Preventive Detention Laws - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages Preventive detention laws have been ratified to protect the general public from the possible harm certain criminal suspects might commit (McSherry & Keyzer, 2009). The provisions of such laws stipulate that the government has the mandate to incarcerate a person without any criminal charge for some time. This implies that if the government security authorities feel that a particular person or group is a threat to the law, order, integrity, and unity of the nation, they can incarcerate the person or group to prevent potential harm that this group or person can cause to the general public. In Australia, preventive detention laws differ from one jurisdiction to another. Over the years, varying arguments have been put across by criminal justice systems on the purpose, legality, acceptability, and effects of such laws on human rights (McSherry & Keyzer, 2009).

This paper seeks to present an incisive outlook on preventive detention laws. It will depict the purpose of preventive detention laws and evaluate the acceptability and legality of such laws. This paper will examine why preventive detention laws were introduced particularly regarding terrorism and sexual offenders. Moreover, it will highlight some of the stipulations of these laws and establish whether these laws are compatible with the purposes or rules of punishment. In addition, this paper will depict whether these laws are acceptable from human rights, social, and theoretical perspectives and whether they conflict with any laws.

Purpose of preventive detention laws
Society inevitably holds a certain group of convicted offenders or potential offenders who pose risks of committing great atrocities. These groups of people present serious challenges to security forces since they have to balance protecting the community and upholding the rights of high-risk offenders. Preventive detention is one of the strategies that the government uses to protect the community from potential harm. Most of the legislation on preventive detention focuses on protecting the public from terrorists and sexual offenders. These legislations are geared towards supervising and establishing control over these potential offenders. ...Download file to see next pages Read More