This lady from Chicago who grew up in the crack epidemic believes that the key to reducing violence is helping rehabilitate those who have been incarcerated and victims of society. She says that their are three main things that would change if we focus our attention on reducing violence. She goes on to explain that if we really cared about it then it would be valued as a moral crisis. I disagree with this because I believe it is treated as a moral crisis. Today even a domestic violence case is considered serious because if their are signs of abuse the other party will be arrested. As far as the victims that didn't report the crimes, they cant be helped if its unknown that they need help. Its impossible to help if they don't want it or are too scared to reach out and get it. There is no way to find out who are victims of violent crimes. I do agree with the fact that she says our justice system doesn't do enough to ensure the victims safety. For example with the domestic battery, their in jail for about 48 hours. Then what, what about the victims safety from that point. Victims do want o feel safe and feel that the person who hurt them wouldn't do it to anyone else. Our justice system makes it hard for victims to have that peace of mind. So overall I agree with her approach of helping both sides. MSSA002
I do agree with that the criminal justice system needs to come up with more punishments rather them just sit in a cell for forty-eight hours and then get out to do the same thing. Its because there not learning there lessons. Also for the victims and the people that are out there they are now more at risk because that person is back on the streets.
Right, the problems ride in punishments that aren't getting the point across. But also, a lack of rehabilitation programs doesn't help anything, either. If society wants someone to act a certain way (the basis of the justice system), then society has to provide an efficient way to learn the patterns of living. - AJC001
The Case for Diversion really highlighted a lot of importance in the video as this demonstrated how important most of the flaws cause much of the violent change as their is no way for the offender to obtain success in their daily lives after they commit a violent crime to change the ways of their behavior. This video also, pointed out that due to the lack of restorative justice that exists we tend to have offenders that revictimized. This was stated a should really drive a main focus of society we have 90% of people in the US that want common justice for a crime not jail or prison for individuals, 20% believe in second chances while 80% of individuals believe in having safety and justice for themselves and also for their families as well. The women who was speaking made a powerful connection between automobiles and offenders. Some cannot turn a car into a dealership to be fixed car comes later with more problems due to improper care of the vehicle and charge double the cost and twice the time to fix people do not work to become better if they lack the needs to fix themselves. As this video had stated in our criminal justice system we lack accountability, and focus on punishment as our main goal which doesn’t cause a change individuals which would only promote an individual from becoming a better criminal. In the video they went over an event where an individual was robbed, after that he was afraid to see individuals that matched the same height of the assailant who had attacked that person. What this restorative justice program did was had this same offender that had robbed this individual sit down in a controlled environment and talk about the issue and taught him how to get out of the hold the offender had put that individual in. This prompted both change in the victim and the offender the offender took accountability for his actions changed his behavior while the victim took away a lot of the fear he had felt towards even people who had looked similar to the same attacker. Eagle001, Eagle002
What she proposed was definitely very eye opening and interesting. Without restorative justice, and simply relying on incarceration, we are basically creating a viscous cycle of violence, either maintaining the already present violence, or all out making it worse. This is a very current issue at hand, and maybe we are just making things worse will all of the incarceration that we see in our prisons and jails. gh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
This was a very interesting video, as it provided a lot of insight into the criminal justice system from a woman that grew up seeing harm, committing harm, and experiencing harm in her early adolescent life. At the age of 15, she was arrested for grand theft auto, receiving 6 months of community service, while her African-American accomplice received 6 years in prison. This is just one example of the discrimination and racial disparity that we unfortunately see in our criminal justice system. The 6 months of community service provides a much easier, faster, and more logical way of bettering herself versus the unfair 6 years of prison that her accomplice served. This is an example of the restorative justice that has such a positive impact on people’s lives, such as the woman in this video. It was very interesting to me when she started talking about the four drivers of violence; shame, isolation, exposure to violence, and diminished economic opportunity and access. She goes on to describe four things that the prison system causes the inmates to experience, which include, you guessed it, shame, isolation, exposure to violence, and diminished economic opportunity. This is very interesting to me, and this claim is stating that incarceration is almost creating a cycle of violence that is not making any improvement to the inmates that are locked up. She is claiming that prisons do not reduce violence, they actually maintain this violence that is already present, as well as form new violent behavior among those that are incarcerated. If prison got rid of violence, we would never have an issue of violence, which is not the case in the United States, or any other country, showing us that maybe incarceration is not the solution to the problems that we are facing, and potentially making the situation worse. gh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
I agree that her being given the chance to not get a prison term based on her crime instead given the 6 months of community service help her to turn her poor choices around. I agree this video did also highlight that by imprisoning people were making a society that is indulged in violence where it becomes are main goal to capture but not change the violence that is still within the individual that was captured which causes more problems then solution's. Eagle001 Eagle002
This video was an excellent video on a lady from Chicago who has been through a lot and she shares her beliefs. For instance, she believes that reducing violence is helping rehabilitate the people that have been incarcerated and as well as the victims of the society. The problem is usually people who get a felony it ruins their lives because it’s hard for them to try and start a new chapter when no one will hire them. So they go back to their old ways. Another major reason there is no change in offenders is because our criminal justice system lacks focus on punishment as our major goal. This is only making our criminals better at what they do because of this. I also thought it was interesting when the woman talks about what she grew up with and what she saw. You really can visualize what she went through and what a lot of people in America go through. The woman was so young to when she went through this for instance, at the age of fifteen she was arrested for stealing a car and she then received six months of community service while the person who helped received six years in prison. As you can see the community service can be enough to make a person realize what they did was wrong. Instead of sentencing her for years on years to prison make them have more punishments besides just sitting in a cell. Then when they get out they usually do the same things over or something different. These are examples though of restorative justice and we need to have more punishments because as you can see if you did a study the people who do more of punishments it really has an impact more on their lives. CRC001,CRC002
I agree that this video is an excellent source of a new way of trying to stop violence. She uses her own experiences too help drive home the point that many people make mistakes sometimes and they should not always be punished so severely for them. Being able to be given a lesser sentence and time to think about their mistakes can help people see the problem and therefore allow them to fix it. Pack001, Pack002
This video shows a different but interesting take on how to deal with criminals and also how to divert crime. The lady in the video states that she thinks that by reducing crime it can help lead to rehabilitation for criminals that have been incarcerated before. She also talks about how her opinion on racial disparity and racial discrimination changed after she was arrested for Grand Theft Auto and only 6 months of community service whereas her accomplice who was an African american male received 6 years for the crime. We can see through this example that implicit bias and discrimination within the criminal justice system has been and still is a problem in our country. Nowadays it may not happen as often but it still occurs in many places throughout the country. This experience also helped plant the idea of restorative justice into her mind and helped her realize that she wanted to start making a difference and try to start helping reduce the incarceration rates. As far as prisons go, in her mind prisons are the reason that violence has not gone away, in fact she thinks that prisons are the reason that violence has stayed around. I agree with her in the fact that prisons do allow violence to stay within our society because inmates in prisons often times develop more violent attitudes after being incarcerated. Being given the opportunity to be given community service instead of a jail sentence really helped her turn her life around and make better choices, I think the same point could be made for many people who have been given an opportunity to have community service instead of jail time. Now it may not always be the case but most of the time these people given this opportunity make the changes necessary in their lives because they have seen the error of their way and I believe that this theory is definitely something that needs more attention and consideration as it could help us solve our violence problems. Pack001, Pack002
I agree with you that most (nonviolent) people given the opportunity to serve community service instead of jail time helps them turn their life around and make better choices. This gives these nonviolent offenders second chances to fix their behaviors. Jail time does not do much for nonviolent offenders; rehabilitation and community service do a better job of getting treatment to those who need it. I like the idea of restorative justice because victims need treatment too. By giving the victims and offenders therapy together, that gives the victims closure and the offender a chance to see the fault in what he or she did. Scuba002
It is interesting that the victim has to agree with the criminal being able to get rehabilitation instead of prison. I think that is a good idea because it brings the victims into helping decide the punishment. Danielle Sered, a white woman, got arrested at the age of 15 for grand theft auto and only got 6 months of probation while her accomplice, an African American male, got 6 years in prison. This shows the broken criminal justice system when it comes to the disparity in race. Although I do not have the details on who played what part in the crime, it is crazy how vastly different the sentences are for these two when they both committed the same crime. Victim’s rights movements are pushing for longer sentences but Danielle Sered is pushing for the lessening of violence. Victims want answers and closure. Sered mentions that the system we have now does not give the victim any of that. I like the idea mentioned towards the end of the video with the circle of people where the person who harmed sits with their victim and they reach agreements on how to make things as right as possible. This helps the victim receive the closure they need. Scuba002
As the speaker mentioned, most people actually support rehabilitation over long prison sentences. This makes sense knowing that as a rehabilitated citizen they would have learned their lesson and most likely would have felt more sympathy and remorse for the victim than they would have if say they had spent 5+ years in a prison. And yes, the difference between her reprimand and her african american friend's long prison is unfair and seemingly race oriented by the way she makes it sound. But also like you said, we don't know if she left something out like the other person's age, or whether they had previous offenses. Hootie002
Victims in our criminal justice system (those who are victims of the criminals) are often not cared for in ways that enable them to feel their offenders were properly cared for, and these victims often do not feel as if they are safe. This is a poor standing when it comes to criminals. For example, if a man beats his wife and she constantly feels threatened by him, the criminal justice system did not help her, even if the man did some jail time. The idea is that, in this case, the woman would be able to live a productive, happy life, without the constant fear of the man who harmed her. The point of law is to, along with keeping order, help our citizens feel safe. And when our criminal justice system fails to keep this feeling around, it is failing a major task. Danielle Sered, the woman speaking in this video, goes over the many parts of her view stating that victims are not protected well. Along with that ordeal, Sered goes over a situation she faced a while ago. Her and an accomplice, an african american male, was arrested for Grand Theft Auto. In their sentencing, she was given 6 months of jail time while her accomplice was given 6 years. Do you see the difference there? In my opinion, and many others in today’s world, both individuals should be punished equally. It shouldn’t matter if they are rich or poor, or that she’s female or that he is black. Both parties committed the same crime, both parties deserve the same punishment. Honestly I find this ridiculous. Like, such a sentence disparity is fascinatingly ignorant and racist. At the same time, there is a possibility of further information is withheld, which i believe to be possible, but either way, the punishment difference was too great. Sered’s view is very interesting and can be an eye-opener for many individuals who take the time to watch this video. - AJC001
I agree AJC002, people should be punished equally based on the crime that they committed. It is outrageous that the two people, a white female and a black male, committed the same exact crime yet the white female gets six months whereas the black male gets six years. Clearly, something needs to be done about it among our corrections system. zmw001
The woman in this video believes the best way to reduce violence and crime rates is to rehabilitate the offenders, and I personally agree with her. Many times in class we have talked about how constantly imprisoning offenders does not work the majority of the time because when people get out they have no idea what to do. This causes them to fall back to their old ways which will in turn lead them back to prison or jail. She also goes to say how poorly victims of crimes are treated as well. In domestic abuse cases, offenders are sometimes only jailed for as much as two days. Two days without any rehabilitation is not anywhere near enough time for the offender to think about what they have done or get the help they need, so before you know it they will be back to abusing. Also, in class we have talked about how a lot of times victims are not even warned when their abuser has been released, so their abuser could be out of jail and looking for them and they would not even know. At one point in her life, she stole a car along with a black man. They were both caught and sent to jail. The only difference was that she got six months and he got six years. It is saddening to know that things like this happen, but there is nothing we can do about it. Their needs to be a reform in our corrections systems so that people will be punished equally, not on basis of race, ethnicity, gender, or sexuality, victims rights will be upheld and they will be treated with the respect they deserve, and that criminals can get rehabilitation in order to get the help that they need to live a better life. zmw001
It was surprising to me when I found out about the woman's experience with grand theft auto and her accomplice. I agree that there should be a reform in our correctional system too. In order to fully understand offenders, we must focus on their reasoning for committing any type of crime. This way, we can develop new approaches and techniques towards different situations, depending on the circumstances. Bry001
I also think that these victims will be placed back with their abusers right after the punishment is done. In abuse cases, the offenders are placed in jail for 2 days and then they go right back to the problem. In some cases, these victims are living in fear and most likely just waiting for the next outlash. They are revictimized over and over again. The fact that the victim is not aware of the release is also scary. behappy001
The woman speaking in the video clearly knows what the justice system is lacking and how it can be corrected. She emphasizes on the victims of the offenders and how to deal with them. She even says if we cared about fixing violence we need to ask ourselves, "who the victims are and what do they need" in order to feel safe and not victimized. The answer lies within rehabilitating offenders and reassuring victims that they will not be involved in any other criminal activity, along with the thought of their offender either being locked away or even rehabilitated. As said in the video, one victim actually asked to meet with their offender and had them teach self defense so that the victim does not feel worried anymore. Another good point that the woman has is that the courts and police departments should focus more on the cause of violence. This would include shame, isolation, previous exposure to violence, and also lack of stable financial income. If the system can understand these factors that cause people to commit crimes, then they can create a specific response to deal with that situation and diminish it. Bry001
This video was interesting in the means of restorative justice. I believe 110% in restorative justice because it allows for victims to get back on their feet after violence. Because of the lack of this justice, victims tend to be revictimized. They are unsure of how to get back on their feet and they may still be living in fear. I think, as listed in another blog above me, that police departments should look further into why this violence is occurring. In many cases, following a domestic dispute, the offender will be placed in jail for 48 hours and then be released. Most likely they are going right back to the problem and the cycle continues. In some cases, officers will rush through these calls so that they can get to more interesting ones without looking further into the real problem. With restorative justice, i think there would be a decrease in these occurrences. They should be able to feel safe and not worried about what will happen next. This justice will be helpful to victims and everyone in the community. behappy001
I would have to agree with believing in restorative justice, it is a very important concept to believe in. Without it, like you said, victims usually just keep getting re-victimized as a result without restorative justice. Flannel002
I definitely agree with this because if people don't receive restorative justice. My personal opinion is they don't move forward in their life and eventually resort to drugs or alcohol. Or end up being bitter people in the world and doesn't trust anyone. These can be results of being victimized. I have never experienced a domestic but I brought up the same scenario. I don't agree that officers rush these calls, especially when its serious and if they are rushing them most likely its for their own safety. Sometimes these cases can be very dangerous and if the officers don't arrest the suspect right away they can create a dangerous atmosphere for the officer and the victim. Especially when your dealing with couples that will end up right back together. A lot of the times victims can allow themselves to be victimized constantly as in this case. As far as the people who walk into the experience and embrace the help, they should at least have the peace of mind of the suspects whereabouts. They should feel safe again. MSSA002
The video focuses on the idea of diversion and restorative justice over punishment and incarceration. One of the points the speaker brings up is how legal punishment and sentencing can be unbalanced and disproportionate between different types of people. She mentions how she was arrested with one of her black male friends and that they were charged with the same crime but her friend got a heavier sentence. She also claimed that restorative justice can give peace of mind to some of the victims of violent crime. An example she gave was the story of a man who was beaten and robbed by a person and was traumatized to being around other people on the street. He then had the opportunity to learn how to protect himself from the person that had mugged him and was also again able to go out in public without being afraid. I sincerely doubt that this kind of result will happen with every victim of a violent crime, since many ca be much more violent and traumatizing and come from people who would not show the same remorse that the mugger from the story did. However, if there is a situation where diversion and restorative justice can be used then it should be used given how overcrowded our prisons have become and the high cost of caring for a prisoner. CoolGuy001
I agree that not all people will change their ways. most people i believe will go back to what they where doing before because they know nothing else. their has to be a solution to ther problem and this might work for some people. evo001
The fact that at 15 years old she got off with only six months of community service while her african american counter part received six years incarcerated is ridiculous. Now there could be parts left out, we don't know how old her counter part was or if they already had strikes against them. But from the way it sounds it was unfair. Aside from that, I agree with the speaker that we should be trying to rehabilitate offenders. The U.S. puts being into the system at a faster rate than anyone else. By incarcerating offenders and sending them back out into the world after their sentence without any help we are just asking for higher recidivism rates. They won't know how to make a living working with the law and not against it. Most habitual offenders know only one way of life, they are not going to learn how to live a better life by incarcerating them for as long as possible. In fact, jails and prisons can act as a school house for offenders to teach other and learn new tricks. We need to be trying to help offenders. Putting more classes, other than AA and NA meetings, inside of the detention centers to aid offenders before they come out would benefit them immensely. Making programs and classes on the outside a mandatory part of any offender serving a longer sentence than a decided time would further aid them in re-starting their lives in a healthier way than what they were previously used to. Hootie002
I think this video was very helpful with understanding justice and what is right in the criminal justice system. Having that woman be from the middle of Chicago shows that she knows what she is talking about. No you don't have to be from the middle of Chicago to understand the criminal justice system but with her story it definitely made it that much more credible. She has seen hands on racism in the criminal justice system. For example, the story that she was caught vandalizing property with an African American male and seeing the difference in their sentencing shows it. She received I think six months compared to his six years. I don't think it mentioned how old he was but the video said she was only sixteen so that might have also played a factor, but nonetheless it's still quite the difference in time. She served only a fraction of what he did. They did the same exact crime but yet the difference in punishment was severe. She didn't even have jail time as a matter of fact. She had six months jail time. That makes the difference that much more so. But still, the age difference may have taken a huge part in this scenario, the video never said his age. Flannel002
this lady wants to make a change. she believes that we should rehabilitation to those that are incarceration.she said she was in the middle of all this and even wittnessed. I do beleave that her idea of helping the victom and the puratrator a chance for rehabilitation. i think that these people coming out of jail have no where to go so they go right back to where they where in the first place. these people are not given a chance to change their life.evo001
The criminal justice system needs to steer more in the direction of rehabilitation, I do agree with you. Most of these people are just being locked up and the key thrown away, without even thinking twice. -dicaprio001
The woman speaking in this video clearly knows what we are lacking in the criminal justice system. She talks about how to deal with violent offenders and their victims. She stated that if we really cared about violence we need to stop and ask ourselves these questions "who are the victims and what do they need" She stated that victims want answers, they want their voice to be heard, and they want to be sure that the offender won't reoffend or victimize someone else. Restorative justice is very important. Because of the lack of justice victims feel unsafe. What i think is important is the message she's trying to get across. That we shouldn't just lock everyone up and throw away the key. That isn't going to deter anyone away from committing the same crime again. We should focus on rehabilitation both for the victim and the offender. -dicaprio001
The Case for Diversion really highlighted a lot of importance in the video as this demonstrated how important most of the flaws cause much of the violent change as their is no way for the offender to obtain success in their daily lives after they commit a violent crime to change the ways of their behavior. This video also, pointed out that due to the lack of restorative justice that exists we tend to have offenders that revictimized. This was stated a should really drive a main focus of society we have 90% of people in the US that want common justice for a crime not jail or prison for individuals, 20% believe in second chances while 80% of individuals believe in having safety and justice for themselves and also for their families as well. The women who was speaking made a powerful connection between automobiles and offenders. Some cannot turn a car into a dealership to be fixed car comes later with more problems due to improper care of the vehicle and charge double the cost and twice the time to fix people do not work to become better if they lack the needs to fix themselves. I also thought it was interesting when the woman talks about what she grew up with and what she saw. You really can visualize what she went through and what a lot of people in America go through. The woman was so young to when she went through this for instance, at the age of fifteen she was arrested for stealing a car and she then received six months of community service while the person who helped received six years in prison. As you can see the community service can be enough to make a person realize what they did was wrong. Instead of sentencing her for years on years to prison make them have more punishments besides just sitting in a cell. Ciaccio001/002
As said in the video, one victim actually asked to meet with their offender and had them teach self defense so that the victim does not feel worried anymore.The point of law is to, along with keeping order, help our citizens feel safe.Today even a domestic violence case is considered serious because if their are signs of abuse the other party will be arrested. In domestic abuse cases, offenders are sometimes only jailed for as much as two days.This shows the broken criminal justice system when it comes to the disparity in race. Because depending on your race and your back ground, will determine how long you would stay in jail from a domestic charge. This video also, pointed out that due to the lack of restorative justice that exists we tend to have offenders that revictimized.-NIKE001/NIKE002
This video showed a lady from Chicago who believes reducing violence by rehabilitating people who’ve been incarcerated/victims of society. Some people that have gone through rehabilitation, go back to their old ways because they can’t fit back into society, or they can’t get a job/house because of their criminal record. I’m not saying all people with felonies should go through life so easy, but depending on the felony, how long ago, and why, maybe it should be a little easier on them. For example, she explains how she was arrested for stealing a car, but she got community service, while the other person received time in prison. Sitting in a cell doesn’t always help people learn their lesson, but getting out their and doing community service just might. It’s also an example of restorative justice, helping out back may help people not go back to their old ways. stlblues001, stlblues002
Like you said I think it does depend on what the crime was to determine if that individual would benefit from an alternative treatment program. Unfortunately in the U.S. it seems we are heavy handed to spend thousands of dollars keeping someone in prison for years, rather than offer the same type of money for them to participate in a more positive program, paying their retributions to society and hopefully learning social skills and technical skills to help them succeed in a society they should be returning to. We forget that prison doesn't hold criminals forever. Those who are released or are on patrol have a hard time adjusting and will most likely re-offend. I truly believe with alternative programs or less sentencing and more programming in prisons the shock of freedom wouldn't hurt as much to the offenders. Marras002
I do think that rehabilitation will work with certain people. There are many times where a person does not come from a strong household or a strong family so they are left to the streets and have to fight to continue to live and this is when sometimes crimes are committed. I think rehabilitation for these people could work out because if you show them how to live in a stable environment and that you do not have to rely on the streets to get through life then they will have a more successful life in the end. I think if someone fits well in a rehabilitation center then it will be better for them to go through that versus sitting in a cell not learning how to live in a stable environment, home, and how to get a good job to stay on top. Not only will people be learning how to live a better way of life, but the jails will not be over packed with people who committed petty offenses. I do think that serious crimes and the people who have been found guilty for those crimes do deserve jail time because of what they did but if it is a petty offense and if the person is young or just needs a step in the right direction then a rehabilitation center will be a good thing for them. There are so many things that can come out of going through a rehabilitation center and it can lead this society to becoming more positive and there will be a more positive outlook and people may begin to feel safer. I also think the victims of crimes should get rehabilitation. Sometimes they just need to learn something to feel safe again. Such as a violent crime, they may not feel safe to walk the streets or to go where they were harmed and rehabilitation center will help them overcome what they have been through and to help them feel safe again. If there is a better way to help fight crime then i think we should invest into it. It will make the community safer and feel safer as a whole. bball001, bball002
In this video it touches base on such a relevant topic that is still being researched and brought up now in politics and our criminal justice system. Our system is failing to take into consideration how severe this moral crisis is. One topic she mentioned early on in the video was her own personal experience receiving 6 months of community service over her African American co-defendant who received 6 years in prison. She stated and I agree realizing your privileged and acknowledging it is important to steps of then using your own privileged to stand up for those who do not have it. Unfortunately victims do not find safety in police or the system in most instances, as the phone study she brought up several victims choose not to use police services for several reasons but also just because at most times they do not help them and can make matters worse. So here, when we talk about Diversion the first step would be reaching those it matters to. If victims and offenders who need help don't come forward to the police there is no possible way to receive help. It can help victims and offenders the one example of giving people a chance to sit down or work with their offenders in the same group or situation can have a far better rehabilitation than wasting time in prison. There are way of punishing people for the crimes they have committed but also being dedicated to helping them recover and learn better behaviors. As stated in the video punishment is not always also accountability, offenders should understand their moral abuse on their community by facing those they have caused harm to and facing their actions based on the emotions of it and not just letting someone off by wasting more time in prison where they are introduced to more crime and more poor behavior. I am a pro community based punishment alternatives and big on rehabilitation I think it's important to not over popularize jail time for individuals who would much more benefit from programs that keep them in the communities they hope to return to one day. Marras002
This lady from Chicago who grew up in the crack epidemic believes that the key to reducing violence is helping rehabilitate those who have been incarcerated and victims of society. She says that their are three main things that would change if we focus our attention on reducing violence. She goes on to explain that if we really cared about it then it would be valued as a moral crisis. I disagree with this because I believe it is treated as a moral crisis. Today even a domestic violence case is considered serious because if their are signs of abuse the other party will be arrested. As far as the victims that didn't report the crimes, they cant be helped if its unknown that they need help. Its impossible to help if they don't want it or are too scared to reach out and get it. There is no way to find out who are victims of violent crimes. I do agree with the fact that she says our justice system doesn't do enough to ensure the victims safety. For example with the domestic battery, their in jail for about 48 hours. Then what, what about the victims safety from that point. Victims do want o feel safe and feel that the person who hurt them wouldn't do it to anyone else. Our justice system makes it hard for victims to have that peace of mind. So overall I agree with her approach of helping both sides. MSSA002
ReplyDeleteI do agree with that the criminal justice system needs to come up with more punishments rather them just sit in a cell for forty-eight hours and then get out to do the same thing. Its because there not learning there lessons. Also for the victims and the people that are out there they are now more at risk because that person is back on the streets.
Delete^CRC001,CRC002
DeleteRight, the problems ride in punishments that aren't getting the point across. But also, a lack of rehabilitation programs doesn't help anything, either. If society wants someone to act a certain way (the basis of the justice system), then society has to provide an efficient way to learn the patterns of living. - AJC001
DeleteThe Case for Diversion really highlighted a lot of importance in the video as this demonstrated how important most of the flaws cause much of the violent change as their is no way for the offender to obtain success in their daily lives after they commit a violent crime to change the ways of their behavior. This video also, pointed out that due to the lack of restorative justice that exists we tend to have offenders that revictimized. This was stated a should really drive a main focus of society we have 90% of people in the US that want common justice for a crime not jail or prison for individuals, 20% believe in second chances while 80% of individuals believe in having safety and justice for themselves and also for their families as well. The women who was speaking made a powerful connection between automobiles and offenders. Some cannot turn a car into a dealership to be fixed car comes later with more problems due to improper care of the vehicle and charge double the cost and twice the time to fix people do not work to become better if they lack the needs to fix themselves. As this video had stated in our criminal justice system we lack accountability, and focus on punishment as our main goal which doesn’t cause a change individuals which would only promote an individual from becoming a better criminal. In the video they went over an event where an individual was robbed, after that he was afraid to see individuals that matched the same height of the assailant who had attacked that person. What this restorative justice program did was had this same offender that had robbed this individual sit down in a controlled environment and talk about the issue and taught him how to get out of the hold the offender had put that individual in. This prompted both change in the victim and the offender the offender took accountability for his actions changed his behavior while the victim took away a lot of the fear he had felt towards even people who had looked similar to the same attacker. Eagle001, Eagle002
ReplyDeleteWhat she proposed was definitely very eye opening and interesting. Without restorative justice, and simply relying on incarceration, we are basically creating a viscous cycle of violence, either maintaining the already present violence, or all out making it worse. This is a very current issue at hand, and maybe we are just making things worse will all of the incarceration that we see in our prisons and jails.
Deletegh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
This was a very interesting video, as it provided a lot of insight into the criminal justice system from a woman that grew up seeing harm, committing harm, and experiencing harm in her early adolescent life. At the age of 15, she was arrested for grand theft auto, receiving 6 months of community service, while her African-American accomplice received 6 years in prison. This is just one example of the discrimination and racial disparity that we unfortunately see in our criminal justice system. The 6 months of community service provides a much easier, faster, and more logical way of bettering herself versus the unfair 6 years of prison that her accomplice served. This is an example of the restorative justice that has such a positive impact on people’s lives, such as the woman in this video. It was very interesting to me when she started talking about the four drivers of violence; shame, isolation, exposure to violence, and diminished economic opportunity and access. She goes on to describe four things that the prison system causes the inmates to experience, which include, you guessed it, shame, isolation, exposure to violence, and diminished economic opportunity. This is very interesting to me, and this claim is stating that incarceration is almost creating a cycle of violence that is not making any improvement to the inmates that are locked up. She is claiming that prisons do not reduce violence, they actually maintain this violence that is already present, as well as form new violent behavior among those that are incarcerated. If prison got rid of violence, we would never have an issue of violence, which is not the case in the United States, or any other country, showing us that maybe incarceration is not the solution to the problems that we are facing, and potentially making the situation worse.
ReplyDeletegh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
I agree that her being given the chance to not get a prison term based on her crime instead given the 6 months of community service help her to turn her poor choices around. I agree this video did also highlight that by imprisoning people were making a society that is indulged in violence where it becomes are main goal to capture but not change the violence that is still within the individual that was captured which causes more problems then solution's. Eagle001 Eagle002
DeleteThis video was an excellent video on a lady from Chicago who has been through a lot and she shares her beliefs. For instance, she believes that reducing violence is helping rehabilitate the people that have been incarcerated and as well as the victims of the society. The problem is usually people who get a felony it ruins their lives because it’s hard for them to try and start a new chapter when no one will hire them. So they go back to their old ways. Another major reason there is no change in offenders is because our criminal justice system lacks focus on punishment as our major goal. This is only making our criminals better at what they do because of this. I also thought it was interesting when the woman talks about what she grew up with and what she saw. You really can visualize what she went through and what a lot of people in America go through. The woman was so young to when she went through this for instance, at the age of fifteen she was arrested for stealing a car and she then received six months of community service while the person who helped received six years in prison. As you can see the community service can be enough to make a person realize what they did was wrong. Instead of sentencing her for years on years to prison make them have more punishments besides just sitting in a cell. Then when they get out they usually do the same things over or something different. These are examples though of restorative justice and we need to have more punishments because as you can see if you did a study the people who do more of punishments it really has an impact more on their lives. CRC001,CRC002
ReplyDeleteI agree that this video is an excellent source of a new way of trying to stop violence. She uses her own experiences too help drive home the point that many people make mistakes sometimes and they should not always be punished so severely for them. Being able to be given a lesser sentence and time to think about their mistakes can help people see the problem and therefore allow them to fix it. Pack001, Pack002
DeleteThis video shows a different but interesting take on how to deal with criminals and also how to divert crime. The lady in the video states that she thinks that by reducing crime it can help lead to rehabilitation for criminals that have been incarcerated before. She also talks about how her opinion on racial disparity and racial discrimination changed after she was arrested for Grand Theft Auto and only 6 months of community service whereas her accomplice who was an African american male received 6 years for the crime. We can see through this example that implicit bias and discrimination within the criminal justice system has been and still is a problem in our country. Nowadays it may not happen as often but it still occurs in many places throughout the country. This experience also helped plant the idea of restorative justice into her mind and helped her realize that she wanted to start making a difference and try to start helping reduce the incarceration rates. As far as prisons go, in her mind prisons are the reason that violence has not gone away, in fact she thinks that prisons are the reason that violence has stayed around. I agree with her in the fact that prisons do allow violence to stay within our society because inmates in prisons often times develop more violent attitudes after being incarcerated. Being given the opportunity to be given community service instead of a jail sentence really helped her turn her life around and make better choices, I think the same point could be made for many people who have been given an opportunity to have community service instead of jail time. Now it may not always be the case but most of the time these people given this opportunity make the changes necessary in their lives because they have seen the error of their way and I believe that this theory is definitely something that needs more attention and consideration as it could help us solve our violence problems. Pack001, Pack002
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that most (nonviolent) people given the opportunity to serve community service instead of jail time helps them turn their life around and make better choices. This gives these nonviolent offenders second chances to fix their behaviors. Jail time does not do much for nonviolent offenders; rehabilitation and community service do a better job of getting treatment to those who need it. I like the idea of restorative justice because victims need treatment too. By giving the victims and offenders therapy together, that gives the victims closure and the offender a chance to see the fault in what he or she did. Scuba002
DeleteIt is interesting that the victim has to agree with the criminal being able to get rehabilitation instead of prison. I think that is a good idea because it brings the victims into helping decide the punishment. Danielle Sered, a white woman, got arrested at the age of 15 for grand theft auto and only got 6 months of probation while her accomplice, an African American male, got 6 years in prison. This shows the broken criminal justice system when it comes to the disparity in race. Although I do not have the details on who played what part in the crime, it is crazy how vastly different the sentences are for these two when they both committed the same crime. Victim’s rights movements are pushing for longer sentences but Danielle Sered is pushing for the lessening of violence. Victims want answers and closure. Sered mentions that the system we have now does not give the victim any of that. I like the idea mentioned towards the end of the video with the circle of people where the person who harmed sits with their victim and they reach agreements on how to make things as right as possible. This helps the victim receive the closure they need. Scuba002
ReplyDeleteAs the speaker mentioned, most people actually support rehabilitation over long prison sentences. This makes sense knowing that as a rehabilitated citizen they would have learned their lesson and most likely would have felt more sympathy and remorse for the victim than they would have if say they had spent 5+ years in a prison. And yes, the difference between her reprimand and her african american friend's long prison is unfair and seemingly race oriented by the way she makes it sound. But also like you said, we don't know if she left something out like the other person's age, or whether they had previous offenses.
DeleteHootie002
Victims in our criminal justice system (those who are victims of the criminals) are often not cared for in ways that enable them to feel their offenders were properly cared for, and these victims often do not feel as if they are safe. This is a poor standing when it comes to criminals. For example, if a man beats his wife and she constantly feels threatened by him, the criminal justice system did not help her, even if the man did some jail time. The idea is that, in this case, the woman would be able to live a productive, happy life, without the constant fear of the man who harmed her. The point of law is to, along with keeping order, help our citizens feel safe. And when our criminal justice system fails to keep this feeling around, it is failing a major task. Danielle Sered, the woman speaking in this video, goes over the many parts of her view stating that victims are not protected well.
ReplyDeleteAlong with that ordeal, Sered goes over a situation she faced a while ago. Her and an accomplice, an african american male, was arrested for Grand Theft Auto. In their sentencing, she was given 6 months of jail time while her accomplice was given 6 years. Do you see the difference there? In my opinion, and many others in today’s world, both individuals should be punished equally. It shouldn’t matter if they are rich or poor, or that she’s female or that he is black. Both parties committed the same crime, both parties deserve the same punishment. Honestly I find this ridiculous. Like, such a sentence disparity is fascinatingly ignorant and racist. At the same time, there is a possibility of further information is withheld, which i believe to be possible, but either way, the punishment difference was too great. Sered’s view is very interesting and can be an eye-opener for many individuals who take the time to watch this video.
- AJC001
I agree AJC002, people should be punished equally based on the crime that they committed. It is outrageous that the two people, a white female and a black male, committed the same exact crime yet the white female gets six months whereas the black male gets six years. Clearly, something needs to be done about it among our corrections system. zmw001
DeleteThe woman in this video believes the best way to reduce violence and crime rates is to rehabilitate the offenders, and I personally agree with her. Many times in class we have talked about how constantly imprisoning offenders does not work the majority of the time because when people get out they have no idea what to do. This causes them to fall back to their old ways which will in turn lead them back to prison or jail. She also goes to say how poorly victims of crimes are treated as well. In domestic abuse cases, offenders are sometimes only jailed for as much as two days. Two days without any rehabilitation is not anywhere near enough time for the offender to think about what they have done or get the help they need, so before you know it they will be back to abusing. Also, in class we have talked about how a lot of times victims are not even warned when their abuser has been released, so their abuser could be out of jail and looking for them and they would not even know.
ReplyDeleteAt one point in her life, she stole a car along with a black man. They were both caught and sent to jail. The only difference was that she got six months and he got six years. It is saddening to know that things like this happen, but there is nothing we can do about it. Their needs to be a reform in our corrections systems so that people will be punished equally, not on basis of race, ethnicity, gender, or sexuality, victims rights will be upheld and they will be treated with the respect they deserve, and that criminals can get rehabilitation in order to get the help that they need to live a better life. zmw001
It was surprising to me when I found out about the woman's experience with grand theft auto and her accomplice. I agree that there should be a reform in our correctional system too. In order to fully understand offenders, we must focus on their reasoning for committing any type of crime. This way, we can develop new approaches and techniques towards different situations, depending on the circumstances. Bry001
DeleteI also think that these victims will be placed back with their abusers right after the punishment is done. In abuse cases, the offenders are placed in jail for 2 days and then they go right back to the problem. In some cases, these victims are living in fear and most likely just waiting for the next outlash. They are revictimized over and over again. The fact that the victim is not aware of the release is also scary. behappy001
DeleteThe woman speaking in the video clearly knows what the justice system is lacking and how it can be corrected. She emphasizes on the victims of the offenders and how to deal with them. She even says if we cared about fixing violence we need to ask ourselves, "who the victims are and what do they need" in order to feel safe and not victimized. The answer lies within rehabilitating offenders and reassuring victims that they will not be involved in any other criminal activity, along with the thought of their offender either being locked away or even rehabilitated. As said in the video, one victim actually asked to meet with their offender and had them teach self defense so that the victim does not feel worried anymore. Another good point that the woman has is that the courts and police departments should focus more on the cause of violence. This would include shame, isolation, previous exposure to violence, and also lack of stable financial income. If the system can understand these factors that cause people to commit crimes, then they can create a specific response to deal with that situation and diminish it. Bry001
ReplyDeleteThis video was interesting in the means of restorative justice. I believe 110% in restorative justice because it allows for victims to get back on their feet after violence. Because of the lack of this justice, victims tend to be revictimized. They are unsure of how to get back on their feet and they may still be living in fear. I think, as listed in another blog above me, that police departments should look further into why this violence is occurring. In many cases, following a domestic dispute, the offender will be placed in jail for 48 hours and then be released. Most likely they are going right back to the problem and the cycle continues. In some cases, officers will rush through these calls so that they can get to more interesting ones without looking further into the real problem. With restorative justice, i think there would be a decrease in these occurrences. They should be able to feel safe and not worried about what will happen next. This justice will be helpful to victims and everyone in the community. behappy001
ReplyDeleteI would have to agree with believing in restorative justice, it is a very important concept to believe in. Without it, like you said, victims usually just keep getting re-victimized as a result without restorative justice. Flannel002
DeleteI definitely agree with this because if people don't receive restorative justice. My personal opinion is they don't move forward in their life and eventually resort to drugs or alcohol. Or end up being bitter people in the world and doesn't trust anyone. These can be results of being victimized. I have never experienced a domestic but I brought up the same scenario. I don't agree that officers rush these calls, especially when its serious and if they are rushing them most likely its for their own safety. Sometimes these cases can be very dangerous and if the officers don't arrest the suspect right away they can create a dangerous atmosphere for the officer and the victim. Especially when your dealing with couples that will end up right back together. A lot of the times victims can allow themselves to be victimized constantly as in this case. As far as the people who walk into the experience and embrace the help, they should at least have the peace of mind of the suspects whereabouts. They should feel safe again. MSSA002
DeleteThe video focuses on the idea of diversion and restorative justice over punishment and incarceration. One of the points the speaker brings up is how legal punishment and sentencing can be unbalanced and disproportionate between different types of people. She mentions how she was arrested with one of her black male friends and that they were charged with the same crime but her friend got a heavier sentence. She also claimed that restorative justice can give peace of mind to some of the victims of violent crime. An example she gave was the story of a man who was beaten and robbed by a person and was traumatized to being around other people on the street. He then had the opportunity to learn how to protect himself from the person that had mugged him and was also again able to go out in public without being afraid. I sincerely doubt that this kind of result will happen with every victim of a violent crime, since many ca be much more violent and traumatizing and come from people who would not show the same remorse that the mugger from the story did. However, if there is a situation where diversion and restorative justice can be used then it should be used given how overcrowded our prisons have become and the high cost of caring for a prisoner. CoolGuy001
ReplyDeleteI agree that not all people will change their ways. most people i believe will go back to what they where doing before because they know nothing else. their has to be a solution to ther problem and this might work for some people. evo001
DeleteThe fact that at 15 years old she got off with only six months of community service while her african american counter part received six years incarcerated is ridiculous. Now there could be parts left out, we don't know how old her counter part was or if they already had strikes against them. But from the way it sounds it was unfair. Aside from that, I agree with the speaker that we should be trying to rehabilitate offenders. The U.S. puts being into the system at a faster rate than anyone else. By incarcerating offenders and sending them back out into the world after their sentence without any help we are just asking for higher recidivism rates. They won't know how to make a living working with the law and not against it. Most habitual offenders know only one way of life, they are not going to learn how to live a better life by incarcerating them for as long as possible. In fact, jails and prisons can act as a school house for offenders to teach other and learn new tricks. We need to be trying to help offenders. Putting more classes, other than AA and NA meetings, inside of the detention centers to aid offenders before they come out would benefit them immensely. Making programs and classes on the outside a mandatory part of any offender serving a longer sentence than a decided time would further aid them in re-starting their lives in a healthier way than what they were previously used to.
ReplyDeleteHootie002
I think this video was very helpful with understanding justice and what is right in the criminal justice system. Having that woman be from the middle of Chicago shows that she knows what she is talking about. No you don't have to be from the middle of Chicago to understand the criminal justice system but with her story it definitely made it that much more credible. She has seen hands on racism in the criminal justice system. For example, the story that she was caught vandalizing property with an African American male and seeing the difference in their sentencing shows it. She received I think six months compared to his six years. I don't think it mentioned how old he was but the video said she was only sixteen so that might have also played a factor, but nonetheless it's still quite the difference in time. She served only a fraction of what he did. They did the same exact crime but yet the difference in punishment was severe. She didn't even have jail time as a matter of fact. She had six months jail time. That makes the difference that much more so. But still, the age difference may have taken a huge part in this scenario, the video never said his age. Flannel002
ReplyDeletethis lady wants to make a change. she believes that we should rehabilitation to those that are incarceration.she said she was in the middle of all this and even wittnessed. I do beleave that her idea of helping the victom and the puratrator a chance for rehabilitation. i think that these people coming out of jail have no where to go so they go right back to where they where in the first place. these people are not given a chance to change their life.evo001
ReplyDeleteThe criminal justice system needs to steer more in the direction of rehabilitation, I do agree with you. Most of these people are just being locked up and the key thrown away, without even thinking twice. -dicaprio001
DeleteThe woman speaking in this video clearly knows what we are lacking in the criminal justice system. She talks about how to deal with violent offenders and their victims. She stated that if we really cared about violence we need to stop and ask ourselves these questions "who are the victims and what do they need" She stated that victims want answers, they want their voice to be heard, and they want to be sure that the offender won't reoffend or victimize someone else. Restorative justice is very important. Because of the lack of justice victims feel unsafe. What i think is important is the message she's trying to get across. That we shouldn't just lock everyone up and throw away the key. That isn't going to deter anyone away from committing the same crime again. We should focus on rehabilitation both for the victim and the offender. -dicaprio001
ReplyDeleteThe Case for Diversion really highlighted a lot of importance in the video as this demonstrated how important most of the flaws cause much of the violent change as their is no way for the offender to obtain success in their daily lives after they commit a violent crime to change the ways of their behavior. This video also, pointed out that due to the lack of restorative justice that exists we tend to have offenders that revictimized. This was stated a should really drive a main focus of society we have 90% of people in the US that want common justice for a crime not jail or prison for individuals, 20% believe in second chances while 80% of individuals believe in having safety and justice for themselves and also for their families as well. The women who was speaking made a powerful connection between automobiles and offenders. Some cannot turn a car into a dealership to be fixed car comes later with more problems due to improper care of the vehicle and charge double the cost and twice the time to fix people do not work to become better if they lack the needs to fix themselves. I also thought it was interesting when the woman talks about what she grew up with and what she saw. You really can visualize what she went through and what a lot of people in America go through. The woman was so young to when she went through this for instance, at the age of fifteen she was arrested for stealing a car and she then received six months of community service while the person who helped received six years in prison. As you can see the community service can be enough to make a person realize what they did was wrong. Instead of sentencing her for years on years to prison make them have more punishments besides just sitting in a cell. Ciaccio001/002
ReplyDeleteAs said in the video, one victim actually asked to meet with their offender and had them teach self defense so that the victim does not feel worried anymore.The point of law is to, along with keeping order, help our citizens feel safe.Today even a domestic violence case is considered serious because if their are signs of abuse the other party will be arrested. In domestic abuse cases, offenders are sometimes only jailed for as much as two days.This shows the broken criminal justice system when it comes to the disparity in race. Because depending on your race and your back ground, will determine how long you would stay in jail from a domestic charge. This video also, pointed out that due to the lack of restorative justice that exists we tend to have offenders that revictimized.-NIKE001/NIKE002
ReplyDeleteThis video showed a lady from Chicago who believes reducing violence by rehabilitating people who’ve been incarcerated/victims of society. Some people that have gone through rehabilitation, go back to their old ways because they can’t fit back into society, or they can’t get a job/house because of their criminal record. I’m not saying all people with felonies should go through life so easy, but depending on the felony, how long ago, and why, maybe it should be a little easier on them.
ReplyDeleteFor example, she explains how she was arrested for stealing a car, but she got community service, while the other person received time in prison. Sitting in a cell doesn’t always help people learn their lesson, but getting out their and doing community service just might. It’s also an example of restorative justice, helping out back may help people not go back to their old ways. stlblues001, stlblues002
Like you said I think it does depend on what the crime was to determine if that individual would benefit from an alternative treatment program. Unfortunately in the U.S. it seems we are heavy handed to spend thousands of dollars keeping someone in prison for years, rather than offer the same type of money for them to participate in a more positive program, paying their retributions to society and hopefully learning social skills and technical skills to help them succeed in a society they should be returning to. We forget that prison doesn't hold criminals forever. Those who are released or are on patrol have a hard time adjusting and will most likely re-offend. I truly believe with alternative programs or less sentencing and more programming in prisons the shock of freedom wouldn't hurt as much to the offenders. Marras002
DeleteI do think that rehabilitation will work with certain people. There are many times where a person does not come from a strong household or a strong family so they are left to the streets and have to fight to continue to live and this is when sometimes crimes are committed. I think rehabilitation for these people could work out because if you show them how to live in a stable environment and that you do not have to rely on the streets to get through life then they will have a more successful life in the end. I think if someone fits well in a rehabilitation center then it will be better for them to go through that versus sitting in a cell not learning how to live in a stable environment, home, and how to get a good job to stay on top. Not only will people be learning how to live a better way of life, but the jails will not be over packed with people who committed petty offenses. I do think that serious crimes and the people who have been found guilty for those crimes do deserve jail time because of what they did but if it is a petty offense and if the person is young or just needs a step in the right direction then a rehabilitation center will be a good thing for them. There are so many things that can come out of going through a rehabilitation center and it can lead this society to becoming more positive and there will be a more positive outlook and people may begin to feel safer. I also think the victims of crimes should get rehabilitation. Sometimes they just need to learn something to feel safe again. Such as a violent crime, they may not feel safe to walk the streets or to go where they were harmed and rehabilitation center will help them overcome what they have been through and to help them feel safe again. If there is a better way to help fight crime then i think we should invest into it. It will make the community safer and feel safer as a whole. bball001, bball002
ReplyDeleteIn this video it touches base on such a relevant topic that is still being researched and brought up now in politics and our criminal justice system. Our system is failing to take into consideration how severe this moral crisis is. One topic she mentioned early on in the video was her own personal experience receiving 6 months of community service over her African American co-defendant who received 6 years in prison. She stated and I agree realizing your privileged and acknowledging it is important to steps of then using your own privileged to stand up for those who do not have it. Unfortunately victims do not find safety in police or the system in most instances, as the phone study she brought up several victims choose not to use police services for several reasons but also just because at most times they do not help them and can make matters worse. So here, when we talk about Diversion the first step would be reaching those it matters to. If victims and offenders who need help don't come forward to the police there is no possible way to receive help. It can help victims and offenders the one example of giving people a chance to sit down or work with their offenders in the same group or situation can have a far better rehabilitation than wasting time in prison. There are way of punishing people for the crimes they have committed but also being dedicated to helping them recover and learn better behaviors. As stated in the video punishment is not always also accountability, offenders should understand their moral abuse on their community by facing those they have caused harm to and facing their actions based on the emotions of it and not just letting someone off by wasting more time in prison where they are introduced to more crime and more poor behavior. I am a pro community based punishment alternatives and big on rehabilitation I think it's important to not over popularize jail time for individuals who would much more benefit from programs that keep them in the communities they hope to return to one day. Marras002
ReplyDelete