PRISONERS ARE PEOPLE

A record of a courageous, humane, and rewarding experiment which points the way to a new orientation in prison work and the regenerative results possible, based on Warden Scudder's experience in the new prison at Chino, California, which was set up in 1940. Determined to head a minimum security prison, Scudder did away with fences, watch towers and armed guards, selected his personnel with care, and handpicked his prisoners from San Quentin who were given a freedom within walls based on trust and responsibility. Here are all the aspects of prison life in Chino; the food- much of which they raised themselves; their part in the war effort, canning beef for the Army, and in the forestry camp nearby; the educational and trade training program which prepared the men for a more secure, economic future; the recreation, which included parties at the Scudders' house; the occasional infractions (sex, liquor, benzedrine) and the few escapes, less than the anticipated percentage; etc. etc.... A story of progressive penology which reflects the confidence, and the conviction of a man who believed in his methods and his men, with warm interest.