Conjugal Visits: Do They Really Exist?
At one time, they were quite prevalent, particularly in Mississippi, California, New York, New Mexico and Washington, but most of the U.S. penal system has done away with conjugal visits for safety reasons. Many of these visits used to last for up to seventy-two hours in prisons across the U.S., giving married couples significant time to spend together. While this is an obvious privilege, it also presents an opportunity to smuggle contraband.
Legislators have weighed the benefits of providing conjugal visits to prison inmates against the potential risks. In such a visit, neither the inmate nor his or her spouse is monitored except for a guard outside the door. Conversations and activities are considered privileged in the U.S., and therefore cannot be observed by corrections officers. If the inmate and his or her spouse conspire to commit a crime during that time, the prison would experience harsh scrutiny from the public.
In the states where conjugal visits are still observed, they are often limited to inmates who exhibit extremely good behavior. In other words, the privilege is earned, and not given, when an inmate goes to jail. If he or she is not considered a high risk for security, his or her spouse may be allowed to visit for several hours or even days at a time, during which they can be alone. Some legislators believe that this makes inmates better behaved.
The original purpose for conjugal visits was to encourage inmates to maintain family ties. It was thought that if a convicted criminal could see his or her family every once in a while, he or she would have reason to behave and get out on parole. This benefit, of course, has been discredited based on the prevalence of gang activity, homosexual relations, and violence in the U.S. penal system. If inmates are given an opportunity to have sex while incarcerated, they may become even more violent, and therefore higher risks.
The chances of an inmate today receiving conjugal visits are low, though there are opportunities for inmates and civilians to talk to the lawmakers about their opinions. The subject of recidivism in the penal system, as well as inmate behavior, is heavily debated in criminal justice circles. The question of whether or not prison is intended to rehabilitate - rather than to merely punish - deserves the scrutiny of all Americans who might one day be affected by the answer.
Published by Steve Thompson
Steve is a full-time freelance writer. In addition to the more than 3,000 articles he's written for AC, he has also written articles and other materials for more than 100 happy clients. He enjoys writing abo... View profile
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10 Comments
Post a CommentAt the ignorant redneck calling them self the Rationalist Approach, most of the inmates in prison are Black & Latino even though crime statistics say 52% of rapists are white males & most serial killers are white men as well. The criminal justice system is and always has been biased. They just lock so many people up because its a loophole to get free labor in spite of the 14th amendment
Ignorance... that's the only word I have for some of these comments!
I am 18yrs old and 3mnths pregnant and my boyfriend is doing a "Bid" for 3-5yrs. I want to know if me and him can get married and receive Conjugal visits? so i can give him time with his child and me. Also is there an age limit to get Conjugal visits?
my husband is carserated at Fort,Dix.His release date were Jul4,2011,but now they is saying its Apr.23,2011.Did they reduced his sentence on good behavior,or what.and did he had to fill out another visitor's list than he had when he was doing time in state.
I think the best course of action would be to take all of the scum that are in the prisons today and just kill every single one of them, its been proven that rehabilitation does not work. It would save a lot of money to just slit their throats rather than spend money on a bullet. Hate to break it to you girls in the comment section but your boys aren't coming back. They are going to stick to a life of crime, the sooner you realize that the better. If they do make it back which they won't, they will probably have lost interest in you and caught HIV.
I feel that inmates would behave better..Sexual deprivation causes stress and if the CO's are tired of breaking up fights or getting their own butts kicked they should suggest conjugal visits in their meetings. But that's just my opinion.
My husband has recently been wrongly convicted and we are appealing his case but in the mean time I do feel like conjugal visits would make this whole situation easier for me and my husband. I know I can only speak for my husband but he would definetly be on his BEST behavior with just a possiblity of being able to spend some quality alone time with his wife. As far as contraband smuggling is concerned I personally would be willing to submit to a full strip search whatever was required of me. I hope that one day our judicial system will realize that inmates are still human beings.
I definitely believe that conjugal visits should be allowed in most cases...think about it then people wouldnt be getting raped in there etc..my boyfriend is going away for a long time. im not sure how to get them but i wish there was a way... people have needs not even sexual..just to spend time together..they should have one thing to look forward to..
Yes, many agree that it would be a previlage to have the visits when in jail, but is it really a privilage? Sexuality is a human need in my prospective and I'm sure many more can agree to that. In Texas conjugal visits are not permitted, yet I believe it should be otherwise. For those who believe that jail is a way of rehabilitation I would like to say there is absolutely nothing rehabilitating about restricting inmates from intimacy with their spouse. If the visits should require monitoring to be considered safe then, in my opinion, by all means monitor. I felt bothered after reading the article and learnig the rationals that are used to justify the removal of visits. Honestly I think that every inmates case is different and conjugal visits should be considered.
I know they don't offer them in GA, at least not in the state prison I worked in (taught GED). Interesting, yet difficult to allow. Besides, they are in prison, but as you said, it can lead to other problems. Frankly, in the jail here, anyone who exhibited homosexual behavior had to be moved to a different state prison. They were in danger of bodily harm. Interesting article.