2.3 Forms of Punishment meet Aims

Question 1

Which type of offenders is prison given too as a punishment?

Answer 1

Prison sentences are given to those the most serious offences e.g. almost ½ of offenders in the UK are there for sexual offences.

Question 2

What are the main types of custodial sentences / sentences of imprisonment?

Answer 2

• Life sentences – a mandatory minimum sentence is given to those guilty of murder, ‘whole life term’ means someone will never be released.
• Intermediate Sentences – sentences with a minimum term (in 2024 there were 8,500 serving them in the UK), also IPPs for protection, in 2024 there were 3,000 IPP prisoners
• Determinate sentences – one with a fixed length – often serve half of the sentence in custody, other half on probation
• Suspended sentence – not sentenced unless they commit another offence within a period, if they re-offend, they serve the original sentence

Question 3

How does imprisonment meet the aims of punishment?

Answer 3

• Retribution – takes offenders freedom away, isn’t always proportionate
• Deterrence – the risk of prison prevents others committing crime, only acts as a deterrent if offenders think rationally which lots don’t
• Public protection – takes them out of public circulation, keeps them away until they are deemed safe again (IPP)
• Reparation – prison restorative justice schemes help offenders show remorse + pay for damages
• Rehabilitation – 48% re-offend within a year, 64% within 2yrs, short sentences don’t give them enough time to change

Question 4

What is a community order?

Answer 4

A community order may require an offender to be supervised by a probation officer, unpaid work, treatment programmes + residency requirements e.g. live in a hostel

Question 5

How do community sentences meet the aims of punishment?

Answer 5

• Retribution – contains elements of punishment, they are ‘named and shamed’ as they wear high vis
• Reparation – paying the community as a whole back through unpaid work
• Public protection – breaches in community sentences can lead to prison recalling them + fails to meet incapacitation as they don’t lock up offenders
• Rehabilitation –re-offending is much lower with CS than short term prison sentences.

Question 6

How do Fines meet the aims of punishment?

Answer 6

• a fine is determined by = the offence itself, circumstances of the crime (first offence etc), offenders’ ability to pay, which court the hearing is (at a magistrate the maximum is a £5,000
• Retribution – suffer financially
• Deterrence – risk of punishment in the future + bailiffs
• In 2024 the backlog was £1.5 Billion