PENAL INSTITUTION. — In technical usage, this term refers to the place where an individual, having been sentenced by an irrevocable judgment, must serve the penalty imposed. It is therefore linked to the concept of punishment, whereas remand prison houses those awaiting criminal proceedings.
The penal institution, with all the complex life that revolves around it, gives rise to numerous social problems: it can be said that almost all of these stem from the presence of the individual as a responsible being, endowed with a soul as well as a body, and from the character that the notion of criminal punishment has consequently assumed, especially in more recent times. For the historical development of this concept and for the problems common also to remand detention, see PRISON.
At the foundation of a penal system worthy of a civilized and Christian State must lie a concept of punishment that aims at the re-education of the offender and therefore permits treatment not contrary to the dictates of humanity, while still taking account of the moral responsibility of the human person.
Fundamental is the role of the minister of God, who in forgiveness represents God Himself, in restoring abiding light and love. The communal prayer of the inmates is among the most moving and effective means imaginable for their rehabilitation.
The problem of minors constitutes a special chapter in penal execution. Without considering the preventive measures that society must adopt for the better formation of youth (see PREVENTION), it is evident that measures of particular efficacy must aim at reducing the number of minors who indulge in crime. In some Anglo-Saxon countries the principle of supervised liberty has been applied with notable success, and many advocate its adoption also in Italy. In any case, while the penal responsibility of the minor remains intact, juvenile penal institutions should not resemble penal institutions proper, and punishment should be stripped of every material harshness, assuming an exclusively re-educative character. The specialization of punishment with regard to minors should be absolute.
A significant social function is performed by all bodies concerned with post-prison assistance. The effectiveness of punishment, which is measured by the degree to which the offender is reintegrated into honest social life, must be facilitated by every means of aiding the offender on the path of return. If society shares responsibility for many of the crimes committed, no penal system, however perfect, will ever fully achieve its purpose unless it is complemented by a genuine moral renewal of the social environment.