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Abstract
This article focuses on the evolution of prison library services in the United States and the changes in the roles and purposes of prison libraries over the last two centuries. The development of standards and guidelines for prison libraries under the leadership of the American Library Association and the American Correctional Association is discussed. The characteristics of the offender population are described as well as how prison libraries have responded to the specific needs of this special user group. The challenges of the unique prison environment are highlighted, especially as they relate to the delivery of library services. Examples of successful library services and programs are included, with descriptions of technology projects, resources for prison library staff, collection development policies, law library services, literacy programs, and resources to assist inmates with the transition back to society.
Development of Prison Libraries
Access to reading materials and information is provided in practically all federal and state correctional institutions in the United States. Such access is also provided in most local jails, although the level and quality of these services are not easily ascertained. Library facilities, library collections, and library services in the federal prison system fall under the jurisdiction of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Department of Justice. Each of the fifty states has its own department of corrections (or similarly named agency) with responsibility for the state correctional facilities and their libraries. Counties and municipalities administer jails and detention centers and often have agreements with local public libraries and/or community volunteer groups to provide reading materials and other library services to inmates. Larger jails often have designated library spaces but may not have professional librarians on staff.
Offenders convicted of a federal crime serve their sentence in federal institutions; offenders convicted of state crimes serve their sentence in a state facility; defendants awaiting trial are incarcerated in local jails, and some convicted offenders with short sentences (mainly less than one year) may also serve their sentence in a jail. As of December 31, 2009, more than 1.6 million prisoners were under the jurisdiction or legal authority of state and federal correctional officials. At midyear 2009, about 1 in every 198 U.S. residents was imprisoned with a sentence of more than one year, a...