IV

IV. Reception and Classification as a Key to Rehabilitation

1. Reception Procedures

A person who is newly housed in a correctional institution for a criminal act in the society may feel insecure or lose his/her heart because of the unfamiliar institutional environment. Therefore, the Bureau of Correction is exerting its utmost efforts so that the newly adopted inmate may adapt to life in prison following intake procedures. These steps are as follows:

A. Reception of Person and Documents

A criminal offender is normally taken to a correctional institution by the police or officials of prosecutor's office. At the reception the correctional officer on duty is to review all the relevant documents such as arrest warrant, accommodation order, etc, for their legitimacy and congruity with the person.

B. Search, Change of Clothes and Custody of Personal Belongings

To maintain security and safety within the correctional institution, every new comer is to be searched over his/her body and clothes, etc. The clothes and shoes, money and valuables carried are to be kept in custody of the prison officer. Then institutional clothes and shoes will be issued to the inmate.

C. Health checkup

Health checkup for a newly adopted inmate is so important that the institutional medical doctor must conduct a health checkup on him/her immediately after the reception for diseases including contagious ones. Then the doctor must deliberate a countermeasure based on the results of the diagnosis.

D. Intake Education

Living Guidance Orientation on guidance to institutional life and details required to be observed by inmates is very helpful for a new comer to adapt to life in custody, alleviating a sense of insecurity in a correctional facility. On July 1, 2002, the Bureau of Correction published a booklet(64 Pages) about guidance to the institutional life, to be used for new comer education, and to be placed in every cell for inmates' reference at any time.

E. Bath and Accommodation

After the intake education the new inmate takes a bath before entering his/her designated cell. Every new inmate is to be accommodated in a new comer's cell for at least 3 days. Notwithstanding this provision, special inmates such as murderers, drug offenders, and organized criminals, etc may be housed in a designated place other than a new comer's cell.

F. Examination of Personal Facts

A Personal Record Card is to be made for the new inmate within 3 days of his/her reception into the facility. This card containing all the personal facts of the inmate is to be used as an important basis for inmate classification, work assignment, and education, etc.

2. Inmate Classification System

The Inmate Classification System aims at furthering inmates' reintegration into society by implementing proper rehabilitation and reformation programs during incarceration that are based on scientific diagnosis and analysis of inmates' characteristics and capacity, education level, and causes of criminal behavior, and on individual treatment. To this end, the Bureau of Correction is focused on the specialization of correctional institutions and on individual treatment of inmates reflecting their personal traits according to the results of the classification examination.

(1) Specialization of Correctional Institutions

All the 44 correctional facilities in the nation are being specialized and professionalized to prepare basic conditions for professional and efficient training and education by accommodating inmates in appropriate institutions based on individual characteristics. The basic contents are as follows:

A. Functional Classification of Correctional Institutions

ㆍ Prison : There are 30 prisons including An-yang Prison (accommodating sentenced prisoners and exceptionally those awaiting trial).

ㆍ Social Protection House : There are 2 institutions of this sort including Chongsong 1st Social Protection Center (specialized in rehabilitation and reformation of inmates sentenced to social protection detention).

ㆍ Detention Center : There are 12 such institutions including Seoul Detention Center and 4 branch detention houses(accommodating pre-trial inmates).

B. Special Purpose Prisons

ㆍ Women's Prison : There is only one women's prison(Chongjoo Women's Prison).

ㆍ Juvenile Prison : There are 2 juvenile prisons(Chonan and Gimcheon Juvenile Prisons).

C. Classification of Correctional Institutions Based on the Number of Prior Records of Inmates to be Housed

We make our best efforts to protect those confined for accidental offenses and first-timers from being contaminated by other inmates through the classification of correctional institutions based on the number of prior records and the nature of offenses.

ㆍ Accidental Offender Prison : There are only one prison of this kind (Chonan Open Prison).

ㆍ First-timer Prison : There are 11 such prisons such as Youngdongpo Prison.

ㆍ Recidivist Prison : There are 12 prisons of this sort such as Anyang Prison.

D. Foreigner Facilities

To handle the ever-increasing number of foreign offenders, that is concomitant with the expansion of international exchanges. Two correctional facilities are designated and operated to exclusively provide specified treatment to foreign offenders.

ㆍ Taejeon Prison : Male foreign offenders are housed in this prison, where Hangle(Korean) has been taught to foreign inmates since February 2002.

ㆍ Chongjoo Women's Prison : Female foreign offenders are housed in this facility.

E. Pursuit of Specialization of Correctional Institutions in Various Fields of Education and Rehabilitation

ㆍ Academic Education Prison : There are 8 prisons such as Chunchon Prison, Andong Prison, and Kunsan Prison.

ㆍ Vocational Training Prison : There are 5 such institutions as Yondongpo Prison and Soonchon Prison.

ㆍ Operation of a Technical Junior college for Information Technology Education : A branch of Joosung College in Chongjoo Prison

ㆍ Prison with Foreign Language Education : There are 5 prisons of this sort such as Eujungboo Prison, Yeojoo Prison, and Mokpo Prison.

ㆍ Prison for the Handicapped : There are 4 facilities to house the handicapped such as Kwangjoo Prison and Chonjoo Prison.

※ A specialized ward for the specialized treatment of the handicapped inmates is scheduled to be built within Kunsan Prison in 2003.

F. Promotion of Productivity through Professionalization and Specialization of Prison Industry

ㆍ Prison Specialized in Prison Industry : 8 prisons are specialized in this field such as Taegu Prison, Taejeon Prison, and Chongsong Prison.

ㆍ Operation of Work Release Program : Each day an average of 1,593 inmates from 28 correctional institutions, such as Chonan Open Prison, Kunsan Prison, commute to 62 corporations in the community.

G. Medical Treatment Prison : There are 4 correctional facilities specialized in medical/mental treatment of inmates as follows;

- Jinjoo Prison : specialized in the treatment of Tuberculosis and mental illness

- Soonchon Prison : specialized in Hansen's disease

- Kongjoo Prison : specialized in mental illness

- Chunchon Prison: specialized mental illness and Tuberculosis

(2) Operation of a Scientific Classification System

Inasmuch as inmates' successful reintegration into society is the prime objective of correctional administration, the classification system plays a very important role. This is because the most effective treatment may be applied to an individual inmate through an accurate diagnosis of the inmate and the classification based on the diagnosis.

For a scientific classification examination of prisoners, each correctional institution has established an independent Classification Examination Section or a sub-division within the Security Section. Currently there are 192 classification examiners performing their duty. They are equipped with various mechanical instruments for tests such as personality examination and aptitude test. The classification examiners are experts majoring in various fields such as pedagogy, corrections, criminology, psychology, and psychiatry, etc. And they are recruited separately from uniformed correctional officers.

A. Subjects of Classification Examination

In principle, all inmates sentenced to imprisonment with forced labor and those prisoners who are engaged in prison labor on application are subject to classification. However, the following inmates are exempted from classification or the classification examination may be reprieved under certain conditions. In case of reprieve of classification as in case e, f, and g, classification examination is to resume after the end of such conditions.

a. unconvicted inmates

b. inmates placed under custody in lieu of a fine and those sentenced to short-term imprisonment for no longer than 30 days

c. detention for medical/mental reasons

d. convicted inmates who have less than 3 months left to serve in prison

e. those for whom classification examination is deemed inappropriate due to illness, etc

f. those under investigation or disciplinary punishment for violation of disciplinary rules

g. inmates who actively refuse to be examined

B. Details to be Examined

a. personal history

b. level of education and experience in employment

c. immediate environment

d. personal traits and mental state

e. guardianship

f. criminal records and nature of crime

g. willingness to rehabilitation and plans after release

h. other facts necessary for individual treatment and management

C. Methods of Classification Examination

a. Personality Examination

- In the past the MMPI(Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory) was mainly used in a personality examination. Since 2002, however, examiners have been using the Correctional Psychology Test developed by psychology professors at the request of the Bureau of Correction. In addition, the "Rorschach Test" is still being used for certain types of inmates.

b. Intelligence Test

The intelligence test which is devised for high school students or the Comprehensive Capability Test which involves both intelligence test and aptitude test may be used for testing inmates' intelligence.

c. Aptitude Test

- To measure inmates' skills and aptitude, 2 types of tests are conducted, that is paper test and instrument test. For the paper test, the General Aptitude Test is used and various instruments are used to test inmates' vocational aptitude.

D. Contents of Classification Levels

① Accommodation Level

This classification plays as the basis to separate inmate for the accommodation in a suitable correctional institution or in an appropriate section within the institution.

ⓐ Level W : female inmates

ⓑ Level F : foreign inmates

ⓓ Level J : juvenile prisoners under 20 years of age

ⓔ Level Y : young adult prisoners under 23 years of age

ⓕ Level L : those serving long-term sentences of 10 years or longer

ⓖ Level M : mentally ill inmates

ⓗ Level P : physically ill or handicapped inmates

ⓘ Level Co : national security-related offenders

② Reformation Level

This classification is used as the basis to assign an inmate to a specific institution and to calculate the responsibility points based on the developmental status of his/her criminality and the level of his/her prospective reformation. There are 3 levels in this category.

ⓐ Level A : inmates whose criminality has not advanced, and whose reformation is possible

ⓑ Level B : inmates with advanced criminal propensity, yet whose reformation is possible

③ Management Level

This classification functions as the basis of determining a security level suitable for individual inmates. There are 3 levels in this classification.

ⓐ Level G1 : minimum security level, inmates on this level are suitable for outside-the-prison work

ⓑ Level G2 : medium security level, inmates on this level are suitable for facility operation work

ⓓ Level G4 : special security level, extra caution is required for handling inmates on this level.

④ Treatment Level

This classification is used as the basis for determining important treatment guidances that are applied to individual inmates.

ⓐ Level V : inmates needing vocational training

ⓑ Level E : inmates needing academic education

ⓓ Level R : inmates needing work instructions

ⓔ Level N : inmates suitable to work in facility operation

ⓕ Level Q : inmates needing nursing

ⓖ Level T : inmates needing specialized medical treatment

ⓗ Level H : inmates suitable for self-governing treatment

ⓘ Level O : inmates suitable for open treatment

ⓙ Level S : inmates needing special treatment

E. Application of the Results of Classification Examination

Various levels of individual treatment are determined according to the results of the classification examination in accommodation, work, vocational training, education, counseling, and religious activities, etc.

Besides individual treatment, progressive treatment is applied at the same time in Korea. That is, starting at Level 4, convicted prisoners get promoted to a higher level (Level 3, Level 2, and Level 1), dependent on the evaluation of their behavioral and industrial achievements. The higher level an inmate gets promoted to, the more enhanced treatment he/she gets.

Therefore the inmate treatment system maintains a combination of individual treatment and progressive treatment system. Eventually the results of classification examination are utilized as the main data source in the process of granting parole to inmates.