Say the offense wasn't a serious one and they were only in jail for 2 years.....do you think they have a chance of being a better person for spending time in jail?
2006-10-15 12:55:14 · 29 answers · asked by Janet _agnetha 1 in Family & Relationships ➔ Other - Family & Relationships
I think it just depends on the person and how much it has impacted them. If they are truly sorry for the crime they have committed, they will more than like make a serious effort to change for the better. Otherwise, they will just continue to go down the same bad path.
2006-10-15 12:59:20 · answer #1 · answered by jims_prettyeyes 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Your question is an honest one, but unfortunately too vague for me to give an accurate answer. In my experience, the only people jail ever really "helps" are the non-criminal type. Those are the ones who, oh, maybe got a DUI, or even a couple, and then, after doing time from the second one, got "scared straight" as they say.
Or a brief stint in jail might help turn a youthful offender away from a life of crime, since he's gotten a taste of what awaits him. But as far as the habitual offenders, or, the recidivists, as they're called in the criminal justice system, no: incarceration hardly ever helps and usually only embitters them more to the system and the establishment at large. Most criminals have long since learned how to justify their crimes so that they are the true victims in their own minds.
America long ago gave up the idea of trying to rehabilitate inmates. It's simply too expensive and the taxpayers never vote for it; al the taxpayers vote for in the penal system is more guards and more walls.
If your question is about someone you know, or you want to talk more, email me.
I have my B.A. in Criminal Justice and am now a paralegal for a criminal defense lawyer in Boise.
2006-10-15 13:04:49 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes , if it wasn't a serious crime. But if they were charged with drugs, they definitely have a problem and they just learn more crap in jail, it's better to for them to go to a rehab. If it's petty theft and that can be an addiction, usually 2 weeks in jail will make them think twice. But our penal system is a revolving door system and needs to be changed. For serious crimes like murder
they need to be in jail. It can help.. it depends on the person....and if they are willing to change
2006-10-15 13:17:47 · answer #3 · answered by Matt M 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i think its usually the opposite - the whole experience of being in Jail can actually make people worse than before they entered.
that is where the system is failing the community and it is also where love and support from relatives and friends is needed most.
However, being in Jail for only 2 years - they are not likely to want to go back any time soon. so you'd think any person in that situation would wanna change thier ways for a while.
2006-10-15 13:01:20 · answer #4 · answered by miss2sexc 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No,I dont think spending time in jail makes you a better person,I think it kames you a worse person. Spending time in jail can cause hate against the police,and you might want to get revenge on them for making you stay in a cell,so you would do worse things like commiting more crimes,but you would just end up in jail again.
-hope this helps!
2006-10-15 12:58:33 · answer #5 · answered by vball.gal 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well I work in law enforcement, specifically corrections. First of all, if someone served two years, that is a state sentence so they must have done something worse than littering. Second, they served two, are they on probation or parole now? Prison tries to rehabilitate but very rarely does so. If your friend wants to continue criminal activity, most likely they will. Some are the exceptions to the rule and I have had "success" stories. It all depends on the person and what they want to do with their life now.
2006-10-15 13:48:35 · answer #6 · answered by Rhode Island Red 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I really hate to say it, but NO.........you really have to ask yourself why they got there in the first place. Myself, I can't imagine for a minute doing something to put me there in the first place. It takes a strong person & one willing to change everything they were doing before to become a better person. The huge answer is who they will hang out with once they are out of jail that will make a huge difference. Really, that is the biggest step for a person that went to jai or prison........they HAVE TO STAY AWAY from the people they associated with before that haven't changed. I know this due to a relative that has been thru this craziness!! You have to be around good clean people in order to better their way of life!
2006-10-15 13:02:07 · answer #7 · answered by Geez Louise 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sorry, no. My friend's husband has been in and out of jail. This is his 3rd time in and he hasn't change. A place cannot change a person. Only when the person chooses that he does. Be that better or for worse.
2006-10-15 12:57:56 · answer #8 · answered by tofu 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think it depends on the person. Some people actually learn from their jail time and get out and make something of themselves. Some go on to become career criminals. It is all in the type of person and their circumstances in life.
2006-10-15 12:58:21 · answer #9 · answered by ? 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Jail has taken a toll on my husband, I'm afraid of him,he's manic depressive, paranoid,an afraid of the world. No jail has not been a benifit for my family , I lost my husband to jail because there was no rehabilitation is was pure destruction, My children are without a father now sons 23,17,14,12,2 all boys we needed him
2006-10-18 21:52:33 · answer #10 · answered by seriousone37 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋