U.S. Incarceration Rate - 1925-2001 - Has this huge increase been justified??

[Facial_King]

What do you think, does this make sense to you?

http://druglaw.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/03/31/incarceration.jpg

:dunno:

 

[stampede2873]

Sure, could be a possible result of Forensic Science assisting in getting criminals behind bars.

Why? What's your read on it?

 

[CunningStunts]

Drug laws are one aspect, but society is CERTAINLY more violent now than it was 30+ years ago... and the violent criminals should be locked up forever IMO.

 

[Rusty Trombone]

If people would just quit committing crimes, we wouldn't have to lock their punk asses up.

 

[Will E Worm]

There's no justification for the US having more people in prison than any other nation.

There are more people in prison in American than some countries have in their entire population.

A baggy full of marijuana is not a reason to be in prison.

 

[Doc Scurlock]

Yeah, I bet a large portion of this is due to drug related convictions. The "War on Drugs" folks.

 

[ChefChiTown]

What do you think, does this make sense to you?

http://druglaw.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/03/31/incarceration.jpg

:dunno:

Well, to compare that chart with the actual crime statistics, I would say that it's pretty justified.

http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/uscrime.htm

Sure, could be a possible result of Forensic Science assisting in getting criminals behind bars.

That's a very good point. Not every person who is arrested today will be getting arrested for a crime that they just committed. They could've committed a crime 20 years ago, but have just now been proven guilty through forensics.

 

[Doc Scurlock]

Drug laws are one aspect, but society is CERTAINLY more violent now than it was 30+ years ago... and the violent criminals should be locked up forever IMO.

I'd argue that. I think we believe society is a lot more dangerous now because of all the media coverage. I mean turn on any news program and I'll bet you my left nut that they'll lead off with something negative as that's what brings in the viewers. Now with the added news networks it's pretty much all bad news all the time. Thirty years ago you didn't have the kind of coverage so you probably wouldn't hear about how some people got killed in Los Angeles when you live in Boise, Idaho simply because of time restrictions.

The site below shows that violent crimes have decreased since the 70s and that drug abuse arrests have increased significantly.

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/glance.htm#serious

 

[Trinidad Gyrl]

I did a paper on this when I was at USC. The drug convictions are indeed a big reason, also the police (local, state, FBI etc) are more efficient at catching criminals (old and new cases) than they were even 10-15 years ago and especially 40-50+ years ago. Those are the top 2 reasons.

 

[titsrock]

Marijuana and prostitution need to be decriminalized in the U.S. 3 Strikes Laws sounded like good public policy (as a criminal deterrent) but actually may not be useful to society....

 

[BioDefenseGrad]

There's no justification for the US having more people in prison than any other nation.

There are more people in prison in American than some countries have in their entire population.

A baggy full of marijuana is not a reason to be in prison.

That figure really doesn't mean anything to me. We're the 3rd largest country by population, a lot of crimes in India are handled by family and non-judicial proceedings and the Chinese give folks the death penalty for many crimes. Mexico has a smaller percentage of its population in jail, but I wouldn't consider that a safer country, would you?

A lot of the activists have their hearts in the right place, but the people bankrolling them are just hardcore partisan leftists hungry for more votes. They know damn well that their argument is packaged in b.s. but they don't give a damn.

 

[BioDefenseGrad]

Marijuana and prostitution need to be decriminalized in the U.S. 3 Strikes Laws sounded like good public policy (as a criminal deterrent) but actually may not be useful to society....

Why aren't 3 strike laws useful to society? A speaker came in yesterday saying the same thing, and he went on about how it effected the black community. A Korean-American guy basically said who gives a damn, the other 86.4% of Americans want repeat offenders off the street. I feel the same way.

 

[BioDefenseGrad]

There's no justification for the US having more people in prison than any other nation.

There are more people in prison in American than some countries have in their entire population.

A baggy full of marijuana is not a reason to be in prison.

Most of those people aren't serving significant time though. People trot out this stuff as a straw man. Like yesterday when a woman argued that because in some states public urination will get you classified as a sex offender, than the notification system should be scrapped. She ignored the fact that almost all the offenders subject to public notification are category 3 and 4 offenders who pose a substantial risk of reoffending, often violently.

 

[Friday on my mind]

I'd argue that. I think we believe society is a lot more dangerous now because of all the media coverage. I mean turn on any news program and I'll bet you my left nut that they'll lead off with something negative as that's what brings in the viewers. Now with the added news networks it's pretty much all bad news all the time. Thirty years ago you didn't have the kind of coverage so you probably wouldn't hear about how some people got killed in Los Angeles when you live in Boise, Idaho simply because of time restrictions.

The site below shows that violent crimes have decreased since the 70s and that drug abuse arrests have increased significantly.

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/glance.htm#serious

You would argue that and be correct.Crimes rates are down and to understand it is easy.Crimes are commited mainly by men between 20 and 35 years old(the ages as I remember them,could be a little off but not much).With the aging of the baby boomers crimes rates were naturally going to go down and did.But incarceration rates are another thing and still very high.The US has I think has the highest rate in the world and its an outrage that we will pay for in the short and long run.Over 1/2 of all people in jail are drug related crimes.Other countries like in europe treat this (drugs) as a health problem not a criminal one and do much better.Drugs shouldn't be illegal anyway,who is the govt to be dictating what adults ingest.
The whole criminal justice syatem in america is now an industry with its own momentum.Lots of jobs involved in arresting prosecuting and incarcerating people.As an example just think if they legalized drugs how many people would have to get real jobs actually maybe producing something of value. :1orglaugh

Edit: Let me add that all these people defending these incarceration rates are also people willing to not only not see taxes not be reduced but increased I hope or they are very hypocritical.It does cost a lot to have all these prisons and such ya know.

 

[Will E Worm]

Most of those people aren't serving significant time though. People trot out this stuff as a straw man. Like yesterday when a woman argued that because in some states public urination will get you classified as a sex offender, than the notification system should be scrapped. She ignored the fact that almost all the offenders subject to public notification are category 3 and 4 offenders who pose a substantial risk of reoffending, often violently.

Who cares how much time they are serving. If they are in prison because of a minor drug offence they shouldn't even be there.

It's like in California when they arrested a guy for his third strike and all he did was steal a candy bar. I would recommend community service unless he was a compulsive shoplifter. Then there would have to be something harsher.

 

[titsrock]

Why aren't 3 strike laws useful to society? A speaker came in yesterday saying the same thing, and he went on about how it effected the black community. A Korean-American guy basically said who gives a damn, the other 86.4% of Americans want repeat offenders off the street. I feel the same way.

"A speaker" "came in yesterday"? Does this mean anything to anybody but you?

WillE is right. Our jails should not be filled up by people who commit petty crimes out of a general rage at society's unwillingness to exert "forgiveness" for someone who paid their debts to society for actual mistakes they committed in their life.

If the statistic about criminals are apt to be repeat offenders upon release from their original crimes is accurate, then we need to overhaul our prison rehabilitation program.

We need to make sure that people that serve their time are given a chance to move on with their lives.

Justice is not administered throughout society, blindly. Black people are routinely given longer sentences and guilty verdicts seem to be returned more frequently to black people than to white people. The Justice system is a laughingstock to the wealthy and the famous, irregardless of race.

 

[Riffy]

If people would just quit committing crimes, we wouldn't have to lock their punk asses up.

Absolutely.

Like that line in Liar Liar... can't remember how it goes exactly but Jim Carey gives similar advice to a client of his.

And if prisons were a small cell with fuck all in it except a rubbish mattress, a cold tap and a hole in the ground and inmates were allowed nothing except the uniform and a toothbrush.. I bet the prison population would plummet like a stone.

 

[maanlest]

Should be "increase in crime" or "improvement in the judicial system" or both

 

[BioDefenseGrad]

"A speaker" "came in yesterday"? Does this mean anything to anybody but you?

WillE is right. Our jails should not be filled up by people who commit petty crimes out of a general rage at society's unwillingness to exert "forgiveness" for someone who paid their debts to society for actual mistakes they committed in their life.

If the statistic about criminals are apt to be repeat offenders upon release from their original crimes is accurate, then we need to overhaul our prison rehabilitation program.

We need to make sure that people that serve their time are given a chance to move on with their lives.

Justice is not administered throughout society, blindly. Black people are routinely given longer sentences and guilty verdicts seem to be returned more frequently to black people than to white people. The Justice system is a laughingstock to the wealthy and the famous, irregardless of race.

I'm not going to get into more detail than that because I'm commenting on a porn fan site.

Look at the CRIMES black people commit. This meme gets trotted out all the time "black people get treated worse because their sentences are longer" ummm black people also commit violent crimes at a rate far exceeding their portion of the population.


I do agree that we need to work on rehabilitation. But no one should expect miracles because the truth is that most of these guys are losers and always will be no matter how much you try to help them.

 

[Mauser98k]

i'm ok with it