EVIDENCE: MY SENSE OF JUSTICE

• Some people are biologically predisposed to become criminals.

I agree whit this statement. However, this is not the only factor that conditioned
someone to become in a criminal. Recent twin studies show persuasive evidence
that both genetic and environmental factors contribute to antisocial behavior.
However, the genetic evidence indicates that there is no single gene, or even a
small number of genes, that predict an increased risk of antisocial behavior.
Where there have been some effects, the increase in risk associated with
antisocial behavior is modest.
• Crime is a consequence of poverty.
I agree, but I regard that crime is not only due to poverty, also people can
become in a criminal due to other reasons like mental diseases. However, I
consider that poverty is the main reason and below I will explain why.
Poverty causes many crimes, as, if a person was not poor and had faith in
himself, he would not face the thought that he should search another ways to
get money. Being poor, which could be caused by different reasons, makes a
person unhappy, incapable to earn enough money, to buy anything he wants or
at least something necessary. Poverty determines a certain stereotype in a
person’s thoughts, and he does not see any constructive solving of the problem,
as he wants to choose the easiest way of getting money, even harming other
people. Poverty has a huge psychological influence on people, who become
depressed, desperate and then they decide to commit a crime, as they have not
found anything that can legally get them out of such situation. Too many
problems that a person faces in the modern society makes him get angrier on
the whole situation and look for the new way of solving their problem. The
desperate economic situation in any country and consequently the lack of the
work places especially for young people creates the thoughts and actions of
crime. No guarantees from the government and no proper help to people who
are poor, leads to the chaos and misunderstanding, where the only way out they
find is to commit a crime.
 • A criminal cannot be reformed.
I disagree with this statement, because, I think a criminal can be reformed, how?
Making social reforms in order to give them another opportunity. The main
problem that offenders face, when it comes to deciding on a career or a life of
crime, is that many criminals are excluded from the traditional career path due
to their criminal record, often from an early age. A new system needs to be in
place so that a criminal record background check, especially for minor
offenders, is only relevant to the career path they follow. For example, people
caught selling drugs cannot work as a pharmacist, people accused of fraud
cannot work as an accountant or financial advisor, people accused of sex
offences cannot work in care homes, public swimming baths, etc. This is just a
few examples. I met someone who was moving from the private sector to the
public sector, working training prisoners. He was in his thirties and despite
having no other convictions he was refused the job because he stole a
watermelon from a market stall when he was sixteen. This is clearly ridiculous.
If you are arrested for being in possession of one joint when you are eighteen
that can stop you from getting any decent job in the future
• To reduce crime, we just need more police.
I strongly disagree with this statement; Police are important, but not sufficient,
in the crime-reduction effort. Policing experts and criminologists say that
increasing the size of a police force does not ensure a decrease in crime. They
said that other issues must be weighed, like what roles existing officers were
filling and whether adding officers would cause added stress in communities
where tensions between the police and residents were already high.
On the other hand, crime is a clear consequence to lack of opportunities and
access to education system. When a person since his childhood cannot get
access to education, most of times him or her do not find another option to
survive, that to criminal life. We clearly can see that in countries like Finland
where access to education is easy, crime rates are so low, contrarily, countries
like for example Somalia have a high crime rate.
• Some criminals deserve the death penalty
I agree, in the case of hazard criminals, death penalty is necessary. It sounds
very cruel, but there are several criminals who do not show repentance about
their acts. I regard that death penalty is especially necessary with criminals who
have committed offenses against children. For me that is unacceptable.

Daniela Cuellar