Justice is a system that is designed to ensure that we have a level of order in society. It has also become big business and there is a whole structure to the field that ranges from people who clean prisons to the people who made the arrest (I support police 100% and 100% improvements where needed). A justice system is necessary because we know that there are people who don't always follow good moral conscious and need a different level of boundary enforcement (i.e. walls). Incarceration is not an ideal solution because it represents a prior failures (not to mention the cost and outcomes) of our (meaning there is a line that moves people into criminality that we could shortcut) society in terms of child rearing, mental health, criminality and science.
What I'm saying is that there are many steps before someone becomes a criminal and each of these steps may have been the sins of others and a failure of our society to act when it was needed (...thats not giving an excuse for bad behavior which must still be held to account for Justice to occur.). Most people are not born with inherent anti-social traits (that would make our species cannibalize each other. We often learn how to do that from each other! 🤯) but they learn these behaviors from their parents, environment and at times biological-environmental influences. To only look at the specific crime at a single instance in time doesn't necessarily tell us much about the person, their motives, and the root causes (That is not to say that the specific crime is not worthy of punishment or that anyone should get a free pass just because we look at a broader picture).
Looking at a snap shot is different than looking at a 10 minute video (They have different levels of content and context). That is why we have a responsibility to understand the roots of criminal behavior from a socio-biological level and in turn use our moral reasoning to determine the most effective outcomes for everyone involved. Having a broader picture changes some of the assumptions and in turn some of the solutions. We can continuously propose new solutions and in turn move toward a more sustainable system (..and more accurate in understanding and solving problems.)
What if we could understand through science (and a change in legislation) so we can reduce our prison population (saving us money) while becoming more effective? I think we would all agree at least in principle of the expensive costs of prison (..and even perhaps accepting any practical changes that make it more effective in protecting the public.). Prison (or the threat thereof) might be enough with mental health counseling (and medication and monitoring) to allow a much larger percentage of society to be productive (versus being a drain on resources). Changing our legal strategies to better collect data and make positive pressure to change when certain behaviors come to light (i.e. first offenders).
Solving complex problems like justice and prison reform that leads to more effective effort requires a focus on actual scientific investigation matched with a wider angle lens (through data collection) on crime so as to better help protect the public (...and help the victims). While putting some people in prison may still be necessary, there may be a larger portion of people who can be rehabilitated through better understanding of the underpinnings of crime and new solutions (whatever they may be.). Sometimes changing the aperture of the lens leads to whole new sets of knowledge and insight.
No problem getting tough on crime through better understanding and more accurate solutions. Isn't the goal to minimize future crime, reduce financial and tertiary costs to society, while become more effective (morally and fiscally)? ...ifs its not then perhaps the problem isn't the justice system but the societal context within which it exists (i.e. the need to believe in the developmental line of the justice institution and not allowing it to get stuck at one point in history of its developmental line.)
I'm not a softy on crime...but I'm a believer in pushing every system in the modern world upwards through continuous improvement that leads to more effective outcomes (The problem of change is often more political than practical.). If some systems are advancing (i.e. medical) and some systems are stagnant then we have some lopsided institutional development. The U.S. is one large system and it functions best when all of the systems are striving toward the same end and maximum performance. It makes us an adaptive species.
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