What are some of the reasons for punishing criminals?
444118
There are 4 sometimes competing theories:\n1. Retribution -- if you mess up you deserve to be punished. Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. This theory is supported by the metaphysical idea that when a crime is not punished for -- it somehow continues to exist.\n2. Deterrence -- We will punish a criminal so that others will see that their actions have consequences -- and will hopefully stop behaving in a bad way.\n3. Rehabilitation -- if a person commits a crime -- he is probably a messed up individual -- so we should punish him in such a way as to make him a better person\n4. Isolation -- by putting a person who has committed a crime in jail -- we physically prevent him from committing any further crime.\n\nIt is worth noticing that The Deterrence and Rehabilitation theories -- look forward to improving society, Retribution is looking to the past only, and Isolation is really just a stop-gap measure.
512927
Thats funny,Some of these responses r even funnier though.People just dont get it.If you break the law in this country you get punished for it.Saying that certain people should be immune to punishment because of "Fellings of the Heart"is just plain nonsense.If you do allow some to get away with breaking the law,when others are punished, We all might as well give up and have total Anarchy because this is how it starts.
698517
Because of the penalty imposed by the law for breaking it.\n\nPeople with guns show up, and drag you away, and potentially take your money or lock you up. That's the penalty for breaking the law.\n\nStill, many people break the laws and hope they don't get caught.
138703
I agree with you that there should be more creative forms of punishment.  We mix non-violent and violent prisoners together and we have horrible overcrowding of prisons. However, I was once on a jury during the trial of a man who defrauded dozens of elderly people out of their life savings.  Many lost their homes.  While he didn't physically assault them, his crime against them was extremely harmful and cruel, and we need to protect society against such people.
146329
Yeah pretty much. They were created so that an alternative to "life" sentences, which give parole, could be given to particularly violent crimes.
1108737
Prisons should be terrible places where nobody wants to go but you better remember that most of the people who go in there get out at some point. \nThat is why you don't want to shamelessly brutalize them, and you want to provide them with the opportunity to correct and better themselves.  That way maybe there is a chance they might get out and go straight, not be a worse criminal than they were when they went in.
1043226
To keep society safe from criminals.
453654
One of several reasons is because the birthrate has dropped considerably in the last 40 to 50 years and another is the fact that a lot of the potential murderers are already in prison.  It's not because we have become a more peaceful society.
886952
There are five recognized purposes:\n(1) "Retribution" (society's punishment for anti-societal acts)\n(2) "Specific Deterrence" (To discourage that criminal from committing again)\n(3) "General Deterrence" (To discourage other members of society from committing that same act, i.e. I know I'll get life for rape, and I saw Mr. X receive life, so maybe I won't rape)\n(4) "Incapicitation" (i.e. to keep criminals out of society for a period; to keep very dangerous criminals out of society forever)\nand\n(5) "Rehabilitation" -- this has gotten bad wrap lately, as previously "rehabilitation" meant using forced mechanisms to ensure there was no reoffending (like forced lobotomies, medication, etc.) Often, this term is used to talk about education, drug treatment, religious instruction, job training and other skills that are offered in prison systems.  The new buzz word is "restorative justice" -- to talk about counseling, drug courts, shame punishments, and other forms of "alternative sentencing" that involves less or little incarceration.
341990
Crime I think is due to lack of respect for others and lack of personal responsibility.\n\nThe crimes are getting more bizarre because society is sadly becoming almost immune to most crime, and so the criminals who most often seek attention from media and communities, have to up the crimes to attain the same public response that they seek.
240856
Yes, there is so much lobbying for human rights in this country that people who need to be locked up are set free, or given very light sentences.  Longer/more severe sentences would not only keep them off the streets longer, but they would make people more afraid of commiting the crime.  This is why the death penalty works, it scares people.
420721
I agree with DBK.  Prisons should be a punishment for what the criminals did.  How is it really punishing them to give them free food, free clothing, free cable, free Internet, a free gym, free medical and dental care, etc?  And to not require them to work?  How are they punished when they spend their days lounging around, or playing football in the yard, working out in the gym, or kicking back watching movies?  Sounds more like a vacation to me.\n\nBut back to the question.  Criminals are able to do this because liberal in society have set it up so they can. They set it up so that people can claim they are not responsible for their own actions. As for the poor excuse about criminals being abused, my mother's father was abusive to her, and to her brothers and sisters, and not one of them became criminals.  I was physically, mentally and emotionally abused in catholic school and did not turn out to be a criminal.  So that is just another lame excuse.
1083528
The root cause of problems with justice in most countries is corruption.  When policemen, judges, and politicians make decisions based upon bribes rather than fairness and the rule of law, injustice breeds.
663960
Nothing at all.....yes they should be punished to the fullest extint of the law.  How does it look for the people who are put in place to enforce the law constantly break it and get away scott free?  This may go on but it takes courageous individuals who know of this type of inappropriate behavior to come forward and make this unsavory deeds known.  No matter what the cost....a philosopher once said....without struggle there is no success.......
820012
That's a very good question.  For most of society it is a good deterent, but so are the values of those same people.  The threat of prison will not deter some people from doing anything, that's a sad fact that I've seen thouands of times.  The reality is that prisons are NECESSARY because they keep criminals isolated from society and will at least prevent those who are locked up from committing crime.  Of course there are organized crime bosses who get locked up and still run things from the inside, but that's a whole different situation than your run of the mill burglar, etc.
95893
motive, intent and execution of crime.
37670
it depends on what city or country your living in ..\nin singapore for example,theyre very harsh but it works for them\nevery offense has an equivalent punishment.. some would say barbaric punishment.. they say it makes the people aware that their government is serious when it comes to crime...