Issues with the Criminal Justice System - Essay Example

?Fundamental Philosophies of the Purpose of Sentencing There are a lot of objectives why punishment and sentencing are imposed. Societies today are experiencing a lot of issues with the criminal justice system. The increase in numbers of law-breakers is terrifying. Thus there exist a number of theories why punishment and sentencing are enforced. The following are the major purposes why punishment and sentencing are served: general and specific deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation, retribution, and reformation are just some of these goals (Renter, 2008). The principle behind the purpose of general deterrence is the thought that people will avoid committing any crime because of fear of punishment. If a person knows that there exist a punishment or penalty of such action, that person will not commit such act. Similar to this principle is that of the specific deterrence but on a slighter scale such as disciplining a child by punishment. This still follows the idea that severe punishment will impede criminals to commit a crime again. The principle behind incapacitation follows that a person who is imprisoned will not commit a crime. Imprisonment and capital punishment are the major ways to impose incapacitation which will prevent a person to commit a crime. Rehabilitation, on the other hand, is non-punitive and believes that a person can be prevented to commit a crime by helping him to treat his issues that led him to commit a crime. This principle considers that each person is imperfect and commission of a crime is not the person’s intention but may be a result of other physical, emotional, sociological factors. Similar to rehabilitation is concept of reformation, but unlike the former, this promotes the idea of punishment helping a person avoid the commission of a crime by upholding his conscience. According to Renter (2008), reformation believes the stigma or shame associated with punishment may cause a criminal to see the error of his ways. Lastly, the principle behind the theory of retribution is the promotion of equal treatment of offenders who committed the same crime. According to this theory, each crime equals punishment thus criminals are punished according to their crime (Renter, 2008). Factors in Determining Punishment Judges are the ones in charge of determining punishment for each crime. The Fourteenth Amendment of the United States protects the offenders from excessive punishment and fines. State laws and the Constitution govern sentencing and make sure that punishment and sentences are appropriate and just. Judges consider factors on determining punishments and sentences of an offender. The first factor looks if the offender is a “first time” offender or a recidivist. The second factor determines whether the offender committed the offense himself or he was just an accessory to the crime. The third factor is whether the offender committed the crime under great personal stress or duress. Fourth, the judges determine whether anyone was hurt, and whether the crime was committed in a manner that was unlikely to result in anyone being hurt. Fifth, whether the offender was particularly cruel to a victim, or particularly destructive, vindictive, etc. And sometimes, judges look if the offender is genuinely regretful or remorseful of what he has done (Factors Considered in Determining Sentences, n.d.). Capital Punishment Debate Capital punishment or death penalty is described as the lawful imposition of death as sentence for a crime. The debate about the capital punishment seems endless. The death penalty is imposed based on the theories of deterrence and retribution. Supporters of this punishment believe that death penalty can be a major deterrence to homicide. The theory of retribution on the other hand supports the idea that the punishment must fit the crime such that in the Old Testament, they believe in the concept of “an eye for an eye” (Gill, n.d.). Those supporting the imposition of capital punishment always bear in their minds the sympathy for the families if the victims of these heinous crimes. They uphold that death penalty is an effective deterrent to commission of crimes especially the violent ones. Statistical data were needed to support the continuation of death penalty. Studies were made before but it was the research of Isaac Ehrlich who broke the pattern and revealed in his model the slight negative relationship between murder and the execution rate. He concluded that death penalty exerts a unique and significant deterrent effect on potential murderers. Ehrlich was the first researcher to claim the positive effect of capital punishment in relation to the theory of deterrence. More studies were made after his model and positive results were observed (Lamperti, n.d.). A debate is not a debate without the opposition. The opponents of capital punishment promote the sanctity of life and believe that this type of punishment is not an effective prevention of violent and heinous crimes. Cox (2006) said that there are few reasons why death penalty does not deter crime. One of the reasons of this ineffectiveness is that it is not swift and may take more than 20 years before the offender is executed. Criminals will think that there is no concern about the execution because they might live longer than the victim’s life lasted because of this. Another reason why capital punishment is said to have been ineffective in deterring crime is because it is uncertain. States have different laws regarding imposing death penalty and judges have different decisions in same case. The more important reason to why death penalty doesn’t work is that it is unequally dispersed or it is considered to be racist. More African Americans and Hispanic receive death penalty for similar crimes than that of White Americans. Thus inequality in the justice system is one of the important factors that affect the effectiveness of death penalty as a means of preventing crimes (Cox, 2006). Both the arguments are valid. They both have their evidences and reasons why the much debated issue on death penalty is still incessant. The advocates of the capital punishment can provide evidences for the positive effect of the death penalty. On the other hand, the challengers of the death penalty also have a lot of reasons why it is ineffective in preventing crimes. Some studies also show the ineptitude of capital punishment as a means of preventing crime. They also argue about morality and the sanctity of life and the big possibility that innocent people might be punished with this. This debate can be of great effect to punishment and sentencing as a whole. There are countries that support death penalty and a number of countries already abolished this punishment. Because of this nonstop debate, there will be more issues that will arise about consistency and uniformity of punishment and sentencing and decision making. Because of opposing theories and disparity in the justice system, it will be difficult for the criminal justice system to create a uniform system that will guide punishment and sentencing in the future. Until now, the decisions for punishment are still inconsistent, unpredictable and sometimes questionable because of this debate. Sources: Cox, E. (2006). Why Capital Punishment Doesn’t Deter Crime. Retrieved 6 July 2011 from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/41648/why_capital_punishment_doesnt_deter_pg2.html?cat=17 Factors Considered in Determining Sentences, (n.d.). Retrieved 6 July 2011 from http://criminal.findlaw.com/crimes/criminal_stages/stages-sentencing/factors-in-determining-sentences.html Gill, K. (n.d.). Pros and Cons of the Death Penalty (Capital Punishment). Retrieved 6 July 2011 from http://uspolitics.about.com/od/deathpenalty/i/death_penalty_2.htm Lamperti, J. (n.d.). Does Capital Punishment Deter Murder? A Brief Look at the Evidence. Retrieved 6 July 2011 from http://www.dartmouth.edu/~chance/teaching_aids/books_articles/JLpaper. Renter, E. (2008). The Goals of Sentencing in Today's Criminal Justice System. Retrieved 6 July 2011 from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/582825/the_goals_of_sentencing_in_todays_criminal.html?cat=17 Read More