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Richard Epstein looks at a wave of progressive reforms being embraced by Democratic presidential candidates and big city district attorneys, including decriminalizing quality-of-life crimes, eliminating cash bail, and sending fewer people to prison. He also considers whether America has a “mass incarceration” problem and whether there is evidence of racial bias in the criminal justice system.
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We usually talk about these criminal justice reforms at the level of theory.
It just hit me that these changes are putting me, personally, and my family in jeopardy. We are engaged in unwinding the changes that lowered crime rates in the first place.
“Nonviolent” criminals — that is, criminals who plea bargained down to convictions for nonviolent offenses — are much more likely to engage in violence than people who are not criminals at all.
“Mass incarceration” is another way of saying mass incapacitation of criminals. We don’t know how to rehabilitate criminals, but we do know how to lock them up so that they can’t harm the law-abiding.
what is the purpose of incarceration?
punishment
rehabilitation
public safety
deterrence
Incapacitation.