Are private prisons intrinsically wrong?: An analysis

Duus-Otterström, G.; Poama, A.

doi:doi:10.1007/s42439-023-00080-1

Persistent URL of this record https://hdl.handle.net/1887/3731665

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Institute of Public Administration

Duus-Otterström, G.; Poama, A. (2023)

Are private prisons intrinsically wrong? An analysis

Article / Letter to editor

Several critics have argued that private prisons are not only problematic because of their worse efects but also intrinsically wrong. This article analyzes two prominent arguments for this claim: the representation argument and the condemnation argument. The conclusion is that these arguments fail to show that there is something intrinsically wrong about private prisons. This is especially true if the arguments are extended to non-proft private prisons under social injustice contexts that states are responsible for. In such cases, non-proft private prisons might not only be on a par with public prisons but be preferable to them. However, the arguments are also insufcient to oppose every conceivable for-proft private prison.