PUNISHMENT VS REHABILITATION

Jail : Punishment VS Rehabilitation

When a person commits a crime and is caught , they often go to jail Once in jail , they are under strict rules about what to do , when to do it , and how to do it . This is punishment . However , many jails also offer rehabilitative services , like counseling or work programs . Which is more beneficial , the punishment aspects of jail , or the rehabilitative aspects ? To answer this question , one must look at several different aspects of the penal system

One of the major arguments that has occurred in this

debate is which deters crime more effectively , punishment or rehabilitation ? It has generally been shown that punishment has a deterrent effect on crime because the punishment is worse than not committing the crime Theoretically , this means that the old saying if you don 't want to serve the time , don 't do the crime ' is correct . A person would be more deterred from committing a crime in the first place if he perceived jail to be a bad place to go . However , recent research shows that punishment is not much of a deterrent , because the recidivism rate (the rate at which people commit repeat crimes ) is up to 63 . Instead rehabilitation appears to impact recidivism more positively , by teaching former criminals job skills , finding them places to live , and counseling them to get off drugs (Larrabee

Victims of crimes , especially violent ones , may see the punishment issue in a different light . While it is easy to look at percentages and see that rehabilitation might better serve a criminal , many people do not think criminals should have many rights left . Up until the last few years , criminals ' rights were highly protected from the moment they were accused and straight through their jail sentences . Victims and their needs were ignored . However , in 2004 , President Bush signed an act which allowed victims of crimes rights , too . Most people (70 according to one study , especially crime victims , feel that punishment is the primary function of prison . If prison were to be changed around to focus on rehabilitation , then victims may feel that the criminals were being treated too leniently , considering what they had done (Larrabee .This effect cannot be ignored , because victims (and others ) support the prisons with their tax dollars and by voting in sheriffs and other lawmakers . Also , victims would obviously be upset to find out that a person who had murdered their family member was getting a good place to say , being treated well , having access to free medical and psychological care , and being set up with job skills and a place to live upon finishing his or her sentence . The victims would likely protest Perception is as important as reality in this case . People may end up refusing to pass levies for the prisoners , or refusing to support public officials who cared more about rehabilitating prisoners than about punishing them for their crimes . This has a huge social effect , because people believe that jail is a place where...