Week 5: Criminal Justice System

Policing and shaming have both positive and negative outcomes that may arise when trying to deal with different types of crime. First, I will talk about policing. When talked about in the book, it discusses policing in neighborhoods to make people feel more safe and secure. I definitely think this solution could ward off many criminals that may be lurking in a neighborhood, but what is the likelihood that a policeman can be monitoring neighborhoods 24/7? Another thing this could promote is more criminals dressing like a policeman to gain easy access to people's houses. We have learned to trust the police, especially when we are in a scary situation, so what if that power is turned on us? Also, what if there is one police in charge of a large neighborhood and he is in one part of the neighborhood and a crime is committed on the other side of the neighborhood, then will the surrounding families lose trust in the police and their system? One last thing to consider would be the cost of something like this. Are people willing to pay more money to possibly have their homes more protected?

When it comes to shaming, I do not think that this is a necessary policy. Although I see how some people could be so outraged at a crime that they want the criminal to remember it forever, this is not an alternative to jail. I believe that by going to jail, this person will be shamed enough, although I am also aware that this is not always the case. I think that one negative outcome to shaming is that the person may get so angry about being made fun of and made as an outcast that they could repeat the crime - or a crime much worse. As discussed in the book on page 200, if the criminal is brought back into the community and given a second chance, as opposed to shaming them, they may feel a sense of community and friendship and this may be deterrent enough from future crimes.