in areas where they are likely to be crime targets.

About 70 prisoners and 150 visitors - including international criminologists, students and professors - participated in "Ending the Culture of Street Crime," a daylong conference sponsored by Temple University, the Pennsylvania Prison Society and an inmates' group known as Lifers Inc. It was held in conjunction with the 14th World Congress on Criminology, which is meeting at the University of Pennsylvania through Thursday.

The prisoners shared their insights during a presentation and a panel discussion, and in small meeting groups, a skit and even a rap song. They explained the difference between street culture and mainstream values, and spoke about the need for released convicts to steer young people toward the latter.

State corrections officials would not allow the media to fully identify the prisoners, citing sensitivity to victims' families.

Conference participant Liz Elliott, co-director of the Centre for Restorative Justice at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, said the Canadian justice system is much more forgiving than that of the United States.

Being sentenced to life without parole is not something that happens in Canada, Elliott said.

"I can't imagine what that would do to people," she said.

So it's noteworthy that Lifers Inc. is reaching out to the public, Elliott said.

"I appreciate their sharing," she said.

Graterford, the state's largest maximum-security penitentiary, houses more than 3,400 inmates about 35 miles northwest of Philadelphia. Nearly 770 are serving life terms, corrections officials said.

Prison superintendent David DiGuglielmo asked participants to do more than just talk about ending street crime.

"Take whatever you learn back home," he said, "and do something positive with it."

DiGuglielmo noted that when he began working at Graterford in 1974, the state had eight prisons. Now, he said, there are 26.

He added that while he is amazed by the number of people who volunteer to work with inmates at the jail, he is frustrated by the lack of aid once the prisoners are released back into the community.

"It's hard to find people to help them," said DiGuglielmo.

http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/103-08092005-525545.html

August 9, 2005 4:50 PM