In yesterday's discussion of prisons and all that jazz, someone mentioned that prison should be rehabilitative, but that certain psychopathic serial killers cannot be rehabilitated and thus should not be catered to.
This reminded me of the "Son of Sam". David Berkowitz killed 6 people in the 70's, and later converted to Christianity and became remorseful for his actions. Read more about him, if you find murder entertaining.
Not saying religion is the way to go, but is this proof that there is some way to rehabilitate these so-called psychopaths?
Discuss.
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6 comments:
I think yes and no. I think you could feel true remorse for certain action given a strict moral code, like the Bible. Scociopaths lack the ability to feel remorse or true emotions. I feel some people could be remorseful but I think we would need more research regarding someone like David to actually find answers
I would argue that prisons can serve multiple roles. A prison can be a place for rehabilitation for the vast majority of offenders, but there are those that have violated the social contract to such a degree that they have forfeited the privileged of living in society. Under Lockean social contract theory, humans come together to form the commonwealth to ensure the protection of their natural rights. If the threat to people's natural rights is coming from within the commonwealth, it stands to reason that the threat must be removed to protect the natural of citizens.
However, the commonwealth must still respect some of the natural rights of the offender because they still retain essence of human dignity. So prison must be a place where these offenders are kept away from the commonwealth but are still treated humanely.
I personally think that anyone can be rehabilitated. I think it’s more a question of should we give them the chance to or not. It doesn’t matter how many people you’ve killed, there’s always a chance that down the like you can come to regret your actions and want to turn your life around. However, should you even be given the chance to do so? Prisons definitely don’t do their job of rehabilitation well. Most people are in prison due to retribution, not because the justice system feels that they will somehow be rehabilitated and able to enter back into society. I think the more open people are to forgiveness and second chances, the better off our modern day system will be.
In my opinion, prisons can definitely rehabilitate prisoners. However, in order to accomplish this, they must first treat prisoners with respect. Prisoners have already been dealt with punishment, in the form of their sentences, and they should not have to suffer any further abuse from guards and other staff. Secondly, prisoners should be provided with mental support, such as regular meetings with psychiatrists and the availability of antipsychotic drugs. Thirdly, prisoners should be given the opportunity to learn valuable job skills which they can put to use after serving their prison terms. A combination of all three of these rehabilitory services would have a positive impact not only for prisoners but also for society as a whole.
Serial killers are caught after killing multiple people, and are placed in solitary confinement for life or given the death penalty, therefore what exactly is the point of giving them rehab options if they're not going to be put back in society in the first place. I personally find it hard to sympathize with serial killers, but I do feel pain for the victims' family members, friends, etc., and I think finding justice for them is much more important. As Andrew said, prisons serve multiple roles, one being punishment, and for serial killers, this should be their only option.
I believe that psychopaths are very capable of “finding the light”, but I don't think as a society it is acceptable to commend them for changing. If someone is a serial killer, it marks them for life. If they let out a side of themselves that allows them to kill, regardless if they change their ways after the fact, I don’t think they would ever be able to completely get rid of that dark side. Also, I don't think killers can be rehabilitated if they don't truly regret the crimes they have committed.
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