[blondie9x]

They are harder on punishment, that much is proven. It is also proven that harsher punishments are a deterrent to crime.

If you rob a store and get caught and get a 100$ fine that's a bit different then if you rob a store and they cut your hand off for example.

[croes]

>It is also proven that harsher punishments are a deterrent to crime.

Is it?

In the US, there are pretty harsh sentences and yet a high incarceration rate.

Most crimes aren't committed for fun and harsher sentences increase the violence to prevent getting caught but don't prevent the crime a such.

[denimnerd42]

i dont think much is a deterrent to those on drugs. what does deter them is being physically removed from the situation by being in prison.

[blondie9x]

We need to do better than prison for drug addiction and delusional mental illness. Need to make a statewide facility to provide tented area for drug addicts to be removed from cities and suburbs. They can leave the facility after they have recovered from drug addiction or severe delusional mental illness.

[dragonwriter]

> We need to do better than prison for drug addiction and delusional mental illness. Need to make a statewide facility to provide tented area for drug addicts to be removed from cities and suburbs.

That’s exactly like a prison, but probably with unconstitutionally poor conditions by design, not better than a prison, and probably unconstitutional mechanisms for sending people into them as well.

Better than prison (demonstrated, repeatedly) for dealing with addiction and related crime is funding community treatment for substance use disorders, with studies consistently showing both crime reductions and criminal justice cost savings of several multiples of the marginal funding devoted to drug treatment.

But “tough on crime” via greater criminalization makes an easier political soundbite, even if its manifestly worse at actually dealing with crime.

[flir]

Yay, sanctuary districts. I've seen this episode.