The criminal justice system covers several parts of the operational aspects of the system, including law enforcement, courts and correctional institutions. Every single aspect is of utmost importance for the smooth functioning of the criminal justice system, with the most questionable approach being the decision to focus on punishing or rehabilitating offenders. The correctional process is responsible for ensuring the safety of the public, the best alternative for dealing with each offender, while ensuring fairness for all. Finding the balance between all these aspects is not the easiest thing to do, and reducing crime is not simply a question of punishment or rehabilitation. There are many ways in which a convicted criminal can be punished, and many of the punishments are based on the severity of the crime committed. of the crime committed and the criminal record of the perpetrator. Punishment for violators includes restitution, probation, parole, intermediate sanctions, jail, prison, and sometimes capital punishment. Restitution is an obligation imposed on courts to pay money or provide services to crime victims or the community itself (Schmalleger, 2011). While paying compensation helps restore the victim's standard of living and confidence, it is also a way for the perpetrator to learn responsibility and the consequences of their actions. Community corrections, or program-based sanctions that allow offenders to undertake conditional supervision within the community (Schmalleger, 2011), are alternative options to punishment that do not rely on institutional sentencing. Probation, for example, is a sentence issued that allows an offender's sentence to be served under community supervision. Another community-ba... at the heart of the document... may simply be a band-aid for a more serious problem, punishment may only serve as a band-aid for recidivism. Works Cited Jones, C. A. ( 2011). Willingness to pay for rehabilitation versus punishment to reduce adult and youth crime. Australian Journal of Social Issues, 46(1), 9-27. Retrieved from: http://ehis.ebscohost.com.lib.kaplan.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=8ffa386e-c635-4377-85e0-52613bc6d71d%40sessionmgr4002&vid=2&hid=4110Pearlstein, M. (2011). Crime, punishment and rehabilitation. National Review, 63(18), 24. Retrieved from: http://ehis.ebscohost.com.lib.kaplan.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=02be8587-7d84-44fb-b16f-8182382f469e%40sessionmgr4005&vid=2&hid =4110Schmalleger, F. (2011). Criminal Justice Today: An Introductory Text for the 21st Century (11th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New York: Prentice Hall.
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