Several states across the Country have enacted or attempted to enact legislation which can enable detention of a prisoner past his/her release date. This type of legislation's general purpose is to provide a mechanism whereby prisoners who, if released pose an unacceptable risk of committing …show more content…
This essay further aims to explore the moral and practical implications of such sentencing provisions and the impact it has on the whole Justice System. The writer will also address the conflicting goals of Corrections and the purpose and impact of indefinite sentencing while exploring the justifications against such legislation. This essay also aims to show that even though we may feel disgust for these types of offences we must remember the fundamentals of the Criminal Law system and understand that people are entitled to equality and fairness in the eyes of the …show more content…
The underlying principle of this theory is that offenders should only be sentenced for crimes that they have committed, not for prospective crimes. Indefinite sentencing also poses problems with parity in sentencing. Two offenders with similar offences could have remarkably different sentences in the end, based upon their behaviour whilst being detained (Wortley and Smallbone,