The Exaggeration of Rules and Laws essays

The Exaggeration of Rules and Laws essays In The Death of Common Sense, Philip K. Howard argues that the present day over-reliance on statutes and regulations in America as a means to create a just and fair society has, in fact, achieved just the opposite. In presenting his case, Howard is actually making a strong point in reminding the reader that the dispensation of justice requires the understanding and practice of the spirit of the law. Blind application and adherence to statutes of law will only lead to a system that may end up Howard traces the root of the system to the rationalist movement in the 1960s that favored statutory law, as it was believed to be more consistent and fair: "The credo of this rationalist order, like our law today, was that government should be self-executing and dispassionate. The idea spawned numerous reform movements, including socialism. It also led to the invention of modern bureaucracy." (Howard, 27-28) It is evident in the preceding statement that the spirit behind the formation of statutory law was unquestionably praiseworthy. Unfortunately, the solution devised led to a bureaucratic system that only succeeded in loosing sight of that very Bureaucracies, as is widely acknowledged, usually lead to the stifling of good ideas, innovation, initiative and most important a loss of perspective. Indeed, experience has shown again and again that bureaucracies usually miss the wood for the trees. And in doing so defeat the larger purpose for which they were set up in the first place. Howard ably demonstrates this very point when he cites the example of Mother Teresa's nuns of the Missionaries of Charity having to perforce abandon their plans to convert two abandoned buildings into homeless shelters in New York City on account of the bureaucratic insistence of the city's building code that the nuns would have to install a lift (Howard, 3-5). The ...

Juvenile Recidivism and Restitution essays

Juvenile Recidivism and Restitution essays Develop a list of reasons why restitution should reduce recidivism and a list of reasons why it might not. Does restitution make sense to you? In the response to the high rise in crime, most states have adopted a "get tough" response to juveniles that focuses solely on punishment. However, many states, strive to maintain a balance between reducing crime and helping young offenders to learn from their mistakes and avoid possible incarceration in the future. A restitution program is a court diversion program that was developed in collaboration with the Juvenile Justice System. The purpose of the program is to provide an alternative to prosecution for first-time juvenile offenders, in certain misdemeanor cases. The focus of the program is to enable youth who have been arrested for committing a crime (e.g. burglary; vandalism; minor assault or other misdemeanors), to meet face to face with the victim and work out a payment plan for the damage suffered by the victim. The program provides all parties in a juvenile offense (the victim, the offending juvenile, and the juvenile's parents or guardians) the opportunity to work out an acceptable plan that directly addresses the harm caused by the criminal act. As a court diversion program, the juvenile restitution program also provides an alternative to criminal prosecution and the exigencies of the criminal justice system. As a diversion program, the offender may avoid criminal prosecution, court appearances, sentencing alternatives and a record of criminal conviction. Likewise, the victim is not subjected to the rigors involved in a legal case, and may have a better opportunity for direct compensation. The victims are often schools, parks, or other government bodies, as well as private shop owners and property owners. The victims and juvenile offenders are often from the same neighborhood or the same general part of the island. Victims and the parents of the juvenile offenders report...