Sometimes you may hear someone say they are going to “jail” when they mean they are going to prison, or vice versa. The difference between jail and prison can be confusing to some people, so in this blog post, we’ll go over what each means and how each works.
Jails are designed for short-term confinement, while prisons can be used to house inmates for years or decades. In this blog post, we will discuss the difference between jail and prison, as well as how they compare in terms of size and level of security.
What is a jail?
A jail is a short-term prison. They are meant to hold inmates for lesser periods, and there is no limit on how long an inmate can spend in jail. In general though, you might think of a jail as a temporary place for inmates.
Jails are most often used between trials or before an inmate is convicted of a crime. For example, if someone is arrested and charged with DUI, but has not yet been convicted, they will probably spend some time in jail while they wait for their trial date to arrive.
What is prison?
Prisons are designed to be used for long-term confinement, usually for longer sentences. This includes state and federal prisons, which are the two main types of prisons in the United States today.
A prison can be used as a long-term or life sentence (or both), depending on the state law that governs it and the crimes committed by the inmates. If someone has already been sentenced to life without parole (LWOP), they could end up spending their entire life behind bars!
However, in general, prisons serve two purposes: punishment and rehabilitation. The people who go there have to work hard all day so that when they leave they can find a job and can support themselves.
Most people spend at least part of their sentence in local jails (for shorter sentences) or state/federal correctional facilities (for longer sentences). Unlike what you see on TV, however, most inmates are not “sent” to these locations right away. They usually wait while they work in the court system first!
Differences between jail and prison
Difference in size and capacity
Jails are smaller than prisons because they typically hold fewer people. In general, prisons are larger than jails because of all the extra space needed for cells, staff, recreational areas/facilities, etc. States use both local and state jails to detain people who have been convicted or are awaiting trial for serious crimes. Local officials often run the county jails that hold inmates before sentencing. While states operate most of the state correctional institutions that house the longest serving convicts.
The difference in security level
Prisons are safer places to be, while jails are less secure facilities. Prisoners have much stricter rules and regulations that must be followed when inside the prison walls compared to those found in jails. Prisons lack high fences and armed guards. Prisons have increased security measures such as high fences, barbed wire, and gun towers not found in prisons. It can sometimes even require you to wear electronic monitoring devices when you are released so officials know where you are at all times!
difference behind bars
Life for inmates in prison tends to differ from that in jail because there are much stricter rules and regulations set for inmates. The goal of incarcerating convicted felons is that they serve some form of sentence for their crimes. Inmates can receive multiple sentences that add up to a total time behind bars, but they generally serve one term at a time until it is completed.
Similarities Between Jail and Prison
A jail term can end up taking much less time than expected if an inmate is released early with good behavior; on the contrary, it could even take longer if a person gets into trouble while incarcerated. Inmates may also be released from prison early for good behavior before they have served the full length of their sentence, although this is not very common and usually only happens after several years.
Another great similarity is the fact that both are a kind of correctional facility that holds people who have been convicted of a crime or are still awaiting trial. However, prison is used for much longer sentences and usually contains more dangerous people, as the crimes they committed were much worse!
Jail or prison inmates can also expect to go through many security measures before being allowed to leave their facility. And even then, they will always be under some form of supervision (either by probation/probation officers or by electronic monitoring devices).
