Essays on General Deterrence

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Abstract Juvenile transfer laws is one of the most controversial issue on the today’s criminal justice agenda of the United States of America. Thus, the policymakers vehemently argue that the possibility of being tried ‘as an adult’ is an effective general, specific and potential deterrent of juvenile crime. Enacted in the majority of the states, the juvenile transfer laws are thought to be an effective restraint against juvenile recidivism, an effective tool for rehabilitation of the young offenders and a solution, which protects the community against the most dangerous juvenile offenders. Yet, the several studies demonstrated that these ...

Proponents of the theory of deterrence believe that people make their choice on the matter of obeying the law or violating it after considering the outcome of their actions. They believe that an individual makes a choice whether to commit a criminal offence or not after meticulously evaluating the punishment and the gain of their actions. However, this proponent has been criticized basing on the fact that only the offenders end up being deterred hence we have no explanation as to why other people choose not to offend (Homel, 2012). General deterrence can be explained as the effect created ...

1. In your OWN words, define the following concepts of deterrence theory--general deterrence; specific deterrence; celerity; severity; certainty; AND explain utility principle for rational choice.

Specific deterrence is when an individual is punished for a crime; general deterrence is others decide not to commit crimes because they saw someone else get punished. Rational choice weighs the benefits and repercussions of a particular action, and takes into account: celerity, how the quickly punishment follows the crime; severity, (pg18) how harsh the punishment is and how well it suits the crime; and, certainty, how likely someone is to be punished for a crime. Both ...