Determinate sentences involve sentences that have a fixed or flat time (Jirard, 2009). Determinate sentences play a large part in the increasing number of individuals in prison, which, as you can imagine, puts more strain on prisons financially. In the past two decades, we have become increasingly “tough on crime” which has helped to decrease crime to a certain extent. According to an article in the New York Times (2008), the US has fewer than five percent of the entire world’s population, but almost twenty five percent of the world’s prisoners (Liptak & , 2008). The author of the article goes on to say that people in the US are sentenced to do time for crimes that would not produce such a sentence in other countries.
However, some experts believe the rates have declined because the baby boomer generations are aging, so the percentage of young adults has declined. Some believe that the tougher or harsher sentences for crimes are a cause and there is evidence of this based on the increased prison populations. According to "Where Have All The Burglars Gone?" (2013), "Could more criminals being locked up be the answer? The number of people behind bars has grown substantially in many countries over the past 20 years.” (para.
According to journalist, Tom Whitehead, longer prison sentences prevent criminals from committing further crimes. To support his claim, he recalls some figures. Those who were in jail for up to two years have a 42.9% likelihood of reoffending and going back behind bars within twelve months after release. In contrast, those who served up to four years showed only a 35.7% chance to violate law again. The same research compares the average of further offences of prisoners with longer and shorter sentence – and the number is lower for those, who spent more time in jail.
"Bring Back Flogging" was published on February 20, in 1997 in the Boston Globe. In this essay, Jeff Jacoby describes the weak points of today's criminal justice system, and claims that flogging should be our option because it is a much quicker, cheaper, educational, and a more effective way than imprisonment. In his argument, Jacoby does show a good amount of evidence, but he does not seem to support his points. He points out that about 1.6 million Americans were in jail that year (1997), and that this number was 3.5 times larger than that of 1980. This seems to show the weakness of the criminal justice system.
Decrease in Juvenile Crime In 2001, according to the FBI, juveniles accounted for 17% of all arrests and 15% of all violent crime arrests (Snyder, 2003). In the late 1980s, juvenile violent crime arrest had a substantial growth then peaked in 1994. However, between 1994 and 2001, the juvenile arrest rate for Violent Crime Index fell 44% and as a result, the juvenile Violent Crime Index arrest rate was the lowest since 1983 (Snyder, 2003). Furthermore, in 2001, the rate of juvenile arrests for Violent Crime Index offenses that included forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault and murder declined for the seventh consecutive year. The juvenile arrest rate for each of these offenses has been declining steadily since the mid-1990s; for murder, the rate fell 70% and manslaughter arrest rate fell 40% from its 1993 peak through 2001.
Specifically, 10 percent of the private prison inmates were rearrested in the 12 months following release versus 19 percent of government prison inmates. Six percent of private releases were resentenced to a new offense versus 10 percent. Furthermore, 10 percent of private inmates were reincarcerated compared with 14 percent of government inmates. The overall indicator showed that 17 percent of private releases have an indication of recidivism versus 24 percent of government releases. Nine percent of private prison inmates had a technical violation of release terms compared to eight percent government prison inmates.
The number of inmates released early from prison to community supervision or parole has dramatically decreased. Types of crimes for which offenders are convicted and sentenced to prison has not changed significantly since early 1990s. Almost 70 percent of all convicted offenders admitted to DOC have been sentenced to three years or less and most of those (47 percent) for one year or less. The court has not significantly changed its sentencing practices in imposing prison terms, but recently there has been an increase in the number of sentences of between five to 10 years and a decrease in sentences of one year or less. Violent crimes generally receive the longest prison sentence (about six years) and drug offenses the next longest (almost four years).
Overcrowding has become a major issue in the United States mainly because nonviolent drug addicted offenders are repeating behaviors and ending up in jail. As a result, criminals are receiving early releases, violence in the institutions is on the rise, and non-violent prisoners are not receiving the rehabilitation that they need. The elimination of federal parole and
High rates of recidivism however would suggest that this theory is somewhat ineffective. “Reoffending rates for young people leaving custody are particularly high. Thus, for males aged 14-17, the rate of reconviction within two years of discharge from prison in 1998 was 84 per cent”. (Hopkins Burke 2008, Page 92). The rational choice theory focuses on a cost and benefits decision made by a person to maximise personal advantage and how laws and a consistent, robust justice system needed to ensure crime is less appealing.
Decreases in gun ownership over the 1990s can explain up to a third of the decline in ceime over the same period. Exposure to firearm violence approximately doubles the probability that an adolescent will engage in serious violence over the subsequent two years, so that effects of maltreatment are similar to those of exposure to gun violence” (“James Poterba 1”). One potential explanation for the large effects is that children who experience maltreatment start engaging in crime earlier, an explanation that appears to be supported by studies the authors highlight. Abused or neglected children are more likely to be arrested as both juveniles and adults.