Pondering the Role of Prisons...

Should the U.S. judicial system be allowed to give life without parole sentences children who commit crimes less serious than murder? The New York Times posts a debate online.

The debate started me thinking about the role of sentencing for crime in general, and the balance between punishment and reform. From a personal perspective, I have mixed feelings about this issue. In high school I had found myself in trouble a few times, and the way I was handled by the school administration left me feeling that punishment in school was designed to remove undesirable elements: in school and out of school suspension, or, in extreme cases, expulsion. So was the goal simply to remove the offender from society to protect others while punishing the offender? After I switched schools, I found that there was another way of thinking about this: If students found themselves in trouble, they might be removed from the society of school, but the goal was rehabilitation. If a student wasn't following rules, it usually pointed to a bigger personal problem. Breaking the rules was a way to express anger, rage, disappointment, a broken heart; we needed new ways to deal with these problems, and the school was ready to help us find the right way.

But, then, if a serious crime is committed against someone I know, would I want the criminal to suffer for their actions and put away to stop them from hurting another person, or would I want them to be rehabilitated so that the quality of their life improves and they become a productive member of society?

So far I have looked at the personal perspectives from both sides of this issue. When I further investigate the local or national aspects, what questions should I ask? What other perspectives will come into play? Certainly, the cost of housing prisoners is an issue, so there will be an economic perspective. What about the political perspective? What about ethics?

I might begin by asking, "What is the cost of housing a prisoner for one year?" "How much tax dollars go into the U.S. prison system annually?" "What are the standards of living like in a prison?" "Do prisoners have access to higher education? Should they? What are the benefits to society if they do have access? Does this create a financial burden for society? Is it fair for a prisoner to have access to higher education while many innocent people have no access because it is too costly?"

With these questions, I can start to see a variety of perspectives on the local and national levels. But what about the global level? What questions can I ask that will help me see that larger perspective? Can this issue even be viewed from a global perspective?