There are two common beliefs regarding criminals. One view says that all of them should be sent to prison. Alternatively, the second opinion states that fines or commumity service are more suitable punishments for minor offences. To my mind, a custodial sentence is the only punishment for felonies, but for minor offences fines, community service, or suspended sentence are better.
To begin with, a custodial service is the most known punishment for crimes. It is applied to many offenders, especially to those who are considered dangerous for the sosiety. However, there are a list of issues with this way. First of all, inmates who spent a lot of years in a jail used to life in there. It is hard to reintegrate them into sosiety after their release, which leads to recidivism. In addition, prisons require a lot of expenditures for their maintenance, and this financial loads rests on tax payers’ shoulders.
The main idea of punishments is to make people following the law, and for minor offences fines and community service are great alternatives to prisons. They still show that an action made by an offender is wrong, but it is less stressful for them. There is no need to reintegrate people to whom these types of punishments were applied. Moreover, fines are the additional sources of a regional budget, while community service provide free workers for community organizations.
In conclusion, I believe that a custodial sentence is not a punishment for each offence. Fines, community service, and suspended sentence are better alternatives for minor offences.
