The State’s Oldest Prison Will Soon Become a Rehabilitation Center

With the transformation of its oldest prison into a rehabilitation center, the state of California, United States is looking to initiate a fundamental shift from an extremely punitive American system, to one that is closer to the highly successful Norwegian incarceration system.

“Do you want them coming back with humanity and some normalcy, or do you want them coming back more bitter and more beaten down?” asks California Governor Gavin Newsom.

San Quentin prison was established in 1852 on a peninsula in the San Francisco Bay and houses almost 4,000 inmates. Governor Newsom is allocating $20 million to start the transitional efforts. By 2025, the prison – renamed San Quentin Rehabilitation Center – will serve as a final stop of incarceration before individuals are released. Inspired by countries like Norway which has the world’s lowest recidivism rates – three out of four former inmates don’t resume a life of crime – Governor Newsom is implementing the ‘California Model’ where inmates can receive training for a number of jobs for trades like plumbers, electricians, and truck drivers. Prisoners could also have access to personal computers, televisions, showers, consistent classes and programming, fresh food, more freedom of movement, and stronger connections with the outside world. Investing in rehabilitation also saves on the costs of re-incarceration, as two-thirds of inmates end up back in jail in the traditional system.