Social Problems
Essay by review • February 22, 2011 • Research Paper • 821 Words (4 Pages) • 1,328 Views
There are many reasons why mandatory-sentencing laws are ineffective and
counterproductive. The first reason is that many people go to jail for very small crimes.
Washington and California passed a law in 2004 called the "three strikes law," where if
someone is a two time felony offender and gets another felony they are sentenced a
minimum of 25 years in prison even if they commit a misdemeanor offence. Most of the
people who go to jail because of the "three strikes law" are minor drug offenders and
when they are sent to jail they are exposed to worse and harder criminals which makes
them more likely to commit greater felonies which makes this law counterproductive.
There are about 2 million Americans behind bars roughly half of them are in jail for
nonviolent crimes. America spends about 31 billion on corrections which is twice what it
spent 10 years ago. There is no room in jails anymore due to overpopulation. The three
strikes law is also not very cost efficient making this law ineffective.
Prosecutors are very important to the judicial system because they decide which
cases go to trial and how they are presented. They could misrepresent the facts causing
innocent people to go to jail. Prosecutors now a days, would rather win the case then see
justice served even at the expense of truth. When prosecutors do step over the lines they
rarely face serious punishment. Prosecutors have in the past told witness to lie and
sometimes hid evidence. No prosecutor has ever been convicted of hiding or presenting
false evidence in the history of the republic. Hiding and lying lead to problems in the
judicial system.
Some of the reasons crime rates have declined are: increased imprisonment,
successful campaigns against drug use, favorable demographic trends, improvements in
urban design, and a revival of civil society in some inner cities.
Problem solving policing is not only there to solve individual crimes, but to
eliminate conditions underlie lawbreaking. Local problem solving policing doesn't try to
solve large scale problems like racism, sexism, and poverty. Problem solving policing is
aimed to stop localized problems like disorder, decay, idleness, and inadequate oversight.
They try to solve problems by working with the community and trying to stop problems
before they occur which is called pre-emptive problem solving. If the police start working
with the community both the police and the people of that community will create closer
bonds and become a close nit community.
Muslims held within themselves feelings of resentment towards others because
they couldn't compete with others in fields such as education and work. Muslims feeling
sexual repression, being excluded, and other discrimination factors lead to crime directed
towards the authority and free- floating aggression. Because of recent events non-
Muslims are scared to walk the streets where they once felt safe which puts pressure on
the European governments to stop immigration and to restore order.
One of the steps in the ideological development process is that an extremist
individual or group identifies an unwanted condition. This unwanted condition maybe
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