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.0
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[1]. Robertson McQuilkin and Paul Copan, “Crime and Punishment,” in0An
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,” in0Drugs 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,"0International Journal of Law and
Psychiatry061, no. 1 (2018): 16.
[5]. 0Libardo 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,"0The Prison Journal0101, no. 3 (2021): 78.
0
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."0The Prison Journal0101, no. 3 (2021): 73-86.
Lima, Helena Maria Medeiros. "Humanity and the Use of Substances: A
Historical Overview." In0Drugs 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." In0An
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."0International Journal of Law and Psychiatry061, no. 1 (2018): 13-
21.
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