abortion laws

Abortion is looked at as a taboo thing to many cultures. So many people consider it as murder and are completely against it. However, there have been many instances in which women get abortions or somehow give themselves abortions and it has led to very dangerous outcomes. The United States has made abortion legal up to a certain stage of pregnancy, but many countries have yet to do this. Countries like Burma where abortion is illegal are facing issues with illegal pregnancies and their potential consequences. Young poor women are getting pregnant and abandoned by the baby’s father, the women have no means of raising he child.

               The only times abortion is legal in Burma is when it involves saving the life of the mother. In other words, if the mother is having complications with the pregnancy, and can lead to both her and the baby dying, then terminating the pregnancy is permissible. However, when it comes to just terminating the pregnancy for other reasons, then there are extreme consequences that may come from it. The legal repercussions from having or assisting in an abortion vary. Some punishments are jailtime and others are just fines, it all depends on the stage of the pregnancy.

               For most abortions done on purpose, the punishment is 3 years of imprisonment. If the mother was caused to miscarry because of someone else causing it, only the culprit will receive punishment, but if both parties were involved then both will. The punishment becomes more severe with the longer pregnancies, punishment can be up to seven or ten years. That amount or years of punishment is the same for people who also kill the mother during the abortion whether it be intentional or not. It’s interesting that the time of imprisonment is only ten years for something that is essentially considered murder. Women who get pregnant and do not want to be, go through some very traumatizing experiences attempting to abort the child.

               A lot of Burmese women will attempt dangerous abortions, and will not even succeed in terminating the pregnancy. Many women will go to people who do not have any actual experience in properly giving abortions, and often will result in the women having to go elsewhere to receive proper care. Most times the expectant mothers are given a combination of things to kill the baby and then perform pummeling, insertion, or abdomen massaging to finish killing the baby. When these methods do not work, the women will cross the border to Thailand to a clinic that will treat them. Some women are in such bad condition that there is no hope for them, and others are able to recover from the failed abortion. This is why having abortions be illegal can have a lot of consequences.

               Even if there is a vast majority of the population who are against abortion, it only makes since to legalize it in order to prevent dangerous at home abortions. Hopefully, with time more countries will realize this and legalize abortion and in turn be able to regulate it better. For now, these women will continue to risk their lives in order to terminate their pregnancies. Abortion policies are much different here, but still have problems.

               In 2007, the United States banned abortions in the second trimester of pregnancy. Even though doctors have said that it is better for the mother’s health to do it during the second trimester. Being that a lot of politicians are prolife, has made it so most health insurances do not cover abortions, unless being done to save the mother. In order to prevent abortions, people need to have better sex education, and better access to contraceptives. However, certain laws have made it quite hard for women to get abortions even within the 20-week mark. When a woman goes to get an abortion, they are forced to take a class that tells them about the negatives sides to getting an abortion. The women also need to have at least two appointments before getting the actual abortion. Which, may risk them not having enough time to get the abortion and potentially having to keep the baby.

               The United States is a country that prides itself on freedom, and pursuit of happiness. However, the United States cannot be all that free, when women are barely even allowed to make their own decision, and lack the same rights to that of a man. The United States needs to take a look at other developed countries and consider the differences and why the United States is behind in some areas, when it is as developed in should be in line with these other countries.

Sources:

https://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/abortion/federal-and-state-bans-and-restrictions-abortion

https://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/issues/abortion/types-attacks

What Motivates Serial Killers

In the article, Why do Serial Killer Kill, I learned that most serial killers are so in their own heads fantasizing about their potential crimes that their real crimes are well planned. Not only are they well planned but they rationalized every aspect of their own behavior and do not feel as though what they are doing is bad. They typically choose victims who are strangers, and view as weak. They feel that they need to brutally kill the victim, because they are a menace to society. They usually pick homeless people or prostitutes. This article states how most serial killers are white, members of the lower middle class, and between the ages of late twenties and early thirties. As children, they set animals on fire and torture them. It is also common for these children to have an interest in joining the police force type of positions, or military and security forces to have a sense of authority. This article really stresses on the mental instability of potential serial killers. It taught me that familial issues are not the only reason why people turn to killing.

Psychological Phases is an article that goes through all the phases a serial killer goes through before and after they kill. Before and while killing their victims, the killer’s mind goes through some phases. The first phase is called aura phase, which is when the killer withdraws from reality and his sense be heightened. This phase can last from hours to months up until the murder takes place. This phase can even cause the killer to self-medicate with alcohol and drugs in efforts to stop feeling this way. Next is the trolling phase where the killer identifies and stalks his victims. Then there is the wooling phase where he gains the victims trust before luring them into a trap. The capture phase is exactly what it sounds like. This is typically one of the killer’s favorite moments. The victim is either locked in somewhere or rendered unconscious by a hard blow. The murder phase is next, the killer reenacts similar situations from his childhood the difference being that he is the one with the power this time around. Totem phase is where the killer feels the need to preserve their success. They do this by keeping a souvenir from the murder or pertaining to the murder. They collect things like news clippings, parts of their bodies, eat, wear, and/or show it to there later victims. Some of them even photograph their victims and keep the photos. The last phase is the depression phase. When all is said, and done the killer still feels empty inside and has not escaped any of his old feeling of hatred towards everyone including himself. In order to escape these feeling the killer usually sets out for their next victim quickly.

I read a text called What Motivate Serial Killers to Kill and this one went into a little more depth as to why they feel the need to. The author describes how most people who become serial killers fear rejection, need to feel powerful, and perfect. These fears in turn make them quite insecure individuals, they will not even form relationships in fear of rejection. They are also terrified of being exposed, abandoned, and humiliated. This roots back to their upbringing, being that most of their fathers abandoned them. The texts states how the majority of serial killers have intercourse with their victim pre-and/or postmortem. The need for control causes for the killer to try and prolong the death of the victim in efforts to feel even more powerful, because their life is literally in his hands. For them the only power that truly matters are the one that can cause pain, kill, and destroy. Killing is usually the only way they feel empowerment. The author explains how serial killers think that they are doing a good thing by eliminating people they deem as unclean, and feel the need to continue their work. However, the main reason they continue killing is because they become addicted to it and feel some sort of euphoria each time. Another reason they do not feel the need to stop is because they rationalize their behavior. However, they still understand that there are consequences that can occur by their behavior, and usually avoid getting caught. They feel no sympathy or remorse but are able to simulate it by observing other peoples.

capital punishment

Capital Punishment is a topic of a lot of controversy, but I am not here to change anyone’s minds. I am simply here to drop some basic information that everybody should know before taking an actual stance on the issue. First things first, what is capital punishment? According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, it is death as punishment for a very serious crime. In the United States, the capital punishment varies case by case and state by state. Different states use capital punishment for a variety of different serious crimes. For example, Minnesota has had capital punishment banned since 1911, and Utah has it legal for anyone who commits a capital offense such as multiple murders and so on. Capital punishment is viewed as a necessary evil by many.

               When this topic is brought up, most people are quick to ask, “wouldn’t you want the person who raped and killed your daughter to die?” For many, this is an easy question to answer, and for most the answer is yes. The next question is, if all the other first world, developed countries have done away with capital punishment, why has the United States not? Most of the developed countries would answer, that capital punishment is barbaric and no longer necessary. They see as when killing a person because of their actions behind closed doors does not really deter the general public from committing terrible crimes. However, being that one of the five purposes of punishment in the United States is in fact retribution, there is no possibility of banning capital punishment until that form of justice is gone.

               There are some important facts that everyone must know when it comes to capital punishment. There are a lot of people who feel that lethal injection is too gentle, and that the inmate should suffer more. Others feel as though it somehow makes capital punishment okay when it is done in a humane way, such as lethal injection. What those people do not know is that lethal injection can be painful for the inmate. When an inmate is given a lethal injection, it is typically done by one of the guards and not by an actual doctor. Therefore, the inmate’s height and weight is not taken much into consideration by the guard giving the lethal injection. When the dosage is not high enough or just did not do what it was intended to do than the inmate is subject to suffering. Different people react to chemicals differently and even though they are most likely going to die from the dose, they still may react to it differently. There are three chemicals that make up the lethal injection and one of them is intended to put the inmate in a deep sleep immediately. There have been cases where this does not occur and the inmate is completely aware of what is going on but is paralyzed and suffocating. Not only can it be painful, but it is there is a very real chance of the inmate being innocent.

               Between 1973 and 2015 there were 148 people who were exonerated from death row. Those are too many innocent people that could have died for crime they did not even commit. Studies have shown that the amount of innocent people who have been sentenced to death row is even higher than the amount that was exonerated. It is estimated a 1 in 25 defendants sentenced to death row are innocent. Often times prosecutors are the ones to blame for this. Some prosecutors have hidden evidence that can be beneficial to the defense team. Statistics have also shown that race can influence if whether a not a person is sentenced to death row. When being sentenced, black people will be put on death row more than white people, even if the crime is the same. With all of that being said people will take their chances and side with capital punishment because it is the only way to get retribution for the victims.

               Capital punishment is a practice of ancient times, but people still feel the need for it today. Being capable of feeling empathy for all sides of the situation, have it be the victim, the victim’s family, the offender, or the offender’s family. It is hard to say what decision one will make when put in the situation. Many of us behave differently than we think we would have when put in one of those situations.

Sources:

https://www.aclu.org/issues/capital-punishment

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=130959&page=1

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/execution/readings/history.html

Why some people become serial killers

Serial killings have increased exponentially within a century. Being that populations are bigger and people have better chances of getting away make it easier for people to commit heinous crimes. People become serial killers because they have antisocial personality disorders or other similar mental disabilities.  People believe that there is more to becoming a psychopathic serial killer such as traumatic experiences while growing up, or the environment that they grew up in. In reality it is that some people are born with chemical imbalances in their brain, which make them more likely to have antisocial disorder or borderline personality disorder.

            Antisocial personality disorder is when a person has traits of irritability, impulsivity, and remorselessness. Not all people who have this disorder are psychopaths but the ones who are display a greater lack of empathy and grandiosity (De Brito and Hodgins, pg. 133). According to Personality, Personality Disorder and Violence: An Evidence Based Approach ASPD and Psychopathy are very different however both can cause a real burden to society. People who suffer from ASPD tend to commit crimes, do not keep a job, and harm their loved ones because of the crimes they commit. ASPD combined with psychopathy is what most serial killers have been diagnosed with.

 Only one third of people ASPD are diagnosed with psychopathy, however every individual diagnosed with psychopathy have ASPD. There are certain biological signs that can also show if a person is more prone to becoming a serial killer or not. It all starts with the brain, most psychopaths brain scans’ show low activity in areas related to self-control, empathy, and ethics (Ehrenfeld). Other markers to potential criminality are brain damage, low resting heart rate, being male, gene variants, and a mother who smoked, drank, or both during pregnancy. All of these markers can vary depending on the person and not all people with these traits are psychopaths. Adrian Raine, a college professor, did a study on people with brain scans similar to psychopaths.

In Raine’s study he discovered that there are “pro-social psychopaths” (Ehrenfeld). In other words, there are people who have all of the traits of a psychopathy but can still be contributing members of society. This is supposedly because psychopath’s who have parents who are devoted to them and show constant love and affection, have a better understanding of how people should behave in everyday situations. This theory is flawed because there have been people who come from a good and healthy family and still commit terrible crimes. Therefore, being a psychopath is the only reason why people become serial killers.

In Raven’s article What Creates Serial Killers and Psychopaths: Genetics or Environment? Raven states that “all serial killers are psychopathic, but not all psychopaths are serial killers.”  The things that drive these people to kill is their desire for control and sexual or aggressive drive towards another living, breathing being. Having psychopathy does not mean that a person is crazy or insane it means that they suffer from chronic mental disorders and violent and aggressive social behavior. They feel no guilt, sympathy, or remorse for their actions. This is the difference between psychotics and psychopaths, psychotic people go through a period of psychosis where they do not remember what they do. They can also feel remorse for their actions.

Psychopaths on the other hand can tell the difference between right and wrong but they do not feel as though it applies to them. They view themselves as being above everything including the law, this is due to their egocentric and narcissistic behavior. Over 90 percent of serial killers are white males with normal to bright IQ’s, however even with being so intelligent they are quite unstable. Most serial killers are very charming and manipulative, they can usually persuade people into thinking they actually care. They tend to not learn much from experiences and when from their actions occur they typically turn hostile. In doing so it gives them justification for more violent behavior (Raven).

Taking a look at all those characteristic in turn creates a profile for psychopathic serial killers. There are a few specific traits to look for in potential serial killers. They begin to feel depressed and fail to succeed at anything. They also become socially withdrawn, but display attention seeking behavior. These characteristics do not really explain why they choose to kill but the reason is because they like to have some sort of control of a situation. Psychopaths have the tendency to blame everything on society. When they kill and torture people they feel as though they are getting revenge for what was done to them. This furthers the idea that people who become serial killers do so because of brain abnormalities.

riots

Jail and prison riots are very much real and a huge issue when comes to the safety of the inmates and the staff. However, they are not as common of an occurrence as they once were. In earlier times and up until the 1980’s jail and prison riots happened frequently and lasted days at a time, taking a large number of lives (Burkenstien, 1). There were a few major riots that took the lives of a lot of people, one in New Mexico killed 33, one in New York killed 43, and the last major riot in West Virginia took 3 peoples lives’, which was in 1986. Since then, the amount of riots a year has gone down significantly. In 2003 alone there were less than 3 riots that occurred that year. The assaults on staff members also dropped during the same time period. That is quite impressive being that the incarceration rates have increased since then.

               One of the few reasons there has been a decline in riots or violence within correctional facilities is that the number inmates in there due to violent crimes has gone down. Those who are in there because of a violent crime, tend to be in some form of higher security facility. The management of these facilities has improved, there has also implementation of security squads. The squads are called Correctional Emergency Response Teams, and they have been incredibly beneficial when it comes to violence among the inmates (Birkenstein, 1). These teams have really impacted the severity of riots that have occurred since their inception, because they stop the riots before too much harm is done. However, riots still occur even though they are less frequent.

               There are many reason as to why inmates become violent. Racial issues are one of the major reasons that there is violence in correction facilities. Different races correlate with different gangs, and if a member of a certain gang so much as talks to a member of a different gang, said member will be punished. Therefore, not only is there violence within each gang but also between the different gangs. The main way to get by in jails and prisons is to stick with your own race and always be willing and able to defend them or help them when need be. For example, when a riot does occur each member of the gang must get involved to help their fellow members (Lichten, 1). If a person from the gang that is being a part of the riot does not help, they risk the chance of getting beat after the fact.

               The main ways to try and prevent riots or prevent them from getting out of hand, is staff. Having a decent number of staff on hand to be able to keep the inmates in check is crucial to maintaining order. If there is not enough staff then correction facilities have high chances of getting overthrown by the inmates, even if just for a few days. When guards are able to patrol, and keep a constant watch on all sections of the facilities, inmates become too intimidated to attempt to revolt. Therefore, the more staff is around, they are able to detect tensions between the inmates. Less staff means less opportunity for catching any kind of tension or potential threats to the facility.

There have been many huge jail and prison riots in the United States but, there have only been a few notoriously bad ones.  One of them being the one at Alcatraz in 1946, where an inmate and few others were able to disarm the guards and tried to escape, but accidently jammed the door and were stopped before anything too bad could happen. Another one was in Montana in 1959, two inmates were able to disarm all the guards and release all the inmates. They killed the Deputy warden, but no one else’s life was taken. One of the culprits ended up surrendering by killing his partner and himself. There have been many terrible riots in the United States, and even more gruesome ones in other countries where many more people lost their lives.

Fortunately, now riots in the United States have gone down significantly. This is due to various reason, one of the major ones being that staff is now more prepared to handle these kinds of situations, and they have team dedicated to diffuse possible riots. However, they are still very possible and can get really horrible if not managed properly.

Sources:

http://listverse.com/2014/08/06/10-bloody-prison-riots/

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/12/have-a-safe-riot/354671/

http://www.policeandjailprocedures.com/live/jail-and-prison-riots.html

rehabilitative justice

Rehabilitative Justice, in my opinion, is the most important of the justice purposes. Many believe that the best way to help offenders is by being able to alter their state of mind. By altering their state of mind, it in turn alters their behavior. Thus, helping the offenders gain better behavior and cope with tough situations. Rehabilitative justice critics believe that this form of punishment does not provide enough justice for the victims and their families. However, now in today’s society the idea of revenge or retribution is considered barbaric. In many instances this is true, it is more important to attempt and make the individual at fault understand that their behavior was wrong then to punish them by making them pay for what they did.

            When do we as humans draw the line? What makes it okay do wrong to others as was done to us? Now, it does not mean that punishment is not necessary. It most certainly is, however the form of punishments that have been put in place so far have done little to lower the rate of recidivism. For instance, even though crime rate has gone down since 2008, it is still happening far too often. Jails and prisons have remained incredibly overcrowded, and the amount of money being used to keep these facilities running is very high. A lot of people argue that rehabilitative justice, say that it will cost more to get rehabilitative programs up and running. In the long run, it will more cost efficient because people will be less likely to go back into jail.   

            Most people who are against rehabilitative justice are people who do not view the offender as a human. They do not take into consideration that everyone makes mistakes, and everyone has different ways of reacting to certain situations. People have different brains, therefore think differently, and behave differently. Some people think it is okay to lie if it keeps somebody from getting hurt, and others feel that it is never okay to lie. Some crimes are too serious and this analogy may not apply, but is it not our divine right to be there and help one another.        

            It is hard to justify crimes like rape, murder, child molestation, etc. As a matter of fact, there is no justification for those types of crimes. The place where rehabilitation programs are more effective would be in jails. Most times jails hold people who are in there for less serious crimes such as, drug related crimes, robbery, stealing, just to name a few. These are the offenders who have a chance and learning behavior that will prevent them from committing the same crimes. Those who have committed heinous crimes are usually suffer from some sort of psychological disorder ranging from, psychopathy, sociopathy, and a many more. Many of these criminals are unable to benefit from any kind of rehabilitative program.

            The main goal of rehabilitative programs is to alter an offender’s behavior for the better. They attempt to do so by teaching them different and better ways of dealing with frustrating circumstances. Many times, when someone who has a history of criminal behavior, encounters those situations, it results in criminal behavior or activity. The main goal is to help the offenders reshape their thinking process, this is key in prevent and stopping criminal behavior.

            Rehabilitative justice is a crucial form of punishment. It would be very beneficial if everyone realized such and gave it a chance. I understand the reluctance towards it, but it is time to realize that the previous way of punishment are not being effective, and it is time to give rehabilitation a shot. 

Synthesis

Criminal behavior has become an epidemic in the United States. In more recent years, the issue of overcrowding in jails and prisons has only increased. The amount of people going to jail because of drug related crimes has been one of the main reasons for the overcrowding issues in jails, and even prisons. Due to laws, such as the Three Strikes Law, after more than two offenses criminals are sent to serve longer sentences in prison even if the crimes are less serious. This begs the question of, what are the options for decreasing the number of offenders going in and out of prison or jail? There are a few different forms of punishments and the one that proves to be the most effective is rehabilitative justice. Rehabilitative justice is the most beneficial for decreasing the amount of recidivism, and in helping offender learn how to become contributing members of society. 

          Rehabilitative justice is proven to be the best form of punishment, even though a lot of people believe it lets the offender off too easy. Both rehabilitative and treatment programs are crucial in potentially improving the life styles of inmates upon their release. It is important to understand most jails and prisons provide a variety of programs to help inmates resist criminal activity once out of corrections (Rehabilitation, 1). However, a number of people feel that spending money on these programs is a huge waste of it, and that enough money is already being spent on criminals (Meyer, 3).  The daily cost of each inmates is $79. 49 per day, per inmate (Cost of Corrections, 1). This number does not take into account what type of security it is; for instance, if the inmate is in maximum security the cost rises. Therefore, rather than making sure criminal are incarcerated, the court should be making sure they are getting help to stay out of corrections. Most jails and prisons do have programs available in helping the inmates with day to day life outside of confinement.

          All of the programs that jails and prisons offer can be very beneficial to the inmate, when they take the program seriously. Almost all jails and prison have programs that allow inmates to get their GED’s or even a high school diploma (Rehabilitation, 1). The importance of this is because corrections believe doing this will help them make better decisions upon release and continue to want to better themselves. The inmates who participate in the program typically do not pursue higher education, but they do look and aim to maintain a job, (Rehabilitation, 1). Another program they offer is teaching them how not only to maintain a job but also relationships. They teach them certain skills to build healthy relationship in either work, romantic, familial, and or amicable. Having better relationships with people will lead to less recidivism because they will be less motivated to partake in criminal behavior out of fear of losing the relationships they have built. That, of course, only applies to those who have truly taken the teachings to heart and care to make their lives’ better. Jails and prisons also offer psychological treatment.

          For many inmates, receiving psychological help is imperative in their willingness to get better. Especially for those who are in there because of drug charges, they need the opportunity to get better and many times these programs give it to them. However, most of them do not have the financial means necessary to do this on their own, even if they do want to, and most rehabilitative programs outside of a correctional facility are extremely expensive, (Rehabilitation, 1). Most people who find themselves in jail or prison because of drugs do not have the money to get psychological help for their addiction. That is terrible because a meta- analysis, which is a form of measuring statistics, concluded that rehabilitative programs reduce recidivism by 10 percent, (Davis, 1). The reasons these programs are crucial is because the intent behind them is to alter the inmates’ way of thinking and behaving, (Rehabilitative,1). In achieving this, they help the inmate learn other forms of expressing themselves, when they would have originally done some form of criminal act.

          Another way Jails and prisons try and help inmates learn work ethic, is by assigning them tasks around the facility. The tasks are usually maintenance on the facility, working on the prison farm, and working in a prison industry, (Rehabilitation, 1). Many people feel that rather than trying to teach them skills, the facilities do this to keep the inmates from just standing around all day. Jails and prisons also provide something called work programs. Work programs teach the inmates to basic things like how to make a resume, interview, and how to apply for a job. Learning these basic things really help with them and being able to get ahead in life upon release, (Rehabilitation and Reentry for Former Prisoners, 1).

          In summation, there are a plethora of evidence proving that rehabilitation and treatment programs are prevalent in helping inmates. The number of re-offenses is still high and without attempting to change each individual nothing will change that. In creating more programs more inmates will get a chance at reestablishing a healthy life with healthy relationships, and day to day activities. Ensuring their psychological help is essential and more people need to make it a focus to help inmates.