What ever happened to the deterrent factor referred to in the old "don't do the crime if you can't do the time" saying? Well, it's clear to me that people CAN do the time; I'm not certain sending people to prison to carry out conventional sentences is really very effective anymore (or perhaps ever was). It seems to me that we've created a bit of a vicious circle here ... somebody commits a crime ... we send them to jail ... they become even crazier .... they get released ... they do something worse ... we send them back .... they get even crazier .... and round and round we go. Perhaps it's time we consider some alternatives.
I was very pleased to see a report from the Associated Press recently of a unique sentence handed out by a Magistrate, Jeff Bailey (I'm not sure exactly where this was), to a man who illegally parked in a handicapped parking space. He mas made to stand in front of a grocery store with a sign that read "I am not handicapped. I just parked there, sorry." That was absolutely great. To make the person who committed the crime stand amongst the people whom the crime was committed against to make the person really feel how that makes other people feel has got to be more effective than placing the person amongst a large group of other people who have done things wrong ... what are you going to learn from those guys??? If you think about it, it doesn't get much worse than public humiliation for something you've done; therefore, there's likely no more effective method to curb the behaviour in the future. When asked about the sanction imposed, the criminal responded "I know I won't do it no more;" I believe him.
Inspired by Mr. Bailey's brilliantly unique approach to retribution, I am proposing some alternative sanctions to some of the most common (and very serious in some cases) crimes committed:
- Sexual Assault (more than 93,000 / year) - I propose tying the criminal to a post in a child-free area, removing their clothing and posting a sign that reads "I am such a loser that I have to force people to have sex with me." They'll have the experience of being restrained and vulnerable in an environment where people can (and very likely will) look at, say and do whatever they wish. AND perhaps there'll be people touching the person that the criminal doesn't want to touch them .... now that is something I think a criminal can learn from. If that doesn't work, how about dressing them in a short skirt, Britney Spears style (if you know what I mean), and a halter top that reads "I'm a virgin" and leaving them in the bathroom of a men's prison?
- Burglary (more than 2.1 million / year) - I'm thinking we should have an open house, of sorts, where victims of burglary can come into the homes of the criminals and take everything that's important to the criminal, but not until after the victims have an opportunity to destroy things they don't really want to take and completely mess up the criminal's home. These should be published in public places beforehand so people can come over and watch what the victims take and ridicule the criminal while it's all happening.
- Murder (more than 16,000 / year) - I know this is not completely in alignment with the whole public humiliation theme, but I think there's only one thing to do here. Lethal injection by the folks who administer these in Florida ... these guys will make it hurt ... as it should. They still let people watch, so there is a sort of public humiliation here as well, but there's also no risk of the person re-offending, so it's not as important. For more info on that, see my post from December 15.
You can probably see by now that I'm sort of a fan of the "tit for tat" approach, but I'm willing to bet it's more effective than today's approaches. Anyway, that's all for today, sorry for the crankiness and the serious post. Maybe I'll be in a better mood tomorrow and post something funny. In the meantime, keep your eyes on the road .... you never know when you'll have the opportunity to run over a car thief.
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