In the news
today there is an article about a billionaire convicted of insider trading in
the stock market. He was sentenced to 11
years, while the Government was hoping for 20 to send a clear message and deter
future traders from violating the law.
That got me to wondering; does sentence length or even the death penalty
deter future criminal behavior? Have we
seen a marked decrease in criminal activity as more people are placed into
prison?
When we
imprison people behind walls, away from the public, they quickly move to the
“out of sight, out of mind” category and we move on with our everyday
lives. At least those of us not directly
affected by their crimes do. So how do
we convey the lesson that criminal activity is wrong, when we don’t teach
civics, or ethics, or morality in school, and so many parents don’t teach it at
home?
With the abolishment
of public stocks, flogging, or execution as “uncivilized” we have made
punishment an abstract until someone is caught and then it is too late to have
deterred anything. Locally, shoplifters
are now required to place their picture in the paper with the statement they
were convicted of retail theft. I wonder
if it is the start of a trend that will bring back the old pillory, dunking
ponds, scarlet letters and such?
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