Re: LEGAL: Alternatives to imprisonment

den Otter (neosapient@geocities.com)
Sat, 6 Mar 1999 17:29:08 +0100



> From: Delvieron@aol.com

> I wholeheartedly agree that in future the Justice system should include
> provisions for as full of Restitution as possible to the victims of crime from
> the perpetrators. But I do not believe this is adequate in and of itself.

Agreed, restitutions/fines should only be used as a supplement in more serious cases (violent offence, murder, rape, large fraud/theft, great damage to property etc.)

> For example, if you had enough resources you simply wouldn't care, you could
> just do what you want and pay your way out of it. Also, this would not stop
> the impoverished from committing crime, if you don't have anything to take,
> what have you to lose? And lastly, there are some crimes where recompensation
> is impossible. How do you recompensate the victims of murder and their
> families? Some things just can't be made right.

Some proposals:
Murder --->capital punishment, with cryonic suspension (so that there's at least a chance to reverse the verdict when the person is proven innocent in retropsect).

(Btw, check out this great pro-CP page:
http://www.rit.edu/~wwl2461/cp.html
See also: http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/8169/)

When reversible suspension becomes available, it could be used for lesser crimes instead of imprisonment.

Violent offenders should receive corporal punishment and, depending on the severity of the offense, be either put in prison for an x number of years (or life, in very severe cases), or released into society with a tracking device (ankle bracelet, for example, or an implant). This could either be temporary or permanent, depending on the specifics of the crime. Violent offenders released from prison would receive the same treatment.

Fines would suffice for lesser non-violent crimes, with prison (labor camp?) terms for more serious offences and repeat offenders.

The victims of a crime should _always_ receive restitution by the offender, with indefinite jail terms for those [offenders] that refuse to pay.

False accusations should be punished very severely (same sentence that the falsely accused would have received).

When uploading becomes available, one could place criminals into a bible-based "techno-hell" where they are tortured for all eternity, or for some predetermined period, according to the severity of the crime.