Do you generally believe that criminal laws are effective at curbing prohibited conduct? Do they effectively protect the health, safety, and welfare of citizens? Does a criminal penalty ever violate the purpose of protecting citizens? With the prison population at record levels in the US, is there a need to reform the criminal punishment system? If so, what are some alternatives that may achieve a similar purpose to the penalty of imprisonment? 

• Some laws are effective and others are not. Drug laws are very strict, yet the drug trade is very strong. Some laws protect citizens and others do not. Some might argue that outlawing marijuana, despite its medicinal properties, does not protect people. Some would say that a leaker of classified information being put in prison is an example of a criminal law punishing someone for protecting the public. The criminal justice system tends to show signs of racial and socio-economic discrimination. It is noticeably true of the prison incarceration demographics. This is largely based upon the types of crimes for which the population is incarcerated (mainly drug offenses). Many would argue that jail does not reform and retrain convicts to be or become contributing members of society. Perhaps increased education and training rather than idle confinement. Of course, others would argue for stiffer penalties to include the death penalty for a wider variety of criminal activity.

Practice Question

Explain the primary differences between criminal law and civil law? 

• Criminal law is a form of public law. The Federal or State Governments seek to demonstrate that an individual has broken a law passed to protect society from harm for which there is the potential for punitive measures. These might include fines, imprisonment, or injunction (orders to stop) from doing further things. A Civil Action may be public or private law. Generally, a civil action is when one party brings a legal action against another seeking to be compensated for the harm suffered due to the conduct of a defendant. There are cases, however, when one party will bring a civil action against another when no harm has occurred. They simply seek an order from the court remedying a situation that the party believes will ultimately result in harm if left unimpeded. To sum it up, criminal law punishes for conduct deemed to harm society. Civil law is suing someone when that person has wronged you legally.