...Punishment versus Rehabilitation Paper Punishment versus Rehabilitation Paper Punishment versus Rehabilitation The criminal justice system has four objectives. They are deterrence, punishment, incapacitation, and rehabilitation. Of these four deterrence, punishment, and incapacitation typically work together. Anytime a person commits a crime, punishment and rehabilitation are needed to address the problem swiftly and effectually. (Punishment vs. Rehabilitation: A Proposal for Revising Sentencing Practices, 1991). When the offender moves from prison to a step-down unit as they get closer to his or her release, they tend to have other issues other than drug and alcohol rehabilitation, and this is what causes recidivism. Research has shown that many prisoners in super maximum units experience extremely high levels of anxiety and other negative emotion. When released, often without any "decompression" period in lower security facilities, they have few of the social or occupational skills necessary to succeed in the outside world (Rehabilitate or Punish, 2003). Craig Haney, Ph.D. states, "This is what prison systems do under the emergency circumstance, they move to punitive social control mechanisms. But it's a very short-term solution, and one that may do more long-term damage both to the system and to the individuals than it solves (Rehabilitate or Punish, 2003)." Throughout this paper, I will be a discussing the strengths of punishment, and how it deters the offenders...
Words: 1844 - Pages: 8
...Punishment Research Paper Craig Hart March 25, 2012 SOC/120 When it comes to American society there are four types of punishment. These types of punishment are retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation and societal protection. Punishment in its concept is favorably perceived as a retributive practice. Our society uses these four forms of punishment attempting to lower crime rates in our society. Some of these types of punishments could be considered harder than others however each one has its own distinction. Retribution according to the dictionary is the act of punishing or taking vengeance for wrongdoing, sin, or injury. I think that the phrase “an eye for an eye” and “a tooth for a tooth” is a very good definition of how retribution depicts peoples need for justice in our American society. When people have gone through an experience of crime or pain, they want some sort of closure or retribution to satisfy their morality. An example of retribution is in our courts system when murders get convicted and sentenced to one life behind bars for every life that was taken. People who believe in retribution believe that there is no rehabilitation or any help to change the criminal just that the criminal must serve the time sentenced. As stated by Gerard V. Bradley (2003) the adoption of retribution as the philosophical basis for punishment therefore provides a powerful, multi-faceted justification for beyond that proffered by the alternatives. Retribution certainly...
Words: 1136 - Pages: 5
...THE CHOICE BETWEEN PUNISHMENT AND REFORMATION:- The scope and purpose of this article is to ascertain various alternatives to punishment that contributes positively and effectively in the reformation and rehabilitation of the offender as well as the victim within the socio-economic conditions of India. The scope and purpose of this article is to ascertain various alternatives to punishment that contributes positively and effectively in the reformation and rehabilitation of the offender as well as the victim within the socio-economic conditions of India. The article further attempts to explore the possibilities of reconciliation of the punitive and reformative ideals to the common betterment of the offender, victim and the society. Introduction Punishment is a means of social control. It is given to the offenders with the aim to check them from committing crimes again. It deters not only the actual offenders but also others from doing the same kind of acts in future. On the one hand, it is some solace to the victim or to his relatives if the offender is punished and on the other hand it serves a social purpose to prevent the people from indulging in criminal acts. So that the punishment may be a reasonable means to check the crime, three things are essential for it. The first is the speedy and inescapable detection and prosecution, the second is a fair chance of “a fresh start” after the punishment and the third is that the State which claims the right to punish must...
Words: 21851 - Pages: 88
...to Argumentation Viengdavanh Cordero EN 1420 1. The chosen argument is B, “Prisons should focus more on rehabilitation and education than on punishment.” This argument will be presented to a group of law enforcement agency and then to a group of educators who are doing volunteer work in a prison. 2. Law enforcement agency: a. Strategy i. This is a group of law enforcement agency who I will assume have the knowledge of law enforcement to operate their ability to apply their restrictive powers. ii. The purpose of this argument is to persuade the law enforcement agency that it is in their best interest to support rehabilitation and education than punishment. iii. The contextual points will support the notion that what is better for prisoners as a whole will improve less population, drug abuse and crime in prison and in the long run. b. Argument: In order to have a society ran by people for the people, we must have order. It is up to law enforcement agency to ensure that prisoners are given a chance to re-enter society and become law-abiding citizens. It should be the mission of the government to rehabilitate the prisoner no matter the infraction. For example, if a prisoner has mental issues, there should be rehabilitative therapy implemented, so that the mental prisoner can be productive behind bars. Also by focusing on rehabilitation and education, it reduces recidivism and generates a positive return on tax payer investment. 3. Volunteer...
Words: 590 - Pages: 3
...Critical Analysis The issue of cruel and unusual punishment towards juvenile life without parole is one that needs to be addressed. The facts stated earlier in this paper have given more than enough reason to abolish life without parole sentences for juveniles. It has been argued in Graham v. Florida that because juveniles have a weak capacity to comprehend their behavior and actions, the punishment of life without parole might not be an effective deterrent from engaging in criminal conduct. Some states have already abolished juvenile mandatory life without parole as they have all found it to be cruel and unusual punishment. Many groups and advocates against life without parole for juveniles have seen this as a step in the right direction,...
Words: 954 - Pages: 4
...From the beginning of history, humanity has had to deal with crime. Prison, which was originally a place to impose punishment, was the most efficient way. However, these days keeping criminals behind walls and bars is not enough; in fact, keeping in captivity a group of humans has created controversy about the purpose of it. Although rehabilitation could not only bring some benefits such as removing the roots of the problem, also it will help offenders get back to a normal life and to maintain social order. Rehabilitation cannot be the best way to prevent further criminals as punishment does, since it is a reminder to society about the consequences of committing criminal actions. To begin with a supporting argument, there is no doubt that rehabilitation is able to remove the roots of the problem reasonably instead of simply eradicating criminals from society. With physiological help, offenders can understand that what they have done is wrong, and therefore once they are out of jail they will not commit crimes again. For instance, countries such as Norway are focused on rehabilitating their inmates and the level of reoffending rates is the lowest in the world. Thus, by means of this approach ex-convicts become law abiding citizens. Furthermore, another benefit of rehabilitation is to help delinquents to return to a normal life. After they are freed employment opportunities and the possibility of starting over become plausible since they are interested in being active...
Words: 661 - Pages: 3
...Capital Punishment Is No Resolution For Juvenile Offenders Juvenile Delinquents Should Not Have To Worry About Capital Punishment Tkemia S. Gibson 1000 Huntington Mews. Clementon, New Jersey 08021 Juvenile Delinquency Capital Punishment 2 Introduction/Abstract….. page 3 Judicial System…… page 5 Juvenile versus Adults…… page 6 Rehabilitation……. page 8 Conclusion……. page 9 Reference page… page 11 Capital Punishment 3 Introduction/Abstract In today’s society our judicial system has been trying to use rehabilitation, treatment services, and reformation to aide our youth in place of Capital Punishment. Capital Punishment was done away with on March 1, 2005. When dealing with medical research and therapist teams the process has become more opened to helping juveniles to overcome any negative behaviors in the legal system. Capital Punishment 4 Capital Punishment over the years has always been one of the most controversial topics that stay in communication with our legal system. In committing murder as a child, it is hard not to become judgmental in thinking that a child knows right from wrong. When thinking of a teenage child committing murder at times you may think do they really realize what they have just done and do they even know the consequences. My position is juveniles who commit the act of murder should not have to suffer the resolution of capital punishment because they are still children and their brains are not...
Words: 2367 - Pages: 10
...years to help explain the relationships between criminal behavior and punishment. The theories of corrections have no doubt changed and shifted over the years, the more people began to understand the rationale behind criminal behavior. Several centuries ago, criminal behavior was once thought to sin guided by the devil or evil spirits, and most often was punished by hanging, beheading, or burning the offender. Then, around the time of the American and French revolutions offenders began to be seen more as highly rational beings who intentionally chose their own courses of action (Schmalleger, 2012). Contemporary sentencing stems mainly from the Classical School theory. This theory stated that criminality, rather than being caused by evil or some higher beings, was actually the result of the bad choices people make of their own free will. The other competing theories of corrections besides the Classical School, prevalent in today’s prison system are retribution, deterrence, restorative justice, and rehabilitation. According to the Classical School theory, the punishment should fit the crime equally. Meaning, that the punishment a person is given should equally fit the seriousness of the crime committed, and not be more extreme such as hanging or burning someone. Someone who steals should not be burned at the stake, because the punishment does not fit the seriousness of the crime. The need for punishment is still there, but it is just applied more rationally....
Words: 1428 - Pages: 6
...jurisdiction, children as young as thirteen can find themselves in the clutches of the adult court system. Once these children enter the adult system, there is a possibility that a myriad of punishments can be received for their crimes. Of these punishments, life without the possibility of parole (LWOP) appears to be the most stringent and the hardest to swallow. According to a Juvenile Life Without Parole Fact Sheet, “A LWOP sentence is the harshest sentence given short of execution. The sentence means that an individual will not be given the opportunity for parole review and is condemned to die in prison” (Citizens for Juvenile Justice, 2008). For some, the idea of having a child spend the rest of their natural lives behind bars for capital and even noncapital crimes can be daunting and unfair. For many young people, they are at the point in their young lives where they are still trying to figure out who they are and they willingly test certain boundaries. Life in prison without parole attempts to snuff out what little life they have just begun to build. However, many would also argue that if you are capable of doing adult crimes and are willing to accept the responsibility of the crime, then you are capable of serving adult time. But with the landmark Supreme Court decision of Roper v. Simmons in 2005, the sentence of death is no longer possible for juveniles under the age of 18. This decision has changed our views about the level of a juvenile’s culpability and our response...
Words: 5182 - Pages: 21
...Abstract In today’s system, there are several competing theories for what approach should be taken to improve the correctional system. Certain strategies, such as punishment and rehabilitation, have different goals. These goals, in most cases, are different from each other. People all over prefer one strategy to the other, and compelling evidence can be brought into perspective for each. Aside form the usual, non traditional aspects and approaches to fixing the corrections system are also talked about today. This paper will discuss all elements of corrections theories, its goals, its effectiveness, and the rating of completion of academic and vocational programs offered to inmates in prison. Running Head: CORRECTIONAL THEORIES 3 Competing Theories Of Corrections In The Criminal Justice System In today’s day and age, many views and criticism take place of the Criminal Justice system. In specific, the correctional aspect of the system receives much of this criticism. There are two strategies particularly that come into play most often when speaking of corrections. These two strategies are punishment, and rehabilitation. Each of these strategies have its own set of goals and its own set of skepticisms from outsiders. On one hand, people may prefer punishment and its goals, and on the other some may solely believe in rehabilitating inmates. Each approach has it benefits, as well as its faults, just like anything else. Most...
Words: 3324 - Pages: 14
...daunting task in addressing the issues that overpopulation causes. “Apart from the highest priority of addressing prison population growth, prison managers are often confronted with an array of issues relating to imprisonment practices and their consequences” (Greenfeld, Beck, & Gillard, 1996, p.9). Development and Operations of Institutions The development and operations of institutions appears to operate around two opposing philosophies if punishment versus rehabilitation. The evolution of the development of corrections past, present and future has seen many changes throughout the inception of prisons. In the past the trends for prisons were solitary confinement with little concern for the rehabilitation of inmates. The well-being of the inmate was not a major concern. After all they got what they deserved, right? Society wanted criminals to be punished for his or her crimes. Societal views on crime and criminal behaviors shape the structuring of stricter sentencing over rehabilitation. The views on punishment versus rehabilitation often have a direct correlation on the length of sentencing for defendants. “When...
Words: 1117 - Pages: 5
...Running Head: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT Capital Punishment: Guilty or Not? “Whoever is convicted of or pleads guilty to aggravated murder in violation of section 2903.01 of the Revised Code shall suffer death or be imprisoned for life” (Chapter 2929: PENALTIES AND SENTENCING, 2012) I was a young girl around the age of 6 when I saw a man I recognized on the television with a caption saying he had been arrested for murder. Kenneth Biros was charged with the February 1991 death of Tami Engstrom (Urbina, 2012). I never thought that a man my parents had been friends with would be involved is such a violent offence that would change the way the State of Ohio carried out executions (Urbina, 2012). In the 2009 execution of Kenneth Biros, Ohio became the first state to use a single injection for lethal injection punishment (Did You Know? , 2012) as a backup method. The Biros execution is followed by 16 others as of November 13th 2012 according to the Ohio Department of Corrections (Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections, 2012). Whether you support the death penalty or not, it can be a very sensitive subject in many different aspects. Look at the cost of a trial. According to research done in 2008, the cost of a case including imprisonment in the state of Maryland was $1.1 million if the death penalty was not sought. The cost if the death penalty is pursued increased to approximately $3 million. (Roman, Chalfin, Sundquist, Knight, & Darmenov, 2012) Breakthroughs in...
Words: 683 - Pages: 3
...In 1972 the Supreme Court ruled capital punishment as unconstitutional on the basis of “cruel and unusual punishment” (Eighth Amendment) in the Furman v. Georgia case. The court argued that the death penalty was being used in a discriminatory way, which is only one of the many problems concerning capital punishment. Other factors working against the death penalty is the argument of deterrence, costs, and sentencing errors. Shortly after the Furman v. Georgia trial, another case reinstated the death penalty, Gregg v. Georgia (1976). Some people who approve of capital punishment argue against the “cruel and unusual” punishment of those against the death penalty by using a three tests designed to determine if the punishment legally stays within...
Words: 1423 - Pages: 6
...significantly since the 1980's and 1990's when the violent crime rate was very high. More recently, with neurological evidence of immature capacities of adolescents, we again acknowledge the differences between youth and adult offenders. Perhaps it is time for another period of reform in our juvenile justice system. When punishing crime there are four goals that can be achieved: retribution, rehabilitation, deterrence, and incapacitation. The modern adult criminal justice system focusses mainly on retribution and incapacitation. As a society, we want to be "tough on crime" so we have all but...
Words: 904 - Pages: 4
...Treatment versus Punishment - That is the Question! CRJ301: Juvenile Justice (BLI1518A) Treatment versus Punishment - That is the Question! For someone who committed a serious crime, prison may be a revelation, but for our youth that commit such crimes, the results could be daunting, even detrimental to the development of the youth. In most instances, the youth does not even realize the consequences to their actions. The juvenile justice system began with the concept parens patriae, meaning when a parent is no longer fit to provide for the welfare of a child, the state must step in and embody that role and provide protection for the wayward or troubled child” (St. Mary’s Law Journal, 2013). The juvenile justice system’s core concept is rehabilitation or change of our youth to the right path. The goal of punishment is not one of revenge, but prevention that the crime will not happen again. Putting our youth in adult prisons, making them face the penalties of such crimes, but if we do this, are we just giving up on our youth, believing that they cannot be rehabilitated? We, the people, need protection for the child that does not know better than to join a gang, the troubled child that comes from a broken home, where both parents are absent or abusive. The people of this community need to make a change for these children so that they will have an opportunity to live a morally healthy life instead of a life of crime. Many questions come up with regard to prosecuting...
Words: 3146 - Pages: 13
