Prison Reform

"While society in the United States gives the example of the most extended liberty, the prisons of the same country offer the spectacle of the most complete despotism."
-Alexis de Tocqueville

- Before the reform of our prison system, lunatics were housed with criminals and were punished in the harshest of ways.

- Even children convicted of minor felonies were put with adult convicts.

- Prison reformers emphasized the idea of rehabilitation. With this, there was hope that these convicts and mentally ill had a chance to once again fit into society.