Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crime

[Sassylassie]

Re: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

The first thing I was tought when I studied Criminology was " We as a society decides what is LAW and the punishments for breaches in these laws." Not anymore; it is clear that crimes against Individuals are not treated or prosecuted with the same diligence that Crimes committed against Industry or Business are. Special Interest Groups (Lobbiest) insure that Industry is a priority and lobby for harsher punishments. A young offender can be arrested in excess of 40 times for Car Theft and his punishment is usually Probation. A drunk gets behind the wheel of a car and kills someone 5 years, out in 3. You get cought writing bad cheques or shop lifting from a department store, more than once, 2 years less a day. Violent Crime is Canada is out of hand, but our country has gone through the cycle of Punishment/Retrebution and then on to Punishment/Rehabilatation neither has worked. The solution?

 

[tawker]

RE: Do you want the gover

Well, there is no real solution I'm afraid. Cracking down may keep people in jail, but they're will always be another jerk to take their place.

Thats the sad reality as I see it.

 

[Uncle_Jalapeno]

RE: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

Maybe the reason crime laws under the Liberals were so lax is because the Liberals had to protect themselves. They are criminals after all.

 

[FiveParadox]

RE: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

The argument that any federal party supports criminals is blatently false, Liberals or otherwise.

 

[Colpy]

RE: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

I read in the Post that the individual that stabbed that 17 year old in Montreal will be charged with Manslaughter.

WTF??????

 

[Uncle_Jalapeno]

RE: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

Maybe the Liberals don't directly support crime but crime certainly flourishes under their rule. I think they are just too cheap too make jails they would rather spend money on sponshership scandals and boondoggles. one thing is for sure though, the Criminals certainly support the Liberals. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNe...e_060111/20060113?s_name=election2006&no_ads=

 

[Sassylassie]

Re: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

I think we as a "Society" need to loudly tell our current Government that the laws of today do not reflect our belief systems. I for one do not think that some one growing twelve plants of pot in his basement warrents spending vast amounts of our policing budget on investagating and prosecuting him. I would like to see the Police budgets' reflect more spending on Crimes against individuals. To me a person who Robs another person or engages in a Home Invasion, Rapes and hurts children etc. are the filth of the earth not the guy growing the pot, I am not advocating "Doing Drugs" but it is at the bottom on my list of what needs to be dealt with in the Criminal Justice System and most of our Policing Budget goes towards that very subject. Very few shop-lifters stealing baby food turn out to be a threat to society but off to jail they go. When I studied Women in Conflict with the Law I was amazed at the amount of women who are in jail for nothing more than writing bad checks to Grocery Stores. Canadas' laws need to be revamped to reflect what we as a Society wants not Big Business.

 

[FiveParadox]

Canada's Laws

Nicely said, Sassielassie.

I would agree that the House of Commons and the Senate should begin a comprehensive review process of the current sentencing practices that the Courts are forced to work within.

:arrow: Non-violent Crimes

In my opinion, crimes that pose no appreciable threat to another person (such as possession of drugs, or tax evasion, or counts of fraud) should not be punishable with imprisonment — this serves to "bog down," if you will, the workings of the Judiciary.

I would assert that non-violent crimes should be sentenced, rather, in a more repair-oriented manner; by way of example, if one is convicted of tax evasion, then one's wages could be garnished and one could perhaps perform community services — to put someone in prison for such a thing is, in my opinion, a waste of taxpayers' money. Only threats to society should be quarantined from the masses.

:arrow: Serious Crimes

When it comes to more serious crimes, such as those that would involve violence, or treason, or murder, then such crimes would warrant sentences of imprisonment. However, we must keep in mind that to raise minimum sentences too high would compromise the capacity of the Courts to judge at their discretion; we must ensure that the sentence represents the particulars of the situation.

 

[Sassylassie]

Re: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

I concur, and well stated.

 

[Uncle_Jalapeno]

RE: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

I agree that non violent crimes shouldn't necessarily send people to jail. Fines and restitution can be a big part of the punishment for those crimes. Violent crimes however should result in hard time. Restituition should also be part of the punishment but not used in place of long and hard sentencing. It's time to stop mollycoddling the criminals.

 

[Sassylassie]

Re: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

I spent one semester in an Institution for Young Offenders-male , we were allowed to listen in on their group sessions and to ask questions directly to the youth after the sessions were over. The first thing I noticed was that more than half of the young males seemed to be native or a visable minorities and they had Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. The youth sessions were devided into groups depending on their crimes-sexual crimes, thieft-robberies, violence etc. I asked one youth why he had raped a 5 year old little girl, first he didn't understand the concept of rape and second he told me that having sex with children was the norm in his community and it had happened to him when he was five. I can't explain the sense of hopelessness that I felt when I talked with these young men, if they can't understand the concept of right and wrong what use is prison except to teach them more illegal skills. This is what happens when our Government decided that mental Health issue were better dealth with in the Courts instead of Institutions. Remember the 80's the "Reigning Government" decided (to save money of course) to close most of the Institutions and small option homes that housed and monitored these youths and troubled adults. There is no other place for a large segment of these Criminals except prison or living on the streets. And the circle continues.

 

[damngrumpy]

Re: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

in most cases the laws and punishments are already in the books, its not so much getting tough with criminals as it is enforcing the existing penalties for crimes committed.
While I want to see criminals dealt with I do not want us to become like the Americans and sit around thinking up new law and punishment just to fill the new prisons they are building.

 

[Uncle_Jalapeno]

RE: Do you want the government to crack down on VIOLENT crim

we should educate the public about the laws and strictly enforce them. There would be a detterent effect. Again this crackdown refers to violent crime, not petty stuff like simple drug possession.