Korean Job Discussion Forums

[joelove]

Though I heard it had the highest incarceration rate in the world, it's amazing how much the prison population has increased in the US in recent decades, as I just saw pointed out by someone on another site. Since about 1980 it has just gone up at an insane rate. Looks like 3 or 4 times as many prisoners as 30 years ago. What are the reasons behind this? I suppose "war on drugs" played a big part.

Just look at the first graph on this link, showing numbers of inmates from 1925 to 2012. It's like a regular bumpy walk up to a steep mountain:

http://sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/inc_Trends_in_Corrections_Fact_sheet.pdf

So many comments under this article:

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/21/opinion/gingrich-jones-prison-system-fails-america/index.html?hpt=hp_t5

[KimchiNinja]

It's pretty messed up. In the USA they lock people up for anything and everything!!

I was in court once and the people before me were getting screwed for everything. It was amazing. They had some minor offense, and they didn't do their community service, or counseling, and next thing they were being sent to jail for 30 days!! Well of course they will come out of that, have no job, turn to crime, and end up in prison. What do you expect?

Basically Americans are idiots...

[radcon]

Nasty stuff in the link below. The criminal justice system in the US has just become a revenue stream for cities and states. The main function of cops is too levy as many fines as possible.

http://www.npr.org/2014/05/19/312158516/increasing-court-fees-punish-the-poor?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=20140519

[World Traveler]

When you hear stories about people being sent to jail for minor offenses, it is because they have a lengthy prior arrest/conviction record (and the judge takes that into consideration when sentencing). If they can't pay a fine, it's because they not only have no savings, but burned so many bridges no one will lend them money (including family and relatives).

[World Traveler]

Another thing:

The American per capita prison population peaked quite a few years ago and has been declining ever since.

According to the above link 5% of white males will at one point in their life do a stint in jail. That means 95% will not. (The number for Asians is lower and the number for females is obviously lower as well.) Don't do a crime if you don't want to do the time.

Why are blacks more likely to end up in jail? I'd say this is one of the main reasons:

[wishfullthinkng]

[World Traveler]

I've talked to judges. I've done research about the legal system. Have you?

That's about the first point. About the second point, don't you find it strange that those people had no way of getting money? It is possible to make small down payments as little as $25 a month (at least in the cases I've heard about). As long as they are paying something towards the fine they can stay out of jail (which would be much more costly to the government). There's often more to the story than initially meets the eye. When people get locked up for something that looks petty, it is often because they blew multiple chances again and again on probation/parole. Finally, the parole officer/probation officer gets fed up and sends them away.

[Steelrails]

[KimchiNinja]

[joelove]

The massive rise of drug offenders is startling. Looks like about ten times as many people are doing time for drug offenses than around 30 years ago, and doing much longer sentences on average. That's one way to help keep the institutions full.

The number serving life sentences has apparently quadrupled over the same time period.

Do politicians get lots of votes for "tough on crime" stances, and does this help provide (the illusion of) safety for the public? Has the country really become so much more dangerous, and does putting away nonviolent drug users, who are a large fraction of the incarcerated, help? Does that help reduce drug use?

I wonder how many lives have been ruined by a system that has become hellbent on putting people away.

[World Traveler]

The United States has the highest illegal drug consumption rate in the world. (I guess that's a product of being the richest country in the world.) Lately though, laws are being made to reduce the length of prison sentences for drug dealers. It's being happening since 2008 since Obama became president. The prison population has been going down for a while now, both per capita and overall. The crime rate has been going down for much longer (probably in large part due to the lengthy prison sentences). The United States is as safe as the early 60s now. Violent crime is way down. Is putting violent criminals in jail for a long time sad? Yes. But the alternative is they could rape or murder another person when they get out. That would be horrible as well. (The longer they stay behind bars, the safer society becomes.) It's a tough call to make.

[Leon]

[World Traveler]

Look how much crime has dropped:
http://www.rightoncrime.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Victimization-Rates.jpg
It is a huge change.

[World Traveler]

OK, well I read that out of every country in the world, the United States has the highest number per capita who had at one point in their life tried an illicit drug. If the drug use rate in the U.S. is no longer #1 then I guess it goes to show locking up the drug dealers worked to some extent.

[World Traveler]

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-leads-the-world-in-illegal-drug-use/