APPLICATION ESSAY 4 2
Reducing Prison Costs, Overcrowding, and Accountability
There are four main goal of corrections. Those goals are punishment, deterrence,
incapacitation, and rehabilitation. The community corrections are only seen as having the goal in
rehabilitating (Bohm & Haley, 2018, p. 436). Sentencing every convict or felon to jail or prison
is not financially reasonable. Many resources are limited and by having those offenders
sentenced to community corrections a financial burden is lifted (Bohm & Haley, 2018, p. 437). I
have created a program that gives any first-time offender the chance at rehabilitation and also the
understanding of how to deter from making the same mistakes. I will also give each offender an
incorporated understanding of Christ through each meeting given.
The program that I have created is called “Road to Recovery”. The main principle of this
program is to help first-time offenders with the road to recovery by realizing their actions were
wrong and setting their life on a criminal-free path. Another principle that will be present in this
program is incorporating the ways of Christ and showing the Lord’s glory and forgiveness to
first-time offenders.
Through this program, first-time offenders will be under strict conditions. Those
conditions will be determined on a case-to-case basis. There will be three mandatory conditions
of every offender. The first is the offender must attend a meeting twice a month. Second, at every
meeting the offender must past a drug test or alcohol screening. Third, the offender must pick a
counseling or therapy session of his or her choice to attend once a month. Attendance will be
recorded for each meeting and session and a violation or penalty will be given a meeting or
session is missed.
There are two different ways in measuring the outcome of my program. One way is
through the behavior of the offender. After leaving the program, it will be clear if the offender
has chosen a right path after his first sentence through his criminal record and actions. The
APPLICATION ESSAY 4 3
second way is through many years of surveys to determine if first-time offenders change their
ways.
Cost management is a major concern when it comes to incarceration and community
corrections. Incarceration cost about $24,500 and community corrections like probation cost
about $1,250 per person. My program will minimize the cost by having the offender paying half
of his rehabilitation cost. Each visit the offender will be given a fee that he must pay. Each fee
will be based on the offender income, so that the fee is affordable.
During the meetings, I will make it clear to the offender that he must be held accountable
for his actions and crimes. The offender is not only accountable to authorities but to God. God
has made it clear that all his followers are held accountable to him and governing authorities. In
Romans 13, God has told us that he has placed all authority over us all (Fischer, 2016). It is
evident that a self-centered mindset of an individual leads to immoral behaviors; but if the
individual knows of God and remains accountable to Him it will make that individual determined
to love and respect others (Fischer, 2016).
Overall, this program will help rehabilitate each offender and set them onto a different
path. Through the required meetings and mandatory counseling or therapy sessions the offender
will get the help and guidance he or she needs. Also with this program, the cost will be
affordable and not cause the state to put out unnecessary funds.
APPLICATION ESSAY 4 4
References
Bohm, R. M., & Haley, K. N. (2018). Introduction to criminal justice (9th ed.). Columbus, OH:
McGraw-Hill Education.
Fischer, K. (2016). Biblical Principles – God & Authority & Accountability. Retrieved from
https://learn.liberty.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-20846028-dt-content-rid-
198186948_1/courses/CJUS200_B01_201820/Presentations/CJUS200_05_God_and_Aut
hority/CJUS200_05_God_and_Authority/Biblical
%20Principles_God_Authority_Accountability.pdf
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