Principles and Specific Criminological Theories Justifying Sentencing Options
In Unit 2, you connected theory to real life, showing that it is not an abstract concept. Criminological theory has value in the criminal justice system. It also has value in society. It informs practice and can improve policy and programs.
The criminal justice process can conflict with criminological theory. Within the courts, some sentencing options can create unintended results, such as increasing the likelihood that a person commits new crimes, suffers a drug relapse, or violates a condition of probation.
In this activity, you are going to further develop your writing skills while applying critical thinking by exploring the benefits and drawbacks of specific sentencing options.
Using your reading assignments, intellipath lessons, and other resources, write a 2-page paper exploring the pros and cons of specific sentencing options.
The specific steps for this assignment are as follows and can be found in the readings for the unit, but additional Web research is also recommended:
Select 3 of the sentencing options. For reference, the sentencing options fall into the following categories:
Retribution
Rehabilitation
Incapacitation
Deterrence
Restorative Justice.
In your own words, explain the principles and specific criminological theories that support the sentencing options you chose.
State the pros and cons for each of the sentencing options you chose.
Support your position for both pros and cons with real cases or real events.
Criminological Theories and Courts- Criminal Punishment
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Introduction
Every criminal act or omission attracts a criminal punishment. There are five major types of criminal punishments that a criminal may attract. These are retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, incapacitation, and restoration. From the above key principles of punishment, judges have a wide range of choices when convicting and punishing offenders of a crime. The types of sentences include fines, probation, suspended sentences, incarceration, restitution, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, and the death penalty. This paper seeks to assess various sentencing options, the criminological theories and the principles of punishment they justify, and their pros and cons.
Prison Sentences
Prison sentencing (incarceration) is the confinement of an individual found guilty of a crime by a court of law. Prison sentences consist of concurrent and consecutive sentences, suspended sentences, and indeterminate and determinate sentences. They are in line with incapacitation (keeping society safe by locking away an offender), deterrence (incapacitating an offender from committing crimes and warning the general public of swift and certain punishments for crimes committed), rehabilitation (reforming offenders by equipping them with skills that propel them towards conforming with laws) and retribution (an offender deserves to be punished for their actions) theories of punishment.
For instance, the incarceration of a drug dealer keeps him away from continuing to sell drugs thus protecting society while at the same time warning other potential drug dealers of prison time as a proceed of crime. However, despite protecting the general public from further crime by an offender, reforming offenders, and instilling the fear of crime in the gen...