https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/ways-end-mass-incarceration
This article, “Ways to End Mass Incarceration” written by James Cullen on July 18, 2018 talks about some solutions to end mass incarceration. Approximately 65 percent of people in jail are regarded as pretrial detention, which detains an accused person in a criminal case before the trial has taken place. In other words, there are almost 500,000 prisoners who are still in pretrial detention. The author suggests that reforming monetary bail in order to reduce the number of those people and end mass incarceration. Next way to end mass incarceration is to rethink who goes to prison. In 2016, to clarify who is in prison and why, the Brennan Center conducted an in-depth analysis. And it found out that 364,000 prisoners were in jail for lower-level crimes such as drug possession, gambling, minor forgery and so on. The author claimed that crimes those prisoners have done need to be investigated again to reduce the number of prisoners. Also the point is in case there are some people in jail who did not commit anything. The last way to end incarceration is to shorten sentences. The advantages of shortening sentence is that if the sentence to prisoners gets shorter, it would not cost money as much as usual for prisoners such as meal and facilities. The author said, “as sentences lengthen, their deterrent effect declines”(Ways to End, 2018). To do so, the author recommended a 25 percent reduction in sentences which is about 212,000 people release.
Actually, in incarceration, there is discrimination among ethnicity too, and bail amounts are different. Compared to white men, African American men usually get 35 percent higher bail, thus they are less likely to be released on their own recognizance than white people. Also, this happens same as Latin men too; they get 19 percent higher bail than white men. People who cannot afford bond are “more three to four times more likely to receive a sentence to to jail or prison, and their sentences are two to three longer”(Why Are People,n.d.).
The number of crime has not been rising since 1990, but this does not mean that crime does not happen. We citizens need to know how we can contribute to ending mass incarceration as well. As I leaned from our textbook, I think it is easier and a good idea for parents to raise their boys more carefully. It is because large gender difference in serious crimes often stem from male, and it is important to raise boys well, so they will not commit crimes. “If American parents can begin to raise their boys to be less aggressive and less dominating, they will help reduce the nation’s crime rate”(Chapter 8.6. Reducing Crime). Also, raising their boys seems to be the only one they citizens can do by themselves.
Word Count: 450
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