Purposes of Punishment

Question 1

2 Main Theories

Answer 1

1. Deontological (Moral Obligation)
   o Associated with retributive function of punishment
   o Punishment is justified by the rightness of the institution; it isn’t about the good consequences the institution of punishment might generate
   o It’s about the moral culpability of people who break the criminal law
2. Utilitarian
   o Associated with deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation
   o Punishment is used to achieve beneficial social consequences, which include preventing or minimizing future criminal behavior

Question 2

Retribution

Answer 2

• Goal: punish wrongdoer for violating societal norms, make them pay for crime
  
  • Sees humans as responsible moral agents who have a choice to do good or evil
  • Blameworthy moral agents include everyone, but the very young, very crazy, severely mentally retarded
  • Proportionality– degree of the wrong justifies the type of punishment, look at all the surrounding circumstances to decide if the punishment reflects the blameworthiness of the wrongdoer and the gravity of the wrongdoing
  • Criticism – crime is produced by circumstances where criminals live in an uncaring society. Response- maintain respect for individual autonomy by treating everyone in the society as equal

Question 3

Deterrence

Answer 3

• Goal: Reduce future crime
  
  • Special Deterrence (or deterrence by intimidation) –to dissuade particular offenders from repeating their crimes, discourage person from future criminal acts
  • General Deterrence (or deterrence by example, general prevention) – deter members of the public from committing a crime when they see how somebody else suffers as a consequence of breaking the criminal law
  • Rational calculator model – when people calculate they consider punishment (including the severity and certainty of punishment) when deciding to go forward
  • Criticism – do people really rationally weigh options?

Question 4

Incapacitation

Answer 4

• Goal: prevents an individual from committing crimes because they are deprived of liberty by being imprisoned
• Only justified for individuals who would commit a crime again, there is no justification for individuals who would not (recidivists)
• Two forms of selective incapacitation policies
o Offender based - extend prison sentences for people predicted to be recidivists
o Charge based - minimum terms on all people convicted of breaking a specific criminal law in which high-rate offenders tend to engage
• Criticism: How to determine future dangerousness of criminal

Question 5

Rehabilitation

Answer 5

• Goal: Reduce future crime by transforming criminal so they don’t want to break the criminal law
• Replace the punitive attitude with therapeutic attitude
• Example in Delaware – therapeutic model affects drug use and recidivism
• Criticism: rehab programs expensive, law abiding citizens don’t have access to same programs, treats crime as a disease