I am amazed by the lack of creativity and ridiculous waste of resources from today's justice system. America has the highest incarceration rate in the world, spending approximately thirty-two billion on our prison systems, but two out of every five prisoners released end up back in prison within three years. We deem criminals so bad that we sentence them to life in prison and then spend over millions of dollars taking care of them while they waste away effectively doing nothing. As of 2012, approximately 159,000 people were serving life sentences in America, and at least 2,500 inmates committed the crime as a kid. Looking back, studies have found approximately 4% of death-row inmates to be innocent. Furthermore, there is no evidence to suggest the death penalty is a particular deterrent to violent crime. Since 1978 in California, the cost of enforcing the death penalty has totaled more than four billion dollars. That's three hundred and eight million dollars for each of the thirteen executions carried out. In fact, it costs ten times more to give someone the death penalty than life in prison. So we know the death penalty is expensive, potentially kills innocent people, and does not deter criminals.
My problem with our incarceration system is two-fold:
The money spent on massive prison facilities and taking care of prisoners is a MASSIVE WASTE, and prisoners are not learning anything except how to become better criminals!!!
It doesn't have to be this way!
The solution is simple: there should be land set aside for criminals in a very remote location modeled after the tent-city prison system in Phoenix, Arizona. An island should be designated for the more serious criminals, such as the murderers, rapists, and terrorists. Drones could then be used to patrol perimeters with authorization to kill any criminal attempting to escape. Prisoners should be put to work growing their own food, making their own clothes, and providing services, or manufacturing products for communities and companies. All minor criminals should receive vocational training and employment in order to help them succeed in the real world. Teaching criminals real skills would reduce their chances of turning back to crime.
Life sentencing is just absolutely ridiculous, more inhumane than the death penalty, and a massive waste of money. I believe people can be rehabilitated. If they can't, then send them to an island to fend for themselves. Wasting millions of dollars on them is astoundingly stupidity.
