As someone who has worked in criminal justice in the UK for several years, I might have some insight into this. it is worth reforming some people? Absolutely. Recidivism rates plunge dramatically when offenders have a support network, and broader holistic intervention (such as education, jobs, and therapy). The trouble with some crimes is that by their very nature (crimes against children, for example) it isolates people, both from their families and broader society. Many self-induce isolation, and it leads them back to their old cycle of offenders. Isolation is not conducive to rehabilitation. It is fair for the victims to let the criminals be free without punishment? That depends on the offence and the impact on wider society. Victims tend to allude to disproportionate punishments for their perpetrator, either by opting for a reconciliatory outcome or a life/death sentence when one is not warranted. Is the punishment equal to the crime? No, because (at least in the UK), each offender's case is prosecuted on its own merit (including aggravating and mitigating factors), and judges have powers of discretion, so long as their sentence follows the Sentencing Council's guidelines. Some sentences are believed to be unduly lenient but rarely manifestly excessive, and it all comes down to the judge on the day and their view of your offence(s) on whether you get a custodial sentence or not. There is a distinct lack of consistency in sentences by virtue of this. At what age is a person truly responsible for their actions? Here in the UK, the age of criminal responsibility is 10. Do I think your average 10-year-old has adequate foresight? Not on your life. Do I think 10 is too young for prison? Depends on the individual and their criminal history. Doing nothing will lead to vigilantes? Depends on the society and how they view their police/prosecution bodies. The UK tends to be far more laid back than France or the USA, and we don't tend to protest on a wide scale about criminal justice reform. We do have vigilante groups that hunt paedophiles and people that target children for grooming, but it's mainly non-violent and the police are notified immediately. Do we care enough nowadays? No. We are a society that has moved away from traditional and shared values to one of secularism and moral relativism. This has been excesscerbated by mass immigration from people with varying cultures and values, the proliferation of the internet, dishonest media, and globalism. We tend to think of people who commit crimes or have a criminal past as being sullied or "the other" and somehow different from the rest of us. The average person commits 3 crimes a day, and I firmly believe that our worst deeds do not define us, and it's not so much about the mistake, but the recovery and what you do to rehabilitate yourself. There is no such thing as "good" and "bad" people, we're all just people. We are the collective accumulation of our good and bad deeds. Most people have more deeds in the good category. Others, in the bad. If you want to see an improvement in crime, tackle it from a "broken windows" policy, invest in jobs and education is areas that have the highest incidences of criminality, disincentivise single motherhood and make men responsible for their children.
