It all depends on how you view the roll of jail....
1) If its punishment/retribution, then making it hell for them make sense on the surface... the problem is that people don't 'go away', once released they are more disturbed than entering and are more likely to commit crime. This is backed by many studies/facts that illustrate this....look at any jail, most are repeat offenders.
2) If its to protect us from them, then isolating them and 'reforming' them may be the cheaper option, while it may not be emotionally gratifying.
3) If its for 'hard time', then it steals jobs from the private sector... and in a time when there is high unemployment, esp for jobs requiring low skill levels, would you prefer honest, hard working citizens to have the opportunity, or criminals doing the work for lining the pockets of wardens?
Remember folks, statistically, most people in jail are not there for 'heinous' crimes... most are actually there for drug related offences.
