Chapter 2 Sophia De Oliveira Criminal “Justice” and Rehabilitation
The criminal justice system goes through the stages of arrest, prosecution, trial and sentencing, all leading up to the form of imprisonment. The government is so quick to incarcerate individuals that are found guilty, instead of finding an actual solution to help the troubled person. Rehabilitation is a form of therapy that would help an individual to better himself for the outside world, which would work better for some individuals that are being thrown in prison that partook in lesser crimes, rather than more severe crimes.
Rehabilitation is the idea of reshaping a prisoner so that they can restore themselves slowly into society, once they are released. This is a process that would involve various series of programs. Education programs, workshops, and anger management will help the individual to show their feelings in another form, instead of rebelling once more. “Two-thirds of prisoners reoffend within three years of leaving prison, often with a more serious and violent offense. More than 90 percent of prisoners return to the community within a few years (otherwise our prisons would be even more overcrowded than they already are). That is why it is vitally important how we treat them while they are incarcerated.” -states James Gilligan. The main goal of putting an individual through rehabilitation is that they will become less inclined to commit more crimes in the future. If we are trying to better our community, wouldn’t we want to enlighten our people by changing their perspective on things? Rehabilitation promotes the idea that offenders can in fact be saved, instead of automatically being punished.
By trying to reduce the individual to reoffend once again, it will have the greater effect of promoting safety towards the general public. For example, the people in Ferguson who partook in the riots and the “peaceful protest”, got arrested. As alarming as that was, they definitely should not have gotten arrested. For those who are actually sentenced for a long time for participating in “peaceful protest”, imprisonment would only add to their anger against the government and police. By putting the offender in rehabilitation, this will cure their desire to want to do harm while protesting. This will create a better, positive way in their minds to make a change in their community.
Rehabilitation not only sends help, but also a message. It reminds people that they do have a second chance at life. It reminds us that people come from all types of back grounds, mostly bad ones- which can get the most of us. Young children become inclined to do things that their parents do, such as drugs, abuse, theft, and other negative offensive activities. These acts of “violence” can actually hurt someones mind and soul, compelling them to lead an active life of rebellion.
Recently, a report sent to the New york Governor, shows that New York's juvenile system is not well managed. “Youngsters in custody were routinely assaulted by staffers. Beatings were so severe that teeth were knocked out, bones were broken, and some kids were rendered unconscious. The assaults were sometimes sparked by infractions no more serious than laughing or stealing a cookie.The incarceration and the primitive methods accompanying it came at a substantial cost: $210,000 a year per child. Wouldn't it make more sense, task-force members reasoned, to reserve incarceration for those who posed a threat to public safety?”, wrote the task force. Indeed, knowing this, wouldn’t we want our youth to have a change of heart and perspective through the active programs at a rehabilitation, instead of being imprisoned for half of their life? “ Almost all non-violent and crimes against property would be better met with rehabilitation rather than lengthy imprisonment.”-Rebecca Keating. Like mentioned before, the way that people are treated in the prisons usually effect the way they act when they are released.
Crimes such as murder and other severe crimes do deserve punishment such as imprisonment. However, rehabilitation should be an option for ones who committed crimes that aren’t as severe. Rehabilitation would in fact build the community back as a whole because the houses and building that were damaged by the riots would be built back up by the offenders, and activities such as this would help reform their attitudes as a whole.