Punishment is not purpose of prison  Prison itself already has punishment value: the loss of liberty and exclusion from society. However, punishment is not the purpose of prison. This is accepted in the US, where state prison systems do not claim punishment is a goal: see California [1] , New York [2] and Nevada (“Protect the public by confining convicted felons according to the law, while keeping staff and inmates safe.“) [3] . Similarly, the UK’s Ministry of Justice does not list “punishment” as a priority of HM Prison Service [4] . Instead the aim is to prevent crime by holding prisoners, and to rehabilitate criminals so that when they are released they are able to reintegrate into society without reoffending.  [1] California Department of Corrections &amp; Rehabilitation, ‘Vision, Mission, Values, and Goals’, CA.gov, accessed 6/2/2014   [2] Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, ‘The Departmental Mission’, NY.gov, accessed 6/2/2014,   [3] Nevada Department of Corrections, ‘Mission Statement’, NV.gov, accessed 6/2/2014   [4] HM Prison Service, ‘About HM Prison Service’, justice.gov.uk, accessed 6/2/2014,