Last year, as a criminal law student, I discovered that crime rates depend very much on the social structure of a country. According to compilations in Jamaica you usually have lower crime rates in rural, prosperous areas as opposed to the poorer, more violent districts of bigger towns. Efforts to reduce these rates aim at the root of these problems (poverty, poor schooling, joblessness), curing just the effects get only short term results. This means that sooner of later, the Jamaican government will need to take the economic incentives out of crime. Remove the excuses -- addiction, poor upbringing, discrimination. Hold individuals responsible for crimes --- do not excuse criminals because they belong to a group that are most frequently victimized.
Focus on other means of crime deterrence such as the induction of more police officers on the streets. They need to get into the more impetuous communities and establish a strong street presence. Make it OK for people to talk to law enforcement without fear or any reservations. Also there are other things that police can do to depreciate crime such as increased patrols of high crime areas; however this takes money and manpower that some municipalities might not currently have. The police street presence is still very imperative though. This is done in the United Kingdom and polls have shown that people feel much safer in volatile areas when the police officers are around.
On the other hand, many countries have used gun control as a means of reducing crime. The fact is, this does not work and the government should seriously consider the repercussions before initiating this method. Chicago has a handgun ban and as of this past summer the murder rate was 18% higher than last year. In Britain use of handguns to commit crimes rose 40% two years following the total ban on guns. It would seem that criminals prefer that their victims be unarmed and unable to resist. The old saying is true. "When guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns".
Finally, statistical, economic, and operations Research Studies have shown that criminals are "economically rational', i.e. they seek the best payoff for the least cost(risk of getting caught and doing time). In order to ameliorate this, many politicians have suggested prolonged prison sentences for even less serious crimes. I disagree with this notion, Prisons are overcrowded and since a very high percentage of persons are incarcerated as a result of non-violent drug crimes, we may want to reconsider putting people in prison for victimless crimes.
They need to try harder rehabilitating criminals. The best way to prevent crime is to get more anti-drug programs; in other words, make it easier for people to get off their drug habits. A couple of months in rehab is a lot cheaper than 10 years in prison.
Sashakay Fairclough LLB
LLM Law Student
London, England
Sashakay Fairclough is a 21 year old law graduate who is currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Corporate Law. At University, she is a Student Council President and is very active in Student Governance.
