In: Economics
What are the problems with incarceration as the primary sentence? What alternatives would you recommend? What sentencing philosophy supports your favorite alternative? How are those alternatives supposed by a sentencing philosophy?
In the prisons and jails of the nation, there are 2.2 million people— a 500 percent rise over the past 40 years. Most of this rise is explained by modifications in legislation and policy, not changes in crime rates. The findings are overcrowding in prisons and fiscal burdens on nations, despite growing proof that large-scale incarceration is not an efficient way to achieve government security.
There are more individuals behind bars today for a drug offense than the amount of individuals in prison or jail in 1980 for any crime. Even during periods when crime levels have declined, the amount of individuals sentenced to prison for property and violent crimes has also risen.
First, incarceration is particularly ineffective in decreasing certain types of crime: especially juvenile crimes, many of which are committed in organizations, and drug crimes. When individuals are locked up for these crimes, they are readily substituted on the streets by others seeking revenue or fighting addiction.
Second, individuals are more likely to "age out" of crime. Research indicates that crime begins to peak in mid- to late adolescence and begins to decrease when people are in their mid-20s. After that, when adolescents reach their 30s and 40s, crime falls significantly.
Given the ineffectiveness of the current system, we believe that the apparent public demand for longer sentences requires a thoughtful response. While we can understand the anger at crime that motivates this reaction, we know that longer sentences will not reduce crime. We are firmly of the view that it is more important to determine what has caused a person to act in an inappropriate way, and to deal with the cause of the behaviour, than it is to sentence a person for longer periods to satisfy a public demand for punishment or retribution.
Judges in trial need to be more creative. Existing sentencing alternatives need to be used more completely, and courts should promote other alternatives and alternatives adapted to specific perpetrators and groups to be developed.
Less emphasis in sentencing on the penalty factor and higher emphasis on individual and community requirements is needed. By changing the emphasis in this manner, it is possible to replace incarceration with more socially productive and efficient sanctions. While this change is usually needed in our justice system, it is especially essential to react to Aboriginal perpetrators more efficiently..
A term of imprisonment should not be imposed, or its duration determined, solely for the purpose of rehabilitation.... A term of imprisonment should be imposed only: a) to protect the public from crimes of violence, b) where any other sanction would not sufficiently reflect the gravity of the offence or the repetitive nature of the criminal conduct of an offender, or adequately protect the public or the integrity of the administration of the justice, c) to penalize an offender from willful non-compliance with the terms of any other sentence that has been imposed on the offender where no other sanction appears adequate to compel complianc