Crime Solutions

Solutions for serious and popular crimes Almost everyone in American realizes that we have a crime problem. Being a criminal justice major, I will deal with crime my whole career. Cities have the highest crime rate, but small towns shouldn’t be overlooked. Crime is like an iceberg, with only the tip of it being what is reported. Some criminals that are reported just serve half of their sentence. Punishment for a serious crime in American needs to be swift and sure, especially for homicides and drug related crimes. Criminals should be presumed guilty instead of innocent till proven guilty. Punishment should be written in stone, and all criminals should know what their punishment will be before they even commit the crime.

In the society we live in, crime will always be committed. The only hope is to bring crime rate down in future years. When a crime is committed, the criminal is presumed innocent in our society. A murder could be caught on film, and still the criminal is presumed innocent. The Government wants a decrease in crime, but they give the criminals the advantage. This does not make sense to me, or to many fellow Americans.

The solution to all crime is punishment. Half punishment is not the answer to crime in America. Easy punishment is not the answer either. I am saying that criminals need to know their punishment before they commit an act that breaks the law. For instance, if a person takes another persons life with the intent to kill, the criminal should be exterminated within a week’s period. Incapacitation for murders is not the solution for our crime problem. Criminals found guilty beyond a shadow of a doubt need to know before taking a person’s life that they will no longer be on this earth, in a week’s time.

Crime is a big problem in the United States. The swift and sure extermination will work, because most people value their lives more than taking someone else’s life. It will work because people are scared of death, and the fast extermination will set an example for all future criminals. If criminals know they would be punished swift and sure, they will think before they act especially if it means their life. This means there are no chances for plea-bargaining, good time points, and a chance to escape prison. If society gets this reputation, crime rate for serious crime will go down.

In our society today, it takes about 6 weeks to a year for a trial to take place. Violent crimes increased 24%, from 1973 to 1992. The social cost of crime also increased 31% (Corrections). These statistics seem pretty serious for an ex-offender to be walking free on the streets. After being sentenced, criminals serve on an average 1/3 of their sentence, and this solves nothing. However, serious crime in the past 5 years has slightly decreased (Corrections). It is still a problem though.

Mass murders in our country have made prisons their homes. Charles Manson’s life was sitting in prison, with no worries on his mind. Richard Speck, another mass murderer of 8 young nurses lived 25 years in prison happy as could be until he died of a heart attack. He even said, “They’re going to let me out of prison because I am having too much fun” (Crimes and Human Nature). He was even given a chance to appeal his case. Consequently, he died before his sentence was reduced. If my method would have been used, this man would have been executed a week after being found guilty. Also, if not for a heart attack, this man could have been back on the streets. Executing murderers is the safest and surest way to assure citizens of the United States they will never have another fear of this criminal.

America has a Due Process procedure, but a criminal should not have more rights than the office in charge. Crime will never decrease if criminals receive more and more rights. Due Process is fair treatment under the law. This is an overstatement in our society today. It is not intended to let criminals run free. It is not intended to give more rights to a criminal than an officer of the law. However, if a criminal is not read his rights then he could go without any punishment whatsoever. Therefore, this criminal wasn’t punishment, and a society should not be given that reputation.

Drug related crimes are among the top crimes in America today. Our prisons are full of young mid-aged drug dealers (Criminology). This punishment for drugs have gotten stronger in the past 10 years, but there is still problems. Drug offends are often charged, and come to find out they are repeat offenders. This should not be tolerated in society today. The punishment for drug crimes is not sure enough. Anyone arrested for a drug crime should know they would face a minimum of 5 years in prison no matter what.

The type of punishment being used in drug crimes is exactly the same as in homicides, except the punishment is not quite as bad. The offender will still be tried within a week, and punishment will be served right away. I know the courts are fully booked up for trails. The solution is to build more courts, and hire more judges. I hope everyone would agree that building more courts for quick trails is better than loosing a family member to a repeat offender, or finding out your child is being supplied with drugs from a repeat offender. This would supply more jobs for attorneys, judges, and bailiffs. My point being that more courts, lawyers, and judges will be needed for a trail within a weeks time for a homicide or a drug violation.

From the drug violator’s point of view, being caught with a half ounce of marijuana is not worth 5 years in jail. Drug users and sellers will learn to respect the law if they know they will go to jail 5 years without appeals. The officer will present the evidence, and the judge will decide if the sentence should be more than 5 years. It sounds easy, and it would be easy. It may take a while to work, but I guarantee drug violations with decrease in the future years.

One of America’s most costly crime is armed robbery. In 1992, armed robbery offences added up to $834 million. Over 1/3 of the criminals were repeat offenders (Criminology). Punishment must not have been served correctly if ex-offenders feel as if they can repeat the felony. First of all, armed robbery is risking someone’s life. The robber has the potential to use the weapon, and if something goes wrong most of the time the weapon is used. A criminal will do anything to get their self out of trouble. It may even go as far as taking a clerk’s life, and or an office of the law. If the person was an ex-offender he/she should still be locked up in prison. There is no excuse for someone loosing his or her life to an ex-offender. The solution is simply to lock the armed robbers up for a lengthy time. I am speaking in terms of retribution and deterrence. This is a severe punishment that keeps the criminal from committing the same crime. People will argue that there are not enough prisons to hold all these criminals. Well people, I think it is worth building more than have your life threatened. I am sure many will agree with me, especially those who have been a victim.

Rape is another serious crime that abused by repeat offenders. From 1990-1994, forcible rape on a line graph would look like a pyramid. Each year there are over 100,000 women raped (Corrections). This is a very large number, and I am sure the women of the US would love to see it decrease. Well, I would agree that it takes a sick individual to rape a woman. These people need to face a minimum sentence of 25 years in prison, with no parole or plea bargains. That is if it is forcible rape beyond a shadow of a doubt. I think retribution needs to be used on repeat offenders. This is and eye for and eye, and in society today this would mean the most severe punishment besides death.

Throughout my paper I have given examples that will significantly reduce the crime rate in the US. The main point made in my paper is that criminals are not really punished the way they should be. Swift and sure punishment must be served before criminals will realize that committing a felony is not worth the punishment. This is the message that we need to regulate society. Some people think there is an easier way of reducing crime, such as hiring more police officers. This has already been tried, and was unsuccessful. A Law officer’s main job is to prevent crime, and regulate society. Law officers have no control over the punishment a criminals serves. They simply arrest felons, and the rest is left up to the courts and corrections. After a felon is arrested, the punishment process starts with the judicial system, and then the corrections system. The courts decide the punishment, and in today’s society criminals often laugh at punishment. I hope you agree that my methods need to be enforced, and it will definitely reduce crime in due time.