Determinants of Penal Policy
The penal policy is controlling criminal activities by carrying out rulings upon criminals and rectifying them (“Juridical international,” n.d.). Governing illegal activities allows criminals to abide by laws, thus staying away from trouble. Failure to follow the punishment of the given rule is administered. Individuals are forced to spend their life in prison, pay high fines. Short sentences may be ruled out depending on the kind of criminal activity one is involved in. Crime, cultural dynamics, economic structures and interests, and institutional differences in the organization of different political economies are factors of penal policy that this paper will discuss at length.
Whoever, it is essential to have a good knowledge and experience regarding treating criminals the ideas and value of penal systems in many countries. Situations such as crime and economic conditions must be accurately examined so that the penal systems made will be aware of the circumstances and prospects and, eventually, the idea that the situations exist. The penal systems will give solutions to the problems they face. Therefore the four components dictate how effective criminal justice systems would be made.
However, over the past few decades, ‘ politicians, policy experts and practitioners formed the criminal justice system. They made, developed, and interpreted penal policy. (“Understanding the determinants of penal policy: Crime, culture, and comparative political economy,” 2018) It was argued that the politicians used the issue of crime as a tool during elections. Moreover, research showed that race-related goals characterized the war on drugs. During this time, the Imprisonment rates increased, but the rise in crime rates was not apparent. More importantly, the crime rates would rise, fall and eventually decreased with large numbers. This clearly explained that the rising in imprisonment was not because of an increase in crime rates but by policymakers’ policy choices.
Cultural dynamics focuses on the different dimensions of both punishment and policymaking. Cultural dynamics Helps in understanding when the penal policy is considered as genuine, how systems are formed and when the systems become stable even under the condition that seems to affect their logic. (Pratt and Eriksson 2013) argued that despite institutional differences between the Nordic and other Western European systems, Nordic was a small country whose agricultural economy depended on the small community. The community had team spirit, shared responsibilities, and believed that the Nordic people’s culture dictated how penal policy was formed. However, the differences in cultural attitudes have brought about the correct ways of administering punishment in these countries.
Lastly, Cultural dynamics focuses on the different dimensions of both punishment and policymaking. The rising in imprisonment was not because of an increase in crime rates but the policy choices made by policymakers. Research shows that race-related characterized war on drugs.
References
Contrasts in punishment. (n.d.). Google Books. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=8IW3AwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&ots=4HkaA-HV_z&sig=-V7rxdVvRzILb6L6OzdmDicgnS0&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false
Juridica international. (n.d.). Juridica International. https://www.juridicainternational.eu/penal-policy-international-trends-and-estonia
Understanding the determinants of penal policy: Crime, culture, and comparative political economy. (2018, January 15). Annual Reviews. https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-criminol-032317-091942
(n.d.). University of Minnesota Law School Scholarship Repository. https://scholarship.law.umn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1506&context=faculty_articles