For me this conversation starts with a question: What is the purpose of a punishment? Is it to simply repay society for deviance? Is it to protect the greater population from them? Is it both? I believe it is a combination of the two, but not all crimes are equal in their impact on society and it's individuals so we try to have a system which punishments fit the crime. We do not lock people up an throw away the key for shoplifting, but we may chose to do that for murder. At some point those who commit less serious crimes (and even those who have committed murder in some cases) are released back into the general population. With this in mind, we must focus on a rehabilitation approach so that when that day comes, the people reintegrating into society are better off than when they left it. This is one area where our justice system falls short.
Imagine a war vet who upon returning home from active duty is haunted by his service. He turns to drugs and alcohol to cope with the pervasive thoughts that occupy his mind. Even sleep offers no reprieve. PTSD leaves this veteran in a constant state of defense, unable to let his guard down. When the addiction eventually results in the mandatory intervention of the criminal justice system, the veteran is sentenced to 5 years in prison. Still unable to cope with their feelings the veteran turned felon now finds themselves in a war zone that extends well beyond their own mind. Never able to lay down their defenses and continually operating in a state of self preservation, the person is not only unable to heal, but more trauma is added to their pain. In addition, upon release they have the added stigma of a criminal record, further limiting their employment opportunities and therefore their ability to reintegrate and desist from criminal activity. It is a vicious cycle and it is more common than you may think.
Though I used the example of a veteran in this situation, this is a common cycle for many people who are stuck in this cycle, some are born into it. However, sympathy often begins and ends with our own ability to place blame. It is much easier to see the systems failure in relation to a vet than to an African-American man who had a mug shot long before he was eligible for a photo id. Yet the system creates just as much of a cycle for one as for the other. It is a system of oppression and it needs to be changed to become a system which empowers more than it oppresses.
Continuing with the veteran theme here is a piece I recently heard on NPR about a veterans experience with the criminal justice system.
http://www.npr.org/2015/11/05/454292031/behind-bars-vets-with-ptsd-face-a-new-war-zone-with-little-support
Finally I leave you with a visual argument I created for a research paper I wrote last semester on Restorative Justice;
