Jail (pronounced jeyl)
(1) A
prison (in some places used generally of institutions of incarceration, in
others tending to be applied to structures used for the detention of those awaiting
trial or convicted of minor offenses).
(2) To take
into or hold in lawful custody; to imprison; to incarcerate.
(3) In horse
racing, the condition created by the requirement that a horse claimed in a
claiming race not be run at another track for some period of time (usually 30
days).
(4) In
dodgeball (and related games), the area where players who have been struck by
the ball are confined.
(5) In computing,
as used by certain variants of Linux, an implementation of a sandbox in which
can be run an instance of another OS (operating system).
1225–1275:
From the Middle English gayole, gaylle,
gaille, gayle, gaile, gaiole, jaiole
& jaile, from the Old North
French gaiole, gayolle & gaole and the Old French jaiole (cage), from the Medieval Latin gabiola, from the Vulgar Latin gaviola, a variant of the Late Latin caveola (small cage, cell), diminutive
of the Classical Latin cavea (cavity,
coop, cage). Regionalism in language was
one more common (especially in eras when population movement (particularly in
rural areas)) was more limited and the two spellings in the Old French variants
reflect the independent linguistic evolutions, the spelling “gaole” indicative of a pronunciation in
use until the seventeenth century. It
fully displaced the native Middle English quartern
(prison, jail, cell), from the Old English cweartern
(jail, prison) and partially displaced the native Middle English lok, from the Old English loc (enclosure,
pen; jail, prison) (from which English gained “lock”) and the Middle English carcern, from the Old English carcern, from the Latin carcer (prison, jail). In the Old English, there were many words
meaning jail (regionalism also a factor here) including heaþor & heolstorloca
(the latter meaning also “jail cell”), clūstorloc,
dung (the latter meaning also also “dungeon”), hlinræced, nirwþ, nīedcleofa, hearmloca and nearu. Jail & jailing
are nouns & verbs; enjail, rejail, jailor (or jailer) & jailoress (or
jaileress) are nouns, jailed & enjailed are verbs, jailless, jailish, jailable,
nonjailable & jaillike are adjectives; the noun plural is jails.
In English,
there are seeming anomalies which must baffle those learning the tongue and
make them wonder how such a messy and sometimes inconsistent language became
something of the world’s lingua franca.
Were it possible to have a committee edit the lexicon and eliminate the
pointlessly troublesome, not only might something be done about homophones like
“razed” (demolished) and “raised” (built) but the “gaol” (still used in parts
of the English-speaking world to mean “jail”) would be retired and “jail” would
become universal. Jail as a noun dates
from the thirteenth century and the persistence of “gaol” as the preferred form
in the UK is attributed to the continued use in statutes and other official
documents although there may also have been some reluctance to adopt “jail”
because this had come to be regarded as an Americanism.
Some
idiomatic and slang uses
A “jailbreak” literally is “an escape from jail” but it was adopted in the ecosystem created by the computer industry to refer to modification to the hardware or firmware of an electronic device (mobile phones, tablets, gaming consoles etc) to allow the installation and use of software not officially supported or explicitly excluded by the manufacturer. With the coming of AI (artificial intelligence) LLMs (large language models), jailbreak also became the term for a prompt which in some way bypasses any ethical restrictions imposed by the vendor. In ice hockey, the jailbreak is a rule applied in some leagues under which a penalty is ended if the short-handed team scores; the goal scored in such circumstances is a jailbreak. Any prisoner who emerges from jail (whether by a jailbreak or by more regular means) is said to be a “jailbird” and there are more than a dozen formal & informal terms for “jail” including slammer, hoosegow, jailhouse, big house, Uncle Sam’s hotel etc.
2022 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye Widebody Jailbreak in Go Mango with satin black accents over black Laguna leather and Alcantara upholstery. Because of the design of the front splitter, this model was supplied ex-factory with the one-piece yellow "underwire".
Unexpectedly, during the 2010s, "underwire" entered the lexicon of automotive slang when it was used to describe a plastic part fitted temporarily as a protective piece. The yellow plastic fitting (pictured above on the leading edge of the Challenger's splitter) was called a "splitter guard" which was unimaginative but the factory didn't envisage them as consumer items and the term was merely explanatory for the information of those preparing cars for sale. Installed to prevent damage during shipping, it was part of dealer preparation instructions to remove the pieces but leaving them attached became a cult and some cars were even retro-fitted. An element in that was the "end of an era" vibe and large number of the vehicles in Dodge's "Last Call" runs (of which there were many) were purchased as investments to be stored away for the day when V8s are no longer produced and collectors will be anxious to pay much for the way things used to be done. How well that will work out remains to be seen but with the "Last Call" runs typically in batches of more than 3000, most of them weren't, in collectable terms, especially rare.
Dealers cautioned against the trend, noting the pieces weren't specifically molded to ensure a perfect fit so dirt and moisture were prone to being trapped in the gaps and this could scuff the paint. They were known also as "damage guards" and "scuff guards" but more imaginative souls dubbed them the "underwire" while serious students of such things suggested a better simile might have been "pastie", while acknowledging Chrysler followed the lead of the underwear manufacturers in having available both single and two-piece "underwires" although this was coincidental and deterministic, dictated by the splitter design. Women have been known to remove from bras especially intrusive underwires (a "comfort thing") but whether on splitters they were kept or discarded might have seemed an improbable subject for dispute but with cars, men always find a reason to argue about something. Although probably it would have preferred to discuss horsepower, superchargers and such, Chrysler noted the cultural phenomenon and, while obviously reluctant to upset either faction, did issue a statement to a magazine which had requested comment:
"The splitter guards on Dodge Charger and Challenger have taken on a life of their own. They originally made their debut in the 2015 model year to protect the performance fascias on SRT models during shipment from the manufacturing facility to the dealer, and, yes, they are designed to be removed before delivery. But today, they have their own Facebook page, and many of our performance enthusiasts have active debates on whether to keep or remove them. Some owners say they are even selling them in the aftermarket. Obviously, they weren't part of the original design, so we started with yellow guards and shifted to pink, but they are still so popular that we may shift them yet again to black. Wherever we land, this is another example of how our customers are passionate about every part of their Dodge muscle cars."
By the twenty-first century, long done were the days in the early 1950s when Chrysler Corporation was run by men with an ethos that cars should be designed so “a gentleman can drive one while wearing his hat” and if that dictated stodgy looking vehicles, so be it. That changed with the release of the 1955 range and from then on, for better or worse it was all about style but by the early 2000s, the company reached the same conclusion as GM (General Motors) and Ford: automotive aesthetics attained their peak in the late 1960s and what’s been done since hasn’t been as good. Accordingly, for the release of the third generation (although many don’t count the second because it was a badge-engineered Japanese import) Challenger (2008-2023), Dodge produced a most accomplished re-imagining of the first (1970-1974), a vehicle which was a costly commercial failure although that was due more to external conditions than the thing’s dynamic qualities. Between 2008-2023 the Challenger was produced in a bewildering number of variants, many with some of the longer multi-part model names and it’s doubtful if any but the most devoted fan-boys could either recall or deconstruct the configuration of them all.
On intriguing piece of nomenclature was “Jailbreak” which Chrysler’s marketing types picked up from the use in various sub-cultures to circumvent manufacturers’ restrictions on devices like smartphones although this was a case of Dodge “hacking itself” (using “hack” loosely) because the Jailbreak “customization program” was explained as a way in which buyers could bypass the previous limitations on what could be ordered with which, enabling them to “mix ’n’ match”. The concept is of course familiar in the fiscally rarefied air breathed in placed like the Porsche Sonderwunsch (special request) office but it wasn’t new to Detroit, Cadillac in the happy days of the 1960s, despite in a typical year offering literally over a hundred combinations of interior & exterior combinations also offered buyers the chance to make “special requests”. There's no record of Cadillac attempting to act as the "good taste police" and presumably if some buyer did ask for an aesthetically dubious combination, duly it was built although the factory did refuse to use light colors on dashboard pads or package shelves because of the risk of reflections in the glass. The deviations from the production line rationalization which was designed for optimal efficiency of course came at a cost and took additional time but everything was priced at a level to ensure the profitability to which Cadillac had become accustomed.
The jailbreak programme was also available on the Charger.
For Dodge the Jailbreak programme was run on similar lines and while not quite an “anything goes” approach, it was more permissive and for the Challenger’s final two seasons (2022-2023), buyers of SRT Hellcat or SRT Hellcat Redeye models could “fine-tune” things like paint, interior trim, wheels, stripes, badges and other items in a way the factory had not previously permitted. As icing on the jailbreak cake, the SRT Hellcat Redeye Jailbreak cars received a more potent engine, rated at 807 horsepower, a number which would have seemed a fantasy in the era of the second generation Challenger when the most powerful engine offered probably generated (in comparable terms) around 435-445 HP.
Fought in 1916 between the UK’s Royal Navy and the Navy of the German Empire (the so-called “Second Reich”), the battle of Jutland in 1916 was the closest the world got to the clash on the high seas of fleets of dreadnoughts, an event the navalists and theorists had for a generation be expecting or hankering. For a variety of reasons it proved anti-climatic (though at a cost of over 8,000 lives) but while a tactical victory for the Germans (in terms of ships sunk or damaged and causalities), strategically the British succeeded in ensuring for the rest of of World War I (1914-1918) their opponents were confined to a pocket of the Baltic, denied access to the North Sea and thus the Atlantic; this enabled the Royal Navy’s blockade of Germany to be maintained. Summing up, the New York Times concluded: “The prisoner gave his jailor a bloody nose but at the end of the day was back behind bars in his jail cell.” Barely noticed except in the halls of the admiralties (where it made a great impression) was the vulnerability of the battlecruiser, a class of ship of which much had been expected although at Jutland they were used in a way the theorists who suggested the configuration had neither intended nor recommended.
The concept
of a “black jail” is ancient; it’s a jail where people can, for whatever
reason, be imprisoned by some agency of state, often in secret and with no
recourse to legal remedies or other procedures.
It can be thought of as a particular example of “being disappeared” and the use of such institutions was the origin
of the judicial writ of habeas corpus (from the Latin habeas corpus ad subjiciendum (“You (shall) have the body to be
subjected to (examination)”) which in the common law tradition can be
translated as “bring them before the court so the lawfulness of their detention
may be assessed”. First seen in
England in the twelfth century, the writ to this day remains (in Western nations)
one of the core protections afforded to citizens. In 2002, shortly after it invaded the place as
an administrative convenience, the US established such a jail in Afghanistan
and apparently it was controlled by the Department of Defence’s (now again the
Department of War) intelligence office and staff from Army Special Operations
although other agencies were known to have provided “specialized services”. Existing always on a “neither confirm nor deny” basis, the US Black Jail was an example
of the way things get done when it’s required to process irregular combatants in
extreme conditions.
It
illustrated too the use of language: Among nations party to the relevant
conventions, whereas prisoners of war (ie those combatants who meet the
definition) are held in “PoW (prisoner of war) Camps” and never lose their
military status; others can end up in “jails”.
Of course, it can’t be certain organs of the state in some Western
countries aren’t still in secret maintaining “black jails”, possibly without
the knowledge of elected governments. The
system of concentration camps created during the Third Reich (1933-1945) began
as a way for the state to regularize what had unexpectedly “sprung-up” as a
number of “black jails” created informally by party members to imprison their
many opponents and enemies. It was a
classic example of the essentially criminal, gangster nature of the Nazi state
and while the authorities didn’t object to most of those in the black jails
being incarcerated, they wanted it done on an organized, professional
basis. Structurally, the operation of
the concentration camps was also a microcosm of the whole Nazi project: Those
who could send victims to the camps or have them released had no say of what
happened within the camps while those running the places could order neither an
individual’s jailing nor their release.
In 2011, the Salt Lake Tribune reported a case of botulism in jail juice fermented in a cell in the Utah State Prison, the source traced to a “bad” potato. The prisoner responsible for the brew (containing powdered juice mix and several types of fresh and canned fruit) told medical staff he added the “two-week old baked potato” because he thought it would “accelerate fermentation”.
Jail juice is prison slang (originally a US form but
now widely used, even beyond the English-speaking world) for the various forms
of improvised alcoholic beverages (typically fermented) brewed in correctional
facilities. There are other slang forms
of the concoctions including “prison hooch”, “swish”, “prison wine”, “toilet
wine” & “loaf brew” (some forms of white bread said to be a good additive
in the process once crumbed) but most descriptive was “pruno”. Dating from the late 1930s, the name was derived
from the use of prunes, then in ample supply in many US prison kitchens. The term pruno became generic, later applied
regardless of the fruit used in the fermentation. A “phone jail” is a place (usually in
schools) in which the mobile phones of students are locked away for certain durations
(which can be short or the whole school day).
“Jailbait” describes someone (almost always female) who is (1) obviously
sexually mature yet (2) was (or appeared to be) under the legal age of consent
and was (3) considered attractive or seductive.
The term references the legal concept of statutory rape under which
an adult engaging in consensual sexual relations with someone under whatever is
the relevant age in that jurisdiction can convicted and jailed.
In
November, 2011, in a hearing held at Los Angeles Superior Court Airport branch,
Lindsay Lohan was sentenced to 30 days in jail at Lynwood's Century Regional
Detention Facility. The penalty was
imposed after she admitted violating the terms of her probation from a 2007 DUI
(driving under the influence) case; she had failed to attend community service
appointments at a Los Angeles women's shelter.
However, just 4½ hours into the 30-day sentence, she was handed a “get
out of jail free card”, released because of chronic over-crowding in California's
jail system. Sometimes, you get lucky.
At least
one “Get out of jail free” card has been included in every version of the
Monopoly board game since first it was released in 1935 although most editions
have featured two, one from the “Chance” stack, the other from “Community Chest”. What possession of the card confers is the
ability (as the name implies) for a player to move on from the jail square
without having to throw three doubles (of the dice) in a role or pay a fine
although, in certain circumstances, it can be adventitious for a player not to
use the card and “remain in jail”, something which sometimes happens IRL (in
real life). From the board game comes
the idiomatic use of “a get-out-of-jail-free card” to refer to “a certain
privilege or advantage providing relief from an undesirable situation or
immunity from punishment or consequences”.
Historically, states have sometimes offered similar devices although
they’ve never been available for those accused of serious offences.
In George Orwell’s (1903-1950) novel Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949), the Ministry of Love was responsible for the dispensation of fear and suffering and its most dreaded institution was Room 101, located in the basement of their headquarters. Room 101 was a torture chamber in which the ruling party subjected prisoners to their individual worst nightmares and greatest fears, the purpose being finally to destroy any residual resistance. Less threatening though equally specific is Room 140 at Macy’s department store Herald Square flagship store in Manhattan, New York City. One of a few private “jails” in New York, those accused of shoplifting are escorted by security guards to Room 140’s cells where they can be held for hours, the stories told suggesting the detained are asked to sign an admission of guilt and pay sometimes hundreds of dollars in “fines”, sometimes without any conclusive proof of an offence. That may sound medieval but a majority of US states do have on the books legislation which offer retailers often a wide latitude forcefully to hold and subsequently fine suspects, even if, technically, nothing has been stolen or criminal charges have been dropped. The US industry’s problem is real because as much as US$15 billion is each year lost to shoplifting and the purpose of the laws is both a tacit admission the state would prefer not to be involved in “low dollar value” matters and a way to enable stores to recoup some losses. Under New York's long-standing law, retailers may collect a penalty of five times the cost of the stolen merchandise (up to US$500 per item), plus as much as US$1,500 if the “recovered” merchandise isn't in a condition to be sold. A conviction is not a pre-condition to bring a civil claim.
In operation, application has been controversial with claims retailers abuse the law by engaging in “racial profiling”, targeting minorities and holding customers for hours as a form of duress; Macy’s has in the past paid a settlement to the state to settle a number of claims. Macy’s maintain their corporate policies prohibit coercion when recovering fines, recently issuing a statement: “Our policy of exercising our right to pursue a civil recovery payment is consistent with common practice in the retail industry and within the parameters of the law.” Many retailers detain suspected shoplifters although few have their own jail cells and Macy’s is unusual in requesting the on-the-spot payment of fines.
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