I know many people won't agree with this, but here's my take on the recent situation of young Mr. Tobin:
He received 3 years for his crime. He received 7 years of having no drivers license for his actions. This punishment is both sufficient and not-quite-enough.
First of all, his crime was unlike those who intentionally murder someone or rape someone or even burglarize property or peoples homes. These criminal acts are most often planned and/or malicious in nature. His was neither planned nor malicious. It was an act without a pre-determined outcome.
Simply: If someone points a gun at a person and pulls the trigger, there is a strong possibility the person being shot will die. If not, they will be seriously injured. There are limited outcomes to this.... in other words the person pulling the trigger has only one intent, and he/she intends only one outcome.
Tobin had no such intent. In fact quite the opposite ... he and his friends were out on the town to have a good time... which went horribly wrong. Tobin spending some of the next 3 years behind bars is a fair sentence. Whats not fair, is having his license revoked for only a lousy 7 years. Why are we providing him with more ammunition in 7 years from now?
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Let us examine our prison and rehabilitation system more in depth before I continue.
First of all the prison system has 2 main goals.
- to rehabilitate the offender
- to keep the public safe from offenders
They also have several methods of doing this:
- Education and training
- Morality and ethics courses
- Teaching people to take responsibility for their actions
Our prison system is overwhelmed. Drug dealers, murderers, rapists, take up only a portion of the space and financial burden required to house these people. There are also many 'white-collar' criminals behind bars. Not to mention those convicted of drug-related offenses, petty criminal acts and violence. The long and short of it, is that we don't have enough space or resources to take care of the problem. We need to look at alternatives.
On top of this, if people have no intention of changing their ways, all the training and education won't do a darn bit of good. Some are beyond rehab. Others just don't care.
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Using these main criteria, 3 years - less time served etc - means Tobin will serve just under 2 years behind bars, and that - in my opinion, is enough time for him to learn about the effects of booze and drinking/driving. Some wanted him incarcerated for 8-12 years... That's just revenge talking, not logic.
Has his sentence succeeded in accomplishing the goals of our justice system? Perhaps. But only time and future events will show whether it worked or not. I prefer our justice system errs on the side of public safety before showing leniency to criminals.
This guy isn't malicious, he isn't a hardened criminal, he has no intention of committing more criminal acts and was - by all accounts - very remorseful. Do we need to keep the public safe from him? Absolutely! But he's only a danger to the public when he's behind a steering wheel and has been drinking.
So the solution isn't to throw him in jail and throw away the key - as some of the public is demanding. The solution is to take away his ability to endanger society - not for 7 years, but for 20!
Seven years of having no license? That's the weak part of his sentence. By the time he's 30 or so, he'll be back on the roads again. Personally, I don't wanna be anywhere near him when he's back on the road!
Take his license away for 20 years, forbid him from owning a vehicle, and forbid him from the consumption of alcohol for the same period of time. Make these conditions to his sentence!
While some would argue that he was aware of the laws and possible outcomes of drinking and driving and deserves a much stiffer sentence, I would disagree. Youth has never been known to make rational decisions, regardless of the possible outcomes. "It couldn't happen to me" is one of the most common underlying thoughts.
While a longer sentence might appease some people, it won't bring back the victim, and it won't serve as a reminder to others not to drink and drive. He doesn't need more time behind bars - if he hasn't learned his lesson in the remaining 2 years of time to be served, he likely never will.
From what I saw on the news, heard on the radio, and have read in the papers, Tobin is very remorseful, and plans to rehabilitate himself. Lets hope he does, but as a deterrent, take away his ability to harm the public. Take away his license, vehicles and drinking capabilities.
More jail time won't do anyone any good.
He received 3 years for his crime. He received 7 years of having no drivers license for his actions. This punishment is both sufficient and not-quite-enough.
First of all, his crime was unlike those who intentionally murder someone or rape someone or even burglarize property or peoples homes. These criminal acts are most often planned and/or malicious in nature. His was neither planned nor malicious. It was an act without a pre-determined outcome.
Simply: If someone points a gun at a person and pulls the trigger, there is a strong possibility the person being shot will die. If not, they will be seriously injured. There are limited outcomes to this.... in other words the person pulling the trigger has only one intent, and he/she intends only one outcome.
Tobin had no such intent. In fact quite the opposite ... he and his friends were out on the town to have a good time... which went horribly wrong. Tobin spending some of the next 3 years behind bars is a fair sentence. Whats not fair, is having his license revoked for only a lousy 7 years. Why are we providing him with more ammunition in 7 years from now?
----------------------------
Let us examine our prison and rehabilitation system more in depth before I continue.
First of all the prison system has 2 main goals.
- to rehabilitate the offender
- to keep the public safe from offenders
They also have several methods of doing this:
- Education and training
- Morality and ethics courses
- Teaching people to take responsibility for their actions
Our prison system is overwhelmed. Drug dealers, murderers, rapists, take up only a portion of the space and financial burden required to house these people. There are also many 'white-collar' criminals behind bars. Not to mention those convicted of drug-related offenses, petty criminal acts and violence. The long and short of it, is that we don't have enough space or resources to take care of the problem. We need to look at alternatives.
On top of this, if people have no intention of changing their ways, all the training and education won't do a darn bit of good. Some are beyond rehab. Others just don't care.
------------------------
Using these main criteria, 3 years - less time served etc - means Tobin will serve just under 2 years behind bars, and that - in my opinion, is enough time for him to learn about the effects of booze and drinking/driving. Some wanted him incarcerated for 8-12 years... That's just revenge talking, not logic.
Has his sentence succeeded in accomplishing the goals of our justice system? Perhaps. But only time and future events will show whether it worked or not. I prefer our justice system errs on the side of public safety before showing leniency to criminals.
This guy isn't malicious, he isn't a hardened criminal, he has no intention of committing more criminal acts and was - by all accounts - very remorseful. Do we need to keep the public safe from him? Absolutely! But he's only a danger to the public when he's behind a steering wheel and has been drinking.
So the solution isn't to throw him in jail and throw away the key - as some of the public is demanding. The solution is to take away his ability to endanger society - not for 7 years, but for 20!
Seven years of having no license? That's the weak part of his sentence. By the time he's 30 or so, he'll be back on the roads again. Personally, I don't wanna be anywhere near him when he's back on the road!
Take his license away for 20 years, forbid him from owning a vehicle, and forbid him from the consumption of alcohol for the same period of time. Make these conditions to his sentence!
While some would argue that he was aware of the laws and possible outcomes of drinking and driving and deserves a much stiffer sentence, I would disagree. Youth has never been known to make rational decisions, regardless of the possible outcomes. "It couldn't happen to me" is one of the most common underlying thoughts.
While a longer sentence might appease some people, it won't bring back the victim, and it won't serve as a reminder to others not to drink and drive. He doesn't need more time behind bars - if he hasn't learned his lesson in the remaining 2 years of time to be served, he likely never will.
From what I saw on the news, heard on the radio, and have read in the papers, Tobin is very remorseful, and plans to rehabilitate himself. Lets hope he does, but as a deterrent, take away his ability to harm the public. Take away his license, vehicles and drinking capabilities.
More jail time won't do anyone any good.
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