Punishment vs. Rehabilitation
Punishment vs. Rehabilitation Deborah Bryant CJA/500 June 7, 2010 Nicholas Russo
Theories regarding Punishment and Rehabilitation have evolved with the civilization of man. There was a time in history when the rights of the accused were not considered when rendering punishments. Rehabilitation for offenders was unheard of. ( Katz & Walker,2008) noted “A tradition of vigilantism persisted well into the twentieth century and represented some of the worst aspects of American criminal justice. People just killed others whom they did not like, or mobs would drive them out of town. The lynching of African Americans was used to maintain the system of racial segregation in the South”. An offender was totally without rights and at the mercy of only his accusers.
Man has evolved from an uncivilized “eye for an eye” type of punishment system, where the accused had no rights and rehabilitation was retributive, into a civilized society where punishment and rehabilitation are secondary to the basic rights of the accused. Before punishment or rehabilitation can be dictated, the rights of the accused must first be considered.
These rights are spelled out in the United States Constitution under The Bill of Rights;
- Amendment I- The right to freedom of speech, religion and to peaceably assemble.
- Amendment II- The right of the people to keep and bear arms.
- Amendment III- No Soldier shall, in time of peace be kept in any house, without the consent of the Owner, or in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
- Amendment IV- The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable
Theories regarding Punishment and Rehabilitation have evolved with the civilization of man. There was a time in history when the rights of the accused were not considered when rendering punishments. Rehabilitation for offenders was unheard of. ( Katz & Walker,2008) noted “A tradition of vigilantism persisted well into the twentieth century and represented some of the worst aspects of American criminal justice. People just killed others whom they did not like, or mobs would drive them out of town. The lynching of African Americans was used to maintain the system of racial segregation in the South”. An offender was totally without rights and at the mercy of only his accusers.
Man has evolved from an uncivilized “eye for an eye” type of punishment system, where the accused had no rights and rehabilitation was retributive, into a civilized society where punishment and rehabilitation are secondary to the basic rights of the accused. Before punishment or rehabilitation can be dictated, the rights of the accused must first be considered.
These rights are spelled out in the United States Constitution under The Bill of Rights;
- Amendment I- The right to freedom of speech, religion and to peaceably assemble.
- Amendment II- The right of the people to keep and bear arms.
- Amendment III- No Soldier shall, in time of peace be kept in any house, without the consent of the Owner, or in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.
- Amendment IV- The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable
References: Adler, F. and Gerhard, O. Criminal Justice, An Introduction.5th Edition Ch. 14, 2009 Bureau of Justice Statistics, (2006) The Bill of Rights. Retrieved from http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/chartersbill_ of_rights_transcript.html Feinstein, D. National Victims Rights Constitutional Amendment booklet . Retrieved 2004, from http://feinstein.senate.gov/booklets/VR Book.pdf.. Katz, C.M and Walker, S. The Police in America, An Introduction.6th Edition 2008 Lamance, K. (2009) What types of Probation are there? Retrieved from http://.legalmatch.com/lawlibrary/article/what_ types_ of_ probation_are_there_html Larabee, A.K. (2006) Punishment vs. .Rehabilitation in the Criminal Justice System. Retrieved from http://www.ndci.org/courtfacts.htm