Rehabilitation vs Incarceration

Many different states have begun sending nonviolent drug offenders to various kinds of drug treatment program the state offers. By doing this, it has significantly reduced the problems with overcrowding. If an individual is arrested and charged with simple possession of a drug and no other crime is being commented, then this person is doing no harm to anyone else. They should be given the opportunity to try and make a change in their life and beat the addiction. Instead, if this person is thrown into jail, they are still going to be an addict with a criminal record now and will not be able to be a contributing member of society. (Everett 1 ).

The purpose of this study was to show that an effective drug treatment program in the criminal justice system is a necessity and to show that treatment will reduce recidivism thus reducing crime in society as a whole.

There are too many people in prison in our country and any people in prison today are non-violent drug offenders. The American war on drugs has targeted people in poverty and minorities, who are more likely to be involved in drug use. This has created a pattern of crime and incarceration and “...[a] connection between increased prison rates and lower crime is tenuous and small.” (Wyler). The prison system in our country today focuses on punishment for the inmates rather than rehabilitation for life after their release.

With California jails and prisons still struggling with finding a reform for non-violent drug offenders the states recidivism rates continue to reach unprecedented numbers. Between 1983 and 1998, drug admissions to state and federal prisons increased sixteen-fold, from over 10,000 drug admissions in 1983 to almost 167,000 new prison entries for drug offenses in 1998 (Worrall et al, 2009). This has been a direct result of our legal system incarcerating offenders who have substance abuse related issues instead of providing a way for treatment or rehabilitation outside of incarceration. Through public policies regarding criminal justice interventions that address drug use and crime, an initiative was created to provide treatment services

Statistics have proven that incarceration alone is a monetary pitfall and does not deter the cluster of non-violent drug related crimes in this country. We need to create an alternative habilitation pattern for these offenders including an assessment of their mental health, specialized life skills training, and occupational employment assistance: in some cases, in lieu of incarceration and in others, in conjunction with incarceration. Ask yourself these questions: What affect would this type of intense program have on the recidivism rate? Would we be saving tax-payer dollars by producing graduates from drug rehabilitation programs instead of housing repeat criminals? To

Removing the stigma from addiction would encourage more to seek treatment as well as lessening the attraction to a counter culture. No one should ever go to prison simply for possession or use of drugs. The basis of criminal justice often is swayed by the public’s approval of punishment. According to Mill (1859), real freedom is following our own path as long as you do not interfere or impede other n their pursuit of freedom (188). When an individual breaks a law that impedes upon the rights of others, that is when the criminal justice system should be involved.

Many people question whether drug addicts should be sent for treatment in hospitals instead of prisons, Drug addiction is a very serious thing. I believe drug addicts should be treated in a rehabilitation hospital. However if they committed a crime I believe they should go to jail for it depending on the crime.

According to the United States Federal Register, the total cost per inmate exceeds $25,000 every year(8) At the same time, it costs tremendous amount of money on the prohibition of drugs in the U.S, “The U.S. federal government spent over $15 billion dollars in 2010 on the War on Drugs, at a rate of about $500 per second. State and local governments spent at least another 25 billion dollars.” (8) I think the first method to fix drug epidemic problem is to decriminalize the use and possession of small amount of any kind of drugs, and at the same time, put more effort into creating “parallel harm reduction measures”. That means the government should send the people who use drugs or possess a small amount

The United States Correctional System is often challenged as to whether it wants to rehabilitate drug offenders or punish them, and because of this it mostly does neither. Even though drug abuse and drug trafficking are widely spread national issues, the mental, social, and economic costs of "healing" through incarceration are only making the "disease" worse. Never before have more prisoners been locked up on drug offenses than today. Mixed with the extremely high risks of today's prison environment, the concept of incarceration as punishment for drug offenders cannot be successful. Without the correct form of rehabilitation through treatment within Michigan's Correctional System, drug

Impact of Rehabilitation Programs and Incarceration for Juvenile Offenders Discussing the Importance of Rehabilitation Program

Secondly, Incarceration is not a substitute for treatment and the seeking of treatment should be a personal choice. It is mentioned on multiple sources that more than half are in prison in relation to drug convictions. According to my opinion, drug use is a personal choice unless it leads to other crimes such as violence, theft or sexual abuse. I am aware that a lot won’t seek help, so it is our jobs as peer’s to motivate them to do so. It can’t be forced upon them. However, since most people aren’t in agreement with drug legalization than possibly decriminalization needs to be done. The worst part is about 95 percent of the drug abusers released return to their addiction and 60-80 percent re-offends through the motivation of their addictions

This belief indicated that if offenders could not be rehabilitated then they should be punished and it was time to get tough on crime. Within a relatively short time parole was attacked and the individual approach of indeterminate sentencing, or release by the authority of a parole board was abolished in 16 states (Rhine, Smith, and Jackson, 1991) and some form of determinate sentencing was adopted in all 50 states (Mackenzie, 2000)].

Scientific research shows that treatment can help many drug using offenders change their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors; avoid relapse; and successfully remove themselves from a life of substance use and crime. Treatment can cut drug use in half, decrease criminal activity, and reduce arrests. It is true that legal pressure might be needed to get a person into treatment and help them stay there. Once in a treatment program, however, even those who are not initially motivated to change can become engaged in a continuing treatment process. In fact, research suggests that mandated treatment can be just as effective as voluntary admission to rehab centers.

One of the most profound problems that plagues our society is drug addiction. With drug addiction comes those who offend and have run-ins with the law. Our country deals with these drug-addicted offenders by placing them in jails for a year or longer, only to have them come back out to society when their sentence is over. They are still drug-addicts and so they return to the street only to commit yet another crime. From here the cycle of crime, arrest, jail, and return to society continues, solving absolutely nothing. Therefore, placing drug-addicted offenders in jails fails to confront the major problem at hand which is that of the drug abuse. If drug-addicted offenders were placed in drug treatment centers instead of being incarcerated,

However people who abuse substances require treatment instead of prosecution. Abuse of controlled substances become a crime when people participant in drug trafficking and are convicted of possessing and selling the illicit drugs. Crime may be a result of one’s addiction and for the crime committed jail may result. To support their drug addiction people have committed all kinds of criminal acts. People are not being sent to prison because they are addicted, they are being sent to prison because they committed crimes. The legal consequences are a result of poor decisions. There are crimes associated with the abuse of controlled substances. Abuse of controlled substances is a disease that can cause some people to act in ways that break laws and therefore they should serve time. But incarcerating individuals and depriving them of their drug of choice does not cure them of the obsession, without treatment it just delays them suffering from the