Ac 2.2

Question 1

What are the main aims of punishment?

Answer 1

The 5 purposes of sentencing set out in section 142 of the criminal justice act 2003
Retribution- expressing society’s outrage at a crime
Rehabilitation- making offenders change their behaviour
Deterrence- discouraging future offending
Public protection- from offenders
Reparation- making good of harm that’s been caused

Question 2

What is retribution?

Answer 2

The idea that the offender is punished in respect of the crime he has just committed and no other factors are relevant. This was used to back up the death penalty in the past
Backed by philosopher Immanuel Kant

Question 3

What are the basic principles of retribution?

Answer 3

Equal and direct retribution
Evil should be met with a response that is equal in force
Punishment should be proportionate to the crime- murderer should get the death penalty
This is a backwards looking aim
Believe a person has to suffer- no chance to change
Doesn’t consider circumstances that offenders may have suffered

Question 4

Theory links
How does right realism link to retribution?

Answer 4

Retribution assumed that offenders are rational actors and that they made a conscience choice to commit a crime. They are responsible for their actions. Punishment is justified because they made an active choice to break the moral code

Question 5

Theory links
How does Durkheims functionalism theory link to retribution?

Answer 5

The moral outrage expressed through retribution performs the function of boundary maintenance. It reminds people what is right and wrong

Question 6

Criticisms of retributive justice?

Answer 6

Doesn’t work on root cause
Subjective- deciding what punishment is proportionate
Ethics issues- chance at forgivness and making amends
Makes justice into a transaction
Prioritises punishment over treatment

Question 8

Case study- Stanley tookie williams

Answer 8

Co founder of LA crips gang
1981 convicted of murdering 4 people during 2 robberies and sentenced to death row
While on death row he:
Wrote 9 children’s books to teach children dangers of gangs
Set up an international mentoring project
Wrote the tookie protocol, a guide on how communities can create peach. Saved the lives of over 150,000 youths
Nominated for Nobel peace prize 5 times
Nominated for Nobel prize for litriture 4 times
December 2005 he was executed
ISSUES-
Punishment didn’t reflect the crime and the work he did showed guilt and remorse and should have saved him from the death penalty

Question 9

What is rehabilitation?

Answer 9

Reform and reintroduce offenders into society
Uses various treatment programs to change offenders future behaviour by addressing issues r that led to thier offence
Aim is to lead them to a crime free life

Question 10

What are rehabilitation policies?

Answer 10

Education and training programs- help avoid unemployment, big contributing factor to reoffending
Anger management courses- for violent offenders
Drug treatment and testing orders- treatments for addiction

Question 11

What type of sentence is most likely to include requirements for offenders to engage in such programmes as part of their sentence?

Answer 11

Community sentences

Question 12

What could be a problem with setting requirements?

Answer 12

Requires offender to want to change

Question 13

What theory’s support rehabilitation?

Answer 13

Individualistic theory’s of criminality see rehabilitation as a significant aim if punishment. They advocate various ways of changing offender’s behaviour.

Question 14

What theories would favour CBT to correct thinking errors and biases that lead to aggressive behaviours?

Answer 14

Cognative theories

Question 15

What theory supports the use of token economies in prisons to encourage prisoners to produce more acceptable behaviour?

Answer 15

Skinner

Question 16

What sociological theory favours rehabilitation?

Answer 16

Left realism

Question 17

What social factors do they regard as the causes of crime?

Answer 17

Unemployment
Poverty
Poor educational opportunities
Therefor addressing this will help to reduce reoffending

Question 18

Criticisms of rehabilitation

Answer 18

Right realists- argue that rehabilitation has limited success. Reoffending rates are high despite prisoners completing these programs
Marxists- these programmes shift the blame onto the individual offender and their failings. The real cause of crime is capitalism

Question 19

What is deterrence?

Answer 19

This is the idea that people can be prevented from committing crime before it happens. The fear of being caught and punished may deter people from committing a crime. Can be individual or general.

Question 20

What measures generally prevent people from committing crime?

Answer 20

CCTV
Police patrol
Zero tolerance policing
Anti homeless architecture
Barriers and fences
Signs

Question 21

What is individual deterrence?

Answer 21

Punishment that deters the individual offender from reoffending

Question 22

What is general deterrence?

Answer 22

Deterring society in general from breaking the law

Question 23

Example of individual deterrence?

Answer 23

In the 1980s Margaret thatchers government introduced a tough new system in juvenile detention centres called ‘short sharp shock’ to deter young offenders

Question 24

How did thatcher’s government justify this approach?

Answer 24

As a means to deter young offenders from a life of crime

Question 25

What practices were employed in the youth detention centres during this period?

Answer 25

Beatings Humiliation Sexual assault Physical drills

Question 26

How did these practices impact the physical and psychological well being of young offenders?

Answer 26

Lives spiralled into violence and addiction because of trauma from sadistic, brutal concentration camps. A lot suffered with depression and PTSD

Question 27

What evidence exists regarding the long term effects of the short sharp shock policy?

Answer 27

Increased recidivism rate Stuck in cycle of crime

Question 28

Did it effectively deter criminal behaviour?

Answer 28

No Unintended negative consequences

Question 29

What criticism did experts, activists and human rights organisations raise against against this approach?

Answer 29

Violation of human rights

Question 30

Example of general deterrence?

Answer 30

In the past this was done through public punishments such as executions, flogging or the stocks so that everyone could see the consequences of offending. Today the public learn about the costs of offending though the media

Question 31

Theory links How does the individualistic theory link to deterrence?

Answer 31

Explains general deterrence

Question 32

Theory links How does the social learning theory link to deterrence?

Answer 32

If a potential offender sees a model being punished for an offence they are less likely to imitate this behaviour

Question 33

Theory links How does right realism link to deterrence?

Answer 33

Sees offenders as rational actors who weigh up the costs and benefits of committing a crime. Sever punishment increases cost so will deter offenders

Question 34

Criticisms of deterrence

Answer 34

Little evidence that short sharp shocks or boot camps reduce offending The fact that half of all prisoners reoffend within a year of release suggests that prison is not an effective deterrent How do we decide how harsh a punishment needs to be for it to deter enough offenders Deterrence assumes would be offenders know what the punishments are but they may be ignorant of penalties Detterance assumes that offenders act rationally, carefully weighing up the risks but some act irrationally driven by thier emotions

Question 35

What is public protection?

Answer 35

It’s important the public are protected from dangerous criminals Punishment must serve as a useful purpose for society Incapacitation- removing offenders physical capability to offend again

Question 36

There have been many different incapacitation policy’s at different times such as…

Answer 36

Execution of offenders Cutting of the hands of thief’s Chemical castration of sex offenders Banishment - in early 19th century convicts were transported to Australia Foreign travel plans preventing football hooligans from attending matches abroad Curfews and electronic tagging to restrict offender’s movements

Question 37

Incapacitation by imprisonment for public protection has influenced sentencing laws for example

Answer 37

Crime act 1997 introduced mandatory minimum jail sentences for repeat offenders Automatic life sentences for serious violent of sexual offences 7 years min for a third class A drug trafficking offence 3 years min for a third domestic burglary conviction Criminal justice act 2003 introduced the ideal of imprisonment for public protection IPP. This allowed courts to give an indeterminate sentence to a serious violent of sexual offender

Question 38

Criticisms of IPP

Answer 38

Bias- harsher on BAME demoralising for offender Questions around whether it reflects the severity of the crime

Question 39

USA 3 strikes and your out law was introduced in 1990 What is it?

Answer 39

If you have two serious and violent convictions and commit a third crime no matter how minor you automatically get life in prison

Question 40

What happened in the case of Jerry Williams 1995

Answer 40

At 25 got sentenced to life in prison for stealing a slice of pizza

Question 41

Was this result fair?

Answer 41

No- served his time for past crimes Punishment isn’t proportionate

Question 42

Theory links How do biological theories link to public protection?

Answer 42

Lombroso and atavistic features = Criminals are biologically different from the rest of the population and it is not possible to rehabilitate them Favoured sending them to exile- detaining them on islands away from others Other biological theories favour chemical or surgical castration to incapacitate offenders

Question 43

Theory links How do right realists link to public protection

Answer 43

Think incapacitation is a way of protecting the public Small number of persistent offenders are responsible for majority of crimes so incapacitating them with longer sentences will reduce crime rate

Question 44

Criticisms of public protection

Answer 44

Lead to overcrowding in prison Doesn’t address causes of crime Three strikes principle re punished individuals for previous crimes Unjust because it imprisons them for crimes that the law assumes they will commit in the future

Question 45

What is reparation

Answer 45

This involves the defendant making amends with their victim or society as a whole Commonly used with juvenile offenders Making amends for material damage can include: Financial compensation -paying the victims Unpaid work- cleaning graffiti

Question 46

What is restorative justice

Answer 46

Making amends for social damage done Offender recognises the wrongfulness of their actions Restorative justice schemes bring offender and victim together Victims can explain the impact the crime has had Offender realises the harm they caused expresses remorse and seeks forgiveness Helps bring closure for victim and reintegrate offender back into society

Question 47

Theory links What theory’s link to reparation

Answer 47

Labelling- by enabling them to show genuine remorse, it permits the reintegration and prevents them being pushed into secondary defiance Functionalism- Durkheim states that to put things back to how they were before the crime was committed is essential for the smooth functioning of complex modern societies

Question 48

Criticisms of reparation

Answer 48

Doesn’t adequately adress suffering of victim Doesn’t work for murder, sex offences, child crimes Impossible with murder Too soft form of punishment that lets offenders off lightly Offenders take advantage of programme to avoid harsher punishment