“…federal prosecutors have agreed to a guideline sentence range of 4-10 months in jail for Felicity Huffman, but they say they will make a recommendation for the lower end of that range and will allow Huffman to argue for a 0-6 month range.” - Tom Winter @Tom_Winter

“…Moments like these tell us it’s less a justice system, and more a class enforcement system.” - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez @AOC

Criminal justice is not about revenge, retribution, or righting historic wrongs. It’s about enforcing laws and maintaining public safety. Incarceration is not about making someone pay for their crimes or answer for the sins of their economic class, gender or race. Rather, the purpose of incarceration is to:

  • Deter criminal behavior

  • Protect society through temporary incapacitation of criminal offenders

  • Discourage recidivism

Leniency is called for when an individual is at low-risk for reoffending and there is no need to “make an example” of the person to deter others from engaging in the same criminal behavior. Whether the person is rich or poor, male or female, black or white has no bearing on the matter.

References

Daniel Nagin, “Deterrence in the 21st Century,” in Crime and Justice in America: 1975-2025 (ed. Michael Tonry, University of Chicago Press, 2013).

Impact of Prison Experience on Recidivism http://www.nij.gov/topics/corrections/recidivism/pages/prison-experience.aspx Accessed 9/10/2016

National Institute of Justice: Five Things about Deterrence; July 2014.