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Deterrence

Deterrence Program Transcript

[MUSIC PLAYING]

GREG KOEHLER: Our criminal justice system is a deterrence-based model. Most criminal justice systems across the world are also based on the idea of deterrence and that there's specific laws and specific penalties for breaking the laws. Interestingly enough, though, several research studies on different types of crime have shown mixed results for deterrence.

I think it maybe rings true are certain people that deterrence works pretty well because maybe they were raised that way. And they would fear punishment if they did something so it should work with criminals. Unfortunately, as you very well know that criminals, they commit crime for a variety of reasons, some of which are not going to be influenced by the threat of a punishment or a fine or something like that. So as we move forward in the criminal justice system and think about different treatment options or even initial responses to offenders, what do you think we should really be thinking about in terms of how we're changing behavior, other than just the threat of punishment?

PETE MEAGHER: Yeah, I think that that's a big question. For me, I don't know that we would ever take off the table some sort of, it's like, I think of it as like a boundary setting and saying, you cross over this line, that's so bad, we're going to do something as a result of that. And that makes good sense.

And I think of the individuals that I've worked with, even if they had substance abuse issues or mental health issues, that both the experience of and the threat of a deterrent or some sort of sentencing situation was very effective in getting their attention and inspiring them at least to get into treatment. And I think getting them into treatment that included medication and individual and group therapy was a really helpful thing to kind of help stabilize them and then move them in a different trajectory. And so I think that maybe an enlightened use of deterrence is one way to think about it.

I also think we've talked a lot about diversion programs that we really try, that we want to use that as a method of last resort. And that, in many cases, if we can find out different ways to send a very clear message and give people an option to kind of sort of look at the deterrence option but also step around it, like, OK, you've got this choice. You continue this behavior, we'll send you back to jail.

If you do something different, such as seeking treatment, getting a job, doing things that we want you to do, then we will give you these other options. And I think that that is a nice and maybe enlightened way of using that sort of right use of force or deterrence to kind of inspire people to make good decisions and to get healthier. And then I think as they get healthier, they can be productive members of society.

GREG KOEHLER: Right.

© 2018 Laureate Education, Inc. 1

Deterrence

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© 2018 Laureate Education, Inc. 2