Contrary to the commonly accepted belief that victims want retribution, a new survey released by The Alliance for Safety and Justice reports that most victims, by a rate of more than two-to-one, prefer alternatives to jail time for offenders.  This comes despite the claims from pro-incarceration officials in government and other organizations that claim hard time is the only solution for criminals. Instead, according to the report, “victims overwhelmingly prefer criminal justice approaches that prioritize rehabilitation over punishment and strongly prefer investments in crime prevention and treatment to more spending on prisons and jails.”

This runs counter to the theory that incarceration and other brutal punishments are effective deterrents against crime; science, statistics and examples from other countries around the world have previously shown otherwise. If this philosophy were true, then the United States, with the highest rate of incarceration worldwide, would seemingly be crime free. However, the U.S., with only five percent of the world’s population but with more than 25 percent of the world’s prisoners, still is a long way from being crime free.  In fact, according to the Washington Post, despite having the same basic rates of crime as much of Europe, the incarceration rate here dwarfs the European approach; one would therefore expect the crime rate in the U.S. to be much lower.

The study also shows a general victim profile. For example, crime victims are more likely low-income, young, and people of color. The correlation between these demographics and crime seem to suggest that a majority of these crimes occur because these specific victims live in high-crime areas, more often than not affected by poverty. The study also shows in the victim profile that: one in four people have been victims of crime in the last 10 years; violent crime victims are more than likely to have been victims of four or more crimes; at least eight in 10 victims suffer at least some trauma as a result of the crime; and two of three victims report not having help after the crime, and of those that did receive help it came overwhelmingly from the community as opposed to the criminal justice system.

However, even most of those who have suffered as victims of crimes believe that massive incarceration is not the right approach. Instead, the study shows that victims overwhelmingly support alternative measures. For example:

• By an over 2-to-1 margin, victims prefer rehabilitation to lengthy incarceration
• By a 15-to-1 margin, victims prefer investments in education and schools over investments in prisons and jails
• By a 7-to-1 margin, victims prefer investments in mental health care
• By a 3-to-1 margin, victims believe prison makes criminals more likely to repeat their crimes
• Victims overwhelmingly believe investments in crime prevention are more effective than punishment
• By more than a 3-to-1 margin victims prefer holding criminals accountable through means other than prison, including drug treatment, mental health care, etc.

Overall, the statistics show that the victims of crime, those that have witnessed it first-hand and often more than once, believe a more effective and sensible approach to crime and criminals is one that treats them before the crime is committed and, failing that, identifies their problems instead of throwing them at the mercy of the criminal justice system.

Kentucky Criminal Defense Attorneys are a network of criminal defense attorneys located throughout the state. If you have questions or seek a consultation, contact us at 859-685-1055 or through our website.