Alternatives to Prison Sentences for Drug-Related Crimes
Drug addiction often drives people to commit crimes; the criminal behavior of drug
addicts is often associated with the manufacture, storage, and use of chemicals. As a
result, a person with drug addiction goes to prison. Incarceration in places of
deprivation of liberty certainly leaves its mark on the fate of a drug addict[1]. However,
considering a person a criminal because of his clouded mind is unfair since drug
addiction is a mental illness, and diseases need to be treated.
Rehabilitation is a more effective way to combat drug addiction and the degradation
of drug addicts than prison[2]. Drug addicts, in most cases, are not criminals but
people with mental health issues who need social support and medical care. Isolating
the addict from society for a certain period does not solve the problem, and more
often, even worsens it. A tiny percentage of drug addicts becomes a law-abiding
citizen after being released from prison[3]. People who have used substances should
return to society as conscious individuals who can think adequately, set goals,
achieve them, and take responsibility. A prison sentence will not form such qualities
in a drug addict.
A full-fledged path to recovery should combine physical healing, psychological
assistance, social adaptation, and spiritual growth activities. Treatment in a drug
rehabilitation center helps patients understand the cause of addiction and improve
their condition on psychological, spiritual, physical, and social levels[4]. In addition,
rehabilitation teaches people with addiction to interact with people in society and
independently cope with difficulties without resorting to drugs.
Despite the persistent stereotype that prison will help correct a person's behavior,
restricting freedom will not help get rid of addiction. After leaving prison, drug addicts
return to a familiar environment, use prohibited substances, and often cross the law
again[5]. The severity of the problem of drug addiction is compounded by low
awareness of alternative treatment methods. Drug-dependent patients need
rehabilitation assistance, as the offenses result from drug use, undermining their
mental health.
[1]. Robertson McQuilkin and Paul Copan, “Crime and Punishment,” in
An Introduction
to Biblical Ethics: Walking in the Way of Wisdom
, ed. Cindy Kiple, (Illinois: InterVarsity
Press, 2014), 434.
[2]. Ibid., 430.
[3]. Helena Maria Medeiros Lima, “Humanity and the Use of Substances: A Historical
Overview,” in
Drugs and Human Behavior: Biopsychosocial Aspects of Psychotropic
Substances Use
, ed. Denise De Micheli et al., (New York: Springer, 2021), 25.
[4]. Els Plettinckx et al., " Alternatives to Prison for Drug Offenders in Belgium During
the Past Decade,"
International Journal of Law and Psychiatry
61, no. 1 (2018): 16.
[5]. i Libardo José Ariza, María Mauersberger, and Fernando León Tamayo Arboleda, "
Locked in the Home: A Critique of House Arrest as an Alternative to Imprisonment for
Women Sentenced for Drug-Related Crimes,"
The Prison Journal
101, no. 3 (2021): 78.
Bibliography
Ariza, Libardo José, María Mauersberger, and Fernando León Tamayo Arboleda.
"Locked in the Home: A Critique of House Arrest as an Alternative to Imprisonment for
Women Sentenced for Drug-Related Crimes."
The Prison Journal
101, no. 3 (2021): 73-
86.
Lima, Helena Maria Medeiros. "Humanity and the Use of Substances: A Historical
Overview." In
Drugs and Human Behavior: Biopsychosocial Aspects of Psychotropic
Substances Use
, edited by De Micheli, Denise, Richard Alecsander Reichert, Bruno de
Oliveira Pinheiro, André Luiz Monezi Andrade, Eroy Aparecida da Silva, and Fernanda
Machado Lopes, 3-26. New York: Springer, 2021.
McQuilkin, Robertson, and Paul Copan. "Crime and Punishment." In
An Introduction to
Biblical Ethics: Walking in the Way of Wisdom
, edited by Cindy Kiple, 429-445. Illinois:
InterVarsity Press, 2014.
Plettinckx, Els, Jérôme Antoine, Lies Gremeaux, and Herman Van Oyen. "Alternatives
to Prison for Drug Offenders in Belgium During the Past Decade."
International
Journal of Law and Psychiatry
61, no. 1 (2018): 13-21.
