lakeesha Hennessy Williams answered
Yes, I believe criminals should be punished, but I also believe that there is an element of wickedness in all of us.
Criminals obviously have problems controlling their 'dark side' more than do the rest of the population, and I think punishment should be part of controlling and preventing their wickedness.
Are criminals evil? And should they be punished?
I don't think there's a victim of crime who truly believes a criminal shouldn't be punished. Wouldn't you want justice and revenge if someone did something terrible to you or your family?
However, I feel it is also worth considering the root of criminality, and the best way to prevent that from affecting our society.
In my opinion, punishment is not the solution alone. People leave prison every day, and many of them then re-offend and cause even more harm and damage. Whilst this might make people think that criminals are wicked no matter how much we try to 'fix' them - I honestly believe our punishment system isn't doing its job.
What makes someone wicked? How can we treat wickedness? Jesus taught us to forgive criminals and sinners. In the Bible, Jesus was crucified by the Romans as a criminal himself!
This is a good example the fact that, just because the system might say that someone is bad, this doesn't mean they're a lost cause.
I believe that criminal punishment should attempt to do two things:
Instead of coming out of jail regretting his deeds, he got back in touch with his gangster friends and started adding to his criminal record!
Criminals obviously have problems controlling their 'dark side' more than do the rest of the population, and I think punishment should be part of controlling and preventing their wickedness.
Are criminals evil? And should they be punished?
I don't think there's a victim of crime who truly believes a criminal shouldn't be punished. Wouldn't you want justice and revenge if someone did something terrible to you or your family?
However, I feel it is also worth considering the root of criminality, and the best way to prevent that from affecting our society.
In my opinion, punishment is not the solution alone. People leave prison every day, and many of them then re-offend and cause even more harm and damage. Whilst this might make people think that criminals are wicked no matter how much we try to 'fix' them - I honestly believe our punishment system isn't doing its job.
What makes someone wicked? How can we treat wickedness? Jesus taught us to forgive criminals and sinners. In the Bible, Jesus was crucified by the Romans as a criminal himself!
This is a good example the fact that, just because the system might say that someone is bad, this doesn't mean they're a lost cause.
I believe that criminal punishment should attempt to do two things:
- Act as revenge and deterrent. If we don't give criminals a harsh punishment, there'd be no incentive for them not to re-offend. There'd also be nothing to put other people off committing crime.
- Re-educate criminals. If prisoners who are locked up in jail were taught a different way of life, I reckon this would change things completely.
Instead of coming out of jail regretting his deeds, he got back in touch with his gangster friends and started adding to his criminal record!
