By Gary Geyer
If you think growing old can be tough, try doing it in a prison.
One segment of the 50+ population that is seldom mentioned in stories about our so-called golden years involves those who face the fact that they will most likely spend the remainder of their lives behind bars.
Prison conditions, especially for those getting on in years, can be horrendous.
In prison you age quicker
To many of us age 55 sounds pretty young, but aging is different for prisoners. From a health standpoint, elderly prisoners are about 10 years older than their chronological age due to characteristics of their lives before entering prison. Low socio-economic status, lack of access to health care, drug or alcohol use and years of living a hard life usually takes its toll.
A growing population
American prisons are home to a growing geriatric population, with one-third of all inmates expected to be over 50 by next year. The number of older prisoners has more than tripled in a decade, and the increase is expected to continue.
Who are those people?
Older inmates fall into three categories. There are “lifers”, who have been in prison for their whole lives, new elderly offenders, who are sentenced in their 40s or 50s, and chronic re-offenders, who have been in and out of prison consistently.
The wants and needs of elderly inmates
Not surprising, being older and in prison is considerably more difficult than serving time when you are young. Studies show that elderly prisoners need more orderly conditions, safety precautions, emotional feedback and familial support than younger prisoners. They are especially uncomfortable in crowded conditions and tend to want time alone.
The old vs. the young
The relationship between older and younger inmates can be a problem. Most elderly prisoners are still integrated with other age groups, leaving them susceptible to intimidation and thievery. Older inmates are very vulnerable to the population that’s stronger than them.
Fear leads to isolation
The fear of becoming a victim no doubt has an impact on one’s daily life. Many prisons house aging prisoners in separate cells from younger inmates but do not exclude them from mixing in the yard with everyone else. Older inmates are often so scared of mingling that they don’t go outside.
Health concerns
Then there is the matter of health. There are many concerns facing elderly prisoners, such as the lack of an adequate or balanced diet and insufficient preventive health care.
Men
It has been reported that the most common illness’ among elderly men in prison are diabetes and hepatitis C. Many are on dialysis machines, receive oxygen or have cancer.
Diabetes is especially problematic because non-medical prisons rarely cater to those with special dietary needs. Prisoners with diabetes usually eat the same food as other inmates - meals full of sugar and carbohydrates. Just think what a daily plate of pancakes and syrup can do.
Women
Female prisoners are at an even greater health risk. At just two percent of the prison population, their needs are most neglected. Older females, many of them grandmothers, have special health care needs that are very distinct from men.
Therapeutic services, cervical and breast cancer screenings and nutritional meals containing calcium and fresh vegetables as well as other necessary health programs are not widely available.
The shock of imprisonment
Imaging you are over 50 and just coming into prison and being isolated from your friends and family for the first time. It’s hard experiencing a multitude of losses simultaneously.
According to the American Civil Liberties Union, most crimes are committed by people in their late teens and early 20s. In
Are things getting better or worse?
As people live longer, are in better health and have more energy, they sometimes get involved in things that might get them in trouble.
Unfortunately, a rise in senior crime is evident. We are seeing many more older people convicted of felonies, such as drug crimes, physical attacks and murder - most often against a spouse or neighbor. Some theories on the increase point to money problems, loneliness, depression, alcohol and drug abuse problems.
Its truly sad that at the point in life when contentment should be our goal, many of us are facing the most difficult challenges one can imagine.
7 users commented in " Seniors Going to Prison "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackIf seniors committed a crime and go to prison, I don’t think many people care whether they get good food, good treatment or anything remotely resembling a good life. Of course, if they were falsly convicted of a crime, that’s different, but for the ones who truly are guilty, for whatever reason, especially if they hurt someone or killed someone, I think we shouldn’t even be taking medical care of those prisoners. The thought of tax dollars paying for dialysis to keep these people alive when there are people on the outside who haven’t committed crimes and can’t get health care, is just really too much. I have no pity for the prisoners at any age.
I agree with the last poster, if you have committed a crime and that crime deserves a prison sentance then it does not matter what age you are.
If someone commits a crime then they have to be punished and why does age have any difference.
Just my opinion.
I just want to say that I happen to love a 58 year old man in prison. Yes, he committed a crime, murder in fact, and he is paying for that by spending the rest of his life behind bars. It is so amazing to me that people are so judgemental. Murder is almost always an act of passion, as in his case. He has never been to prison before, nor been in any significant trouble, he worked all his life and had a decent income and a very nice home. He made a “mistake”, a horrible one that he will pay for until he dies. He has a few health problems, that will in fact get worse as he gets older. He does not get proper care in prison, and you people sound like you think he’s no longer human and entitled to reasonable health care like anyone else because he did something wrong. You must be perfect. Let me serve notice on you about something. If you keep living, no matter how good you take care of your health, old age “will” come, and you too will have health problems. Trust me on this. I expect you will want to receive proper health care-you think?
I think that any senior going to prison for a victimless crime should instead be told to do community service. Use their talents to serve the community. What can they do in prison except cost the tax payers money. Make them work off their crime. Again, I’m only speaking of people found guilty of a victimless crime, not robbers or murderers.
To the person who wrote that most people don’t
care whether a prisoner gets good treatment.
Obviously your not from America. Probably from some uncivilized country.
To the writer who is in love with a murder in prison. So, he killed out of passion. Is that supposed to be an excuse for it? The person he killed doesn’t have to worry about getting sick and old and need healthcare, and the person you love shouldn’t either…they should have their life brought to a quick end instead of requiring healthcare for years and maybe decades. Sorry, but I have no compassion for murderers, because of passion or anything else.
To the person who thinks I must not be American because I don’t care if prisoner gets good healthcare…wrong. I happen to be American and love my country very much. So much, that I hate seeing good money being spent housing, feeding, guarding, and giving the prisoners healthcare…especially those who have committed heinous crimes. A white collar crime may require other punishment besides prison, but if the person is in prison for a violet crime, I think they should get appeals over with quickly and then dispose of the monsters.
You may be confusing condoning torture, as the Bush administration did, with providing care to common criminals. I do not condone torture.
Leave A Reply