How are correctional agencies organized?
The correctional agency setup is unique given that there are a plethora of organizational structures within the correctional field. The highest is the federal level. Federal Bureau of Prisons operates 114 institutions and 28 community correction offices (p. 280). The United States Probation and Pretrial services extends other offers for inmates the have been incarcerated. Probation allows an inmate to be released under a specific set of stipulations in addition to monitoring on a consistent basis. Probation and parole are both used to facilitate the reintegration of an inmate into society; parole is administered by the state board and they may or may not work in conjunction with state parole boards (p. 281). State facilities include prisons and jails. Prisons are used to detain serious offenses such as murder, trafficking, and other sentences that require more than a year of detainment. Jails are for inmates serving a sentence of one year of less for less severe charges.