What makes crime punishment just? Does punishment protect society? Can any punishment compensate for the harm caused to the victim or their families? In this article, we'll look at the objectives of criminal justice, crime punishment practices and how we can assess their effectiveness.
- We'll start by introducing crime punishment practices.
Then, we'll explore the concepts of crime punishment and justice.
- Next, we'll delve into the types of crimes and their punishment.
Moving on, we'll discuss crime punishment effectiveness.
Finally, we'll take a look at some crime punishment facts regarding the current crime statistics.
Crime punishment is an essential aspect of criminal justice, freepik.com.
What is crime punishment?
The main objectives of crime punishment are to punish and rehabilitate offenders, protect society and reduce crime.
Crime punishment is based on the rules of operant conditioning, which proposes that people will repeat rewarded behaviours and cease to engage in punished acts. Therefore, sentencing reinforces prosocial behaviours and prevents anti-social behaviours.
Types of crime
There are two types of punishment::
An example of a positive punishment for a driving offence would be ordering someone to pay a fine, while an example of negative punishment would be taking away someone's driving licence.
Over the years, crime punishment, just like many other aspects of our society, has evolved. Many years ago, the primary crime punishment used was capital punishment. People were being hanged left, right and centre for criminal acts such as theft, adultery or treason.
Capital punishment was abolished in 1988, and since then, less severe punishments are used, such as custodial sentences (prison), community services, etc., to reform rather than remove the individuals from society.
Crime punishment practices
Currently, the crime punishment practices allowed in the UK justice system involve prison sentences, fines, and restorative justice.
Prison
Prison is an example of positive punishment. Prison, also known as custodial sentencing, is an aversive outcome of committing criminal/ anti-social behaviour. During this, the individual is incarcerated for a period in which their privilege and freedom are taken away. Offenders that serve prison time are separated from society as a punishment for the crime they committed, but also to protect the community.
Prison can deter an individual who has already committed a crime from re-offending, but it can also prevent other members of society from committing similar crimes.
Crime punishment is also a deterrent, which is supposed to discourage the offender and the population from committing crimes.
Rob is a small business owner who recently has been making good earnings, the tax year is about to come, and he's tempted to conceal some of his financial gains. However, he recalled a newspaper article that told the story of someone who did this, had to pay a considerable fine, and got poison time; this deters him from hiding his earnings. The example illustrates how prison can act as a deterrent.
Fines
Fines are also an example of positive punishment, making up for approximately 78% of total sentences in the UK. Fines differ based on the severity of the crime as well as the earnings of the individual. There is no upper limit for the fines that can be ordered for high-profile crimes.
Fines act as a punishment for the person who committed a crime and as a deterrent for others. Fine penalties can also be used to compensate the victim of a crime. The awareness of the potential fines deters people from committing minor offences like breaking the traffic laws.
Suppose an individual hurts themself at work and the company is found responsible. In that case, the company will be ordered by a court (if a civil lawsuit is filed) to compensate the individual due to their negligence.
Community sentencing
Community sentencing involves ordering offenders to undertake a form of punishment or rehabilitation within a community. While community sentences don't keep offenders away from the community, they provide them with an opportunity to make amends through community service. And also to work on the problem that led to them offending (e.g. substance use or mental illness).
Community sentencing is considered an appropriate punishment for minor offences and gives offenders a better chance at rehabilitation than prison sentences.
Community sentences can include:
Community service, e.g. picking litter or working in a volunteer centre
Abiding curfews and specific restrictions
Taking part in offender rehabilitation programmes
Undergoing substance use treatment
Restorative justice
Restorative justice does not only focus on punishing an offender but also on helping make amends and support victims and the community as a whole.
In the case of theft or fraud, the offender might be ordered to pay restitution to cover the material or financial losses suffered by the victim.
Minor offences might also be punishable with court-ordered community service, which involves unpaid work for up to 300 hours. Community service can include completing tasks like landscaping, painting over graffiti, and volunteering with charities or homelessness organisations. It not only acts as a punishment but also actively supports prosocial behaviour and can be helpful for the offender's rehabilitation and helping them fit back into society.
Community services serve as punishment for minor crimes to promote prosocial behaviour and discourage anti-social behaviour, freepik.com.
Another form of restorative justice is victim-offender reconciliation, which involves a discussion between the victim and the offender about the crime that occurred, which a mediator moderates to ensure the safety of the process. It allows the offender to see the impact of their behaviour on the victim, take responsibility for it and make amends. However, the most significant advantage of this process is that it can help the victims move on, gain closure and have their questions answered.
Crime punishment and justice
What do we mean by justice? Justice can be understood as administering lawful and reasonable sanctions for the offender's criminal behaviour. Since criminal behaviour is considered harmful to society, justice involves punishing those who offend. The scale of punishment should be appropriate to the crime committed, discourage others from offending, and be satisfactory to the victim.
The lawful and reasonable punishment for a particular crime can differ depending on the region and time.
In Iran, death is viewed as an appropriate punishment for homosexuality, while homosexuality is no longer considered a crime in the UK.
Types of crimes and their punishment
The punishment needs to be appropriate to the severity of the crime committed. Minor crimes like careless driving or assault, where no major harm is caused to the victim, can be punished with community service. The court may also order the offender to undergo treatment for substance use or mental health issues if it's relevant to the crime committed.
A court may order a more severe punishment if individuals repeat the behaviour despite receiving less severe penalties.
Offences which involve damaging property, theft, drug possession, drunk driving or even assault can be punished with either fines alone or fines combined with a prison sentence.
Prison sentences are usually ordered for high-profile crimes that harm the victim or put the safety of others at risk; these include murder, death threats, assault, violence, rape, arson, robbery, and possession of weapons or drugs.
Justice involves administering appropriate punishment for criminal offences, freepik.com.
Crime punishment effectiveness
Reduction of crime is one of the key objectives of crime punishment. We can measure how effective sentencing is at fulfilling this objective by looking at recidivism rates.
Recidivism occurs when a person who has previously offended re-offends despite receiving a punishment.
Effective punishment should prevent re-offences and result in reduced rates of recidivism. We can also look at the changes in crime rates to evaluate how effective types of punishment deter criminal behaviour in society.
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
Prison | Prison is considered the harshest punishment in the UK, making it a strong crime deterrent. Prison protects the public from individuals that pose a risk to their safety. Prison is an aversive outcome, making it an appropriate punishment for severe crimes.
| One criticism of prisons is that it takes away people's rights and privileges, which can be considered unethical. The re-offending rates after imprisonment remain high, meaning that ex-prisoners are likely to continue to re-offend after serving their sentence. Ex-prisoners often find it difficult to readjust to society. They might struggle to secure housing and employment and resort to criminal activity again to get by. Prison is focused on punishment; it doesn't involve reparation to the victim and doesn't always effectively facilitate the rehabilitation of offenders. The costs of keeping people in prison are very high. The UK spends about £5.42 billion on the prison system.
|
Fines | It can be used to pay reparation to the victims. It doesn't involve taking offenders' rights away from them. It can act as a punishment and deterrent for minor crimes.
| Fines might be an ineffective punishment for offenders with a lot of money at their disposal. Fines can put offenders with low incomes in debt. Not a sufficient punishment for severe or violent offences, as it doesn't protect the public from the offender. It's been criticised as being an ineffective deterrent of future offences.5
|
| Restorative justice: victim-offender reconciliation | It allows the victim to get closure; the victim satisfaction rates are very high (85%).2,3 The offender can realise the consequences of their actions and make amends. It is associated with a 14% reduction in the rate of re-offending.
| If an appropriate risk assessment isn't conducted, it can damage or potentially re-traumatise the victim. Some victims and offenders will not consent to reconciliation.
|
Community sentencing | Community sentences cost 9x less compared to prison sentences. It benefits the community by promoting prosocial behaviour. It can aid the rehabilitation of the offenders. Furthermore, it's more effective at reducing recidivism than short prison sentences.
| |
Crime punishment facts
Crime statistics
In 2021, 5.8 million crimes were recorded by the police in England and Wales.6
Self-report surveys suggest that this figure is much larger, as many offences remain unreported.
Current recidivism statistics
In the UK, 24.1% of adult offenders re-offend despite punishment 1
The rate of re-offending is even higher among juvenile offenders, 34.1% of which reoffends.1
The re-offending rates are the highest for short sentences; 66% of offenders re-offend after serving a 6-month prison sentence.4
Statistics on crime punishment
Community orders have a much lower re-offending rate (30%) than short prison sentences (48%).4
The cost of re-offending is high; on average, £16.7 billion is spent on recidivism. 4
Community order costs us nine times less than a prison place.4
These crime facts show that the UK judicial system is effective but still in need of some improvements.
Crime Punishment - Key takeaways
- The main objectives of crime punishment are to punish and rehabilitate offenders, protect society and reduce crime.
- Crime punishment is based on the rules of operant conditioning, which proposes that people will repeat rewarded behaviours and cease to engage in punished acts.
Currently, the crime punishment practices in the UK justice system involve prison sentences, fines, community sentencing and restorative justice.
We can measure how effective types of punishment are at reducing crime by looking at recidivism rates.
Restorative justice and community orders are associated with decreased recidivism. However, they might not be the appropriate punishment for severe crimes.
References
- Shapland, J., Atkinson, A., Atkinson, H., Chapman, B., Dignan, J., Howes, M., Johnstone, J., Robinson , G., & Sorsby, A. (2007). Restorative justice: the views of victims and offenders: The third report from the evaluation of three schemes. Ministry of Justice.
- Shapland, J., Atkinson, A., Atkinson, H., Dignan, J., Edwards, L., Hibbert, J., Johnstone, J., Robinson , G., & Sorsby, A. (2008). Does restorative justice affect reconviction? The fourth report from the evaluation of three schemes. Ministry of Justice.
- Hamilton, M. (2021). The effectiveness of sentencing options: a review of key research findings. Sentencing Academy.
- Critelli, J. W., & Crawford, R. F. (1980). The Effectiveness of Court-Ordered Punishment: Fines Versus No Punishment. Criminal Justice and Behavior.
- https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/crimeinenglandandwales/yearendingseptember2021
- Proven reoffending statistics: January to March 2020. GOV.UK. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
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