8.11. Types of Prisons 
DAVID CARTER 
Prisons in the United States can be parcelled out by jurisdiction and by intensity. By jurisdiction, this is 
referring to who manages the prisons. A prison warden is generally considered the managerial face of the 
institution. However, a prison warden and the prison itself is usually within a much larger organizational 
structure. Although not always, these are usually separated by State. There are a few jurisdictions not at the 
State level that manage or operate prisons. This includes places like New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and 
Washington D.C. Puerto Rico (not a State) also has a prison, as does the U.S. territory of the Virgin Islands. 
State Prisons 
The normal label for the organizational structure of prisons in a particular State is often called Departments 
of Corrections and are run by a Director, who is usually appointed by a Governor. For example, in 
Oregon, it is the Oregon Department of Corrections, and Director Peters is the current head of this 
organization (2012-present). The Oregon Department of Corrections currently overseas 14 State prisons. 
More information about the ODOC can be found here:   https://www.oregon.gov/doc/Pages/default.aspx. 
California has the California Department of Corrections, and Secretary Diaz is the head of this organization 
(2018 to present). CDCR oversees 34 adult institutions. For more information about CDCR, see 
https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/. 
Federal Prisons 
The Federal Bureau of Prisons was established in the early 1930s as a result of the need to house an 
increasing number of individuals convicted of federal crimes. There were already some federal prisons in 
place, but it was not until 1930 that the U.S. Congress passed legislation to create the BOP, housing it under 
the justice department. Sanford Bates became the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP or 
BOP), based on his long-standing work as an organizer and leader at Elmira Reformatory in New York. As 
more federal legislation was passed, the need for more prisons became apparent. 
Today, the BOP has 109 prisons, along with numerous additional facilities (camps) adjoining at these 
locations. There are also military prisons, and alternative facilities, reentry centers, and training centers, that 
are managed by the BOP. The federal prisons are separated into six regions., which include: the  Mid-
Atlantic Region, the North Central Region, the Northeast Region, the Southeast Region, the South Central 
Region, and the Western Region. 
Within these regions are regional directors, which is similar to state-level directors of departments of 
corrections. Below is a detailed map of the regions of the Federal Bureau of Prisons. As is depicted, there are 
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