What is the effective outcome in the US incarceral system? How often is it served? Rarely?

#61 | Posted by Dbt2

My comment was referring to lifelong incarceration rather than the death penalty, for those who can not be trusted to be part of society again. "Effectively" in the sense that lifelong incarceration is just as effective as execution for keeping that individual away from the rest of society.

The effective outcome of the corrections system is a much larger conversation. And I would argue that no, we don't do corrections effectively. We incarcerate effectively. We don't correct, rehabilitate, or treat effectively. In my area as many as 60% of local and state inmates are in for crimes related to substance use/abuse. And inmate treatment programs are a joke. It's incredibly difficult for an inmate to re-enter society following incarceration. Many employers won't hire a felon for at least several years following release, if ever. Landlords won't rent, credit rating is usually shot, friends and even family distance themselves. It's no wonder they gravitate back to criminal associations and behaviors. I won't claim to be an expert or have the final answer, but there must be a better way.

There was no concern for the victim.
#3 | Posted by subliberal

That's a Bull$&!% argument. The state spent over a year investigating and prosecuting the case. The state tried and convicted Pike and sentenced her to death. The state also tried and convicted Shipp and sentenced him to life. The third kid, who was the lookout, pled guilty to accessory after the fact and testified against the other two, and received probation. If there was no concern for the victim why did the state put all these resources into the investigation, trials, and incarcerations?

Capital punishment is just simply unnecessary. The only reason for it is revenge. I won't argue that death row inmates are innocent, or that they are good people, or that they deserve another chance. And don't Bull$&!% me with the argument "What if it were your daughter" - of course I'd want her dead. All the more reason for a civilized society to have rules and governance directed toward advancing society, not letting it spiral into a $&!%hole. And a civilized society doesn't need to kill its citizens - even the worst of them - when they can effectively be locked up for the rest of their lives.