The Student Room Group

This discussion is now closed.

Check out other Related discussions

Can murderers or rapists ever be rehabilitated back into society?

Scroll to see replies

Maybe motivation plays a part. Who would be easier to rehabilitate, someone who committed a crime of passion or someone who committed their crime with a level head in full knowledge of the consequences?
Original post by AmyAintDead
Depends on the individual and the nature of the crime. If the individual has been convicted for manslaughter for accidentally killing an intruder on their home, say, or someone who was responsible for death by dangerous driving could be rehabilitated into society.
Psychopathic serial killers, rapists and paedophiles pose a huge risk to society, as we cannot guarantee that they've been truly 'changed'. People should have the opportunity to be forgiven, but to some, our forgiveness is worth nil.


I think this pretty such sums it up
(edited 10 years ago)
Reply 22
Original post by AmyAintDead
Depends on the individual and the nature of the crime. If the individual has been convicted for manslaughter for accidentally killing an intruder on their home, say, or someone who was responsible for death by dangerous driving could be rehabilitated into society.
Psychopathic serial killers, rapists and paedophiles pose a huge risk to society, as we cannot guarantee that they've been truly 'changed'. People should have the opportunity to be forgiven, but to some, our forgiveness is worth nil.


I agree


Posted from TSR Mobile
Reply 23
Original post by SkinnyKat
Is there a cut-off point for second chances? How serious of a crime does a someone need to commit before we can write them off?

What about say, Joseph Fritzl?

:smile:


the seriousness of the crime should be irrelevant, it is whether they are remorseful or not that determines if they can be rehabilitated. I see absolutely no point in punishing somebody who genuinely regrets their actions, what exactly does it achieve? somebody who commits a serious crime but is sorry is more worthy of rejoining society than one who commits a less serious crime but shows no remorse.
Original post by lucaf
the seriousness of the crime should be irrelevant, it is whether they are remorseful or not that determines if they can be rehabilitated. I see absolutely no point in punishing somebody who genuinely regrets their actions, what exactly does it achieve? somebody who commits a serious crime but is sorry is more worthy of rejoining society than one who commits a less serious crime but shows no remorse.


I do agree with you but some people don't deserve that chance. Joseph Fritzl should be imprisoned like he did to his daughter and made to suffer by his loss of freedom.
Reply 25
Original post by Hippokrates
I do agree with you but some people don't deserve that chance. Joseph Fritzl should be imprisoned like he did to his daughter and made to suffer by his loss of freedom.


if he was truly remorseful then what would locking him up going to achieve? it would be nothing more than petty vengeance. I highly doubt he is remorseful so this is of course purely hypothetical, but punishment for the sake of punishment isn't protecting anybody and isn't undoing the crime, so what is the point?
Reply 26
Original post by Hippokrates
Rapists are very much repeat criminals and you've got to be twisted to do it, I don't think they deserve a second chance or that they are safe o be around. Rape victims (especially children) suffer long lasting mental health problems, I don't think it's fair to them or helpful to their recovery to know they're still out there.



Sure.The problem is however that if you had mandatory life sentences for rape then as soon as a man rapes you there is no longer anything to deter him from killing you in the hope of getting away with it altogether.
Original post by lucaf
if he was truly remorseful then what would locking him up going to achieve? it would be nothing more than petty vengeance. I highly doubt he is remorseful so this is of course purely hypothetical, but punishment for the sake of punishment isn't protecting anybody and isn't undoing the crime, so what is the point?


I just don't think sorry makes it all okay, I understand what you're saying and I wish I could agree.
Reply 28
Original post by lucaf
if he was truly remorseful then what would locking him up going to achieve? it would be nothing more than petty vengeance. I highly doubt he is remorseful so this is of course purely hypothetical, but punishment for the sake of punishment isn't protecting anybody and isn't undoing the crime, so what is the point?



Well,of course,in theory,its meant to act as a deterrent not just as a punishment.Thats the point.
Reply 29
Original post by lucaf
if he was truly remorseful then what would locking him up going to achieve? it would be nothing more than petty vengeance. I highly doubt he is remorseful so this is of course purely hypothetical, but punishment for the sake of punishment isn't protecting anybody and isn't undoing the crime, so what is the point?


To deter other potential kidnappers? For the sake of his victims?

I think for victims, knowing that their perpetrator is still walking around free (regardless if they are remorseful or not) will only harm their healing process. I believe the rights of the victim should be protected over the rights of criminals. Often it's a life sentence for the victim due to their mental torment over what happened and only a few years in jail for the criminal. I can't see that as fair, I'm afraid.
Reply 30
Original post by Hippokrates
I just don't think sorry makes it all okay, I understand what you're saying and I wish I could agree.


well no, saying sorry obviously doesn't undo what somebody did, but then neither does punishing them. I think punishment should be reserved for those who are not remorseful; because if they are not sorry then you make them sorry
Reply 31
Short answer, yes they can. If you pump a man full of enough medication and run ideas through their mind enough he'll spend the rest of his life convinced hes an evil badger from space so I cant imagine stopping them from committing more crimes isnt impossible...

However, when someone kills a person or rapes them they have made a choice to do something inhumane and therefore have willingly given up there right to be treated like a human being. They can stay in the cell and remind others to think before they ruin someones life or leave a family without a father.

Im a sucker for a good debate :P
(edited 10 years ago)
Original post by SkinnyKat
Nobody can justify it and yet so many people try to. It's disgusting.



Now, now, we can't just go around nuking people :tongue: the best we can hope for is to keep these backwards views out of our country and pressure for reform in theirs.


But it'll take these countries at least 100 years to get to the stage england is at.

Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by SkinnyKat
So I was having a conversation with a friend who believed that all criminals should be given a second chance even if they were violent murderers or rapists. I instinctively disagreed because society would never accept ex-murderers/rapists and it would put innocent people at risk.

She argued that rehabilitating these criminals and making them repay their debt to society by working and being productive would be better than letting them rot in a cell and using up taxpayers money. And that everyone should be given another chance. This does make sense, providing they really have changed, but I can't seem to bring myself to agree with it.

I think that thieves/burglars or other petty criminals can and should be rehabilitated back into society but not so sure about serious violent criminals.

Your thoughts?


A different perspective is that of the victim's friends and family. What is justice for the loss of a human being? Or that of the psychological trauma of rape victims?

I don't think you can put a figure on that, which is why I think they don't deserve a second chance. Plus the possible risk of them reoffending is always there.
I personally feel that some murderers are rehabilitative especially if they killed in self-defense, by accident or if they killed someone while they were younger (i.e. a fight after school turned deadly by him hitting the other person in the wrong spot or as an under-aged gang member). If their actions in jail have shown them to be remorseful of what happened and they have made genuine efforts to be a better person, why not give them a second chance? The same goes for rapists. Although I do not be that serial rapists can be rehabilitated as their crimes were most likely results of their arrogance and/or sexual addiction, I do believe that a person who was convicted of rape when they were a drunken 15 year old would be able to get out years later and be a productive citizen who was not a threat to women. What about abused women who are incarcerated for murder and manslaughter of their children who were actually killed by their abusive husbands or boyfriends as they were charged with the same crime as the actual murderer because judges felt like they "could have done something to stop the murder of their children" or that they "failed to protect their child"? These women were victims as well but will forever be scarred and labeled as "murderers" when in all actuality they were "victims" just like their murdered children.

Therefore, I think it just depends on the situation and the motives and circumstances surrounding the incidents. Regarding your comment around thieves and burglars getting second chances opposed to rapists and murderers, although shoplifting and robbing people is no where near as serious as taking someone's life, I think that many thieves are NOT able to be rehabilitated as some people will forever steal and rob from people while some murderers may never kill again. Again, it just depends on that person's previous history of violence or similar charges and how they act in prison and participate in therapy and other rehabilitative measures.

I founded a nonprofit organization here in Columbus, GA called NewLife-Second Chance Outreach, Inc. that helps ex-offenders find employment and truly believe that people deserve second chances. Although I myself am a felon and believe that people deserve second chances, I do NOT believe that some people like Charles Manson, who claims to be driven by satanic forces, will never change as I'm sure these same forces are who he will forever listen to, therefore, making him a lasting risk. However, there are people who are genuinely sorry for there actions and could be great community members if only given the chance. People do not realize the amount of money that could be saved by NOT incarcerating people for unnecessary lengths of time and how much money the city and states could make if these people were able to work and pay taxes once they are released. Some of the most successful celebrities and politicians have killed people and haven't killed again such as former first lady Laura Bush, Ted Kennedy, Brandy, Charles S. Dutton, and Matthew Broderick. Just look at Duane "Dog" Chapman. Although he didn't actually kill anyone (he was guity by association as he was sitting outside in a car while his friends killed someone inside), he is a great inspiration for people as he tries to guide those he come in contact with to do the right thing. So to answer your question, I absolutely believe that SOME murderers and rapists CAN be rehabilitated.
(edited 9 years ago)
Hello,

I personally feel that some murderers are rehabilitative especially if they killed in self defense, by accident or if they killed someone while they were younger (i.e. a fight after school turned deadly by him hitting the other person in the wrong spot or as an underaged gang member). If their actions in jail have shown them to be remorseful of what happened and they have made genuine efforts to be a better person, why not give them a second chance? The same goes for rapists. Although I do not be that serial rapists can be rehabilitated as their crimes were most likely results of their arrogance and/or sexual addiction, I do believe that a person who was convicted of rape when they were a drunken 15 year old would be able to get out years later and be a productive citizen who was not a threat to women. Therefore, I think it just depends on the situation and the motives and circumstances surrounding the incidents. regarding your comment around thieves and burglars getting second chances opposed to rapists and murderers, I think that some of these individuals are NOT able to be rehabilitated as some people will forever steal and rob from people while some murderers may never kill again. Again, it just depends on that person's previous history of violence or similar charges and how they act in prison and participate in therapy and other rehabilitative measures.

I founded a nonprofit organization here in Columbus, GA called NewLife-Second Chance Outreach, Inc. that helps ex-offenders find employment and truly believe that people deserve second chances. Although I myself am a felon and believe that people deserve second chances, I do NOT believe that some people like Charles Manson, who claims to be driven by satanic forces, will never change as I'm sure these same forces are who he will forever listen to, therefore, making him a lasting risk. However, there are people who are genuinely sorry for there actions and could be great community members if only given the chance. People do not realize the amount of money that could be saved by NOT incarcerating people for unnecessary lengths of time and how much money the city and states could make if these people were able to work and pay taxes once they are released. Some of the most successful celebrities and politicians have killed people and haven't killed again such as former first lady Laura Bush, Ted Kennedy, Brandy, Charles S. Dutton, and Matthew Broderick. Just look at Duane "Dog" Chapman. Although he didn't actually kill anyone (he was charged with murder because while he was outside in a car waiting for his friends to buy weed, the were killing a man inside), he is always encouraging his "bounties" to do better and to get their lives together. I think he is awesome and a great example of how felons or murderers can change.
(edited 9 years ago)
I don't know why it even matters - why are they worth the effort, the expense of even trying? Just put a bullet in their head and be done with it, spend the money on someone or something more deserving.
Keeping people locked up in prison costs money. If the money saved by letting them out outweighs the risk of them reoffending then letting them out is the best thing to do.
Original post by SnoochToTheBooch
I don't know why it even matters - why are they worth the effort, the expense of even trying? Just put a bullet in their head and be done with it, spend the money on someone or something more deserving.


I think that this is an awful and heartless thing to say because you never know whether one if your loved ones or ever yourself could be in a situation that landed you in jail! Yes, we all say that we would never kill but is that really true? What would you do to a man that raped your 11 year old son? What would you do if you came home from work early and found your new husband/wife raping your 3 year old daughter? I'm sure you would do what 100% of anyone else would do....try your best to kill that person and if you succeeded, would it deem necessary to "put a bullet in YOUR head and get it over already"?

How many of us have taken our eyes off the road to change the radio station, put ketchup on that burger that we ate trying eat while driving, send a quick text or turn to the back seat to tell our kids to stop fighting over a piece of candy? I'm sure we all have but yet in a quick second, during our time of distraction, we could have struck a bystander or hit a child who ran into the street after a ball. What about taking a friend to the store? We all have done it. While you were in the car waiting for them to buy a pack of cigs, they were inside robbing and killing the clerk, charges in which YOU too would be charged with!

We all have skeletons in our closets, and quite frankly, more of us have actually committed crimes...but just didn't get caught. So you, my friend, should NEVER be so quick to judge and execute another because one day, you could be in the same situation and I'm sure you would want someone to give you another chance to prove that you can be trusted in society.
I think some murderers and rapists can be rehabilitated successfully and can come back into society, but others most definitely not.

Latest