UPDATE: Ahmaud Arbery's 3 murderers all found guilty. Sentenced to LIFE in prison.

This is true; certainty of being caught and convicted are far more effective deterrents. That being said, severity of sentence plays a role. Could you imagine what kind of message something like a deferred sentence with probation would send?

 

Yep, BUT, it's notoriously difficult to determine who did not commit a crime because of fear of punishment. I also think the message isn't always deterrent as much as it is reassurance to society that those who commit crimes will get their just desserts.

 

Consistent ultra low sentences for serious crimes would probably have an effect to some extent. But I'm skeptical we would see any increase in crime if we, for example, halved sentences across the board. Might even see crime go down as people spend less time in the prison crime training grounds.

 

I'm not a fan of life sentences for any of them for reasons you already know, but def agree with the idea that a stiff sentence can be a deterrent, one for yahoos like these guys who appoint themselves vigilantes, though not for those regularly involved in crime.

Might be a wake up call for the wannabe enforcers.

 

Yep. We agree to disagree on the first point.

 

Gotta be consistent.

 

Deterrent sentencing policies are for rational people. Most outrageous crimes are committed by people who are not rational at the moment.

 

You might want to be clear that you mean general deterrent. Because I guarantee you that life without parole is a heck of a good specific deterrent even among the irrational.

 

How? Is it a definitionally rational concept.

Why would anyone choose that?

 

Specific deterrent means deterring the particular offender that committed the offense from committing another. So the only specific deterent that is more effective than life in prison is death. The latter hasn’t resulted in a reoffender yet.

 

Well that’s a qualifier I suppose I wasn’t considering. I might agree with that take.

I did indeed mean the generic.

A dude already jammed might now be baby-shaked into reason.

 

I agree with all that. My only point was that while there are other factors that are certainly more important than severity of punishment it doesn’t mean we can “ignore” it either.

 

The crazy part is someone watched the video and decided not to arrest them. They chased an unarmed man while they are armed. The man did what most would have done under the same circumstance, he tried to get away. Once he is in a position that getting away isn’t possible, he did what any reasonable person would have done. He tried to defend himself. I think the liberals on this board are sometimes too quick to blame racism but this one is obvious. No way there isn’t an arrest if this happened to a white guy killed by 3 black guys chasing him under these circumstances.

 

I don't have the energy to go back in the thread to see who suggested Arberry was the aggressor, but I can take a pretty good guess without even looking.

 

Excellent point. Most crimes are of passion or spur of the moment, I would think.

 

Atbury’s murderer is now facing a federal hate crimes trial, and to no one’s surprise, it turns out he is a prolific racist. The jury was read numerous racist texts and facebooks messages, as well as him showing support for vigilantism, and sharing a hateful song written by a white supremacist…

Arbery killer shared racist messages, white supremacist song with friends

 

I'm not a fan of bringing federal charges when people were already convicted at the state level (I also have some uneasiness when they're not tried or not convicted at the state level) even if there is an argument to be made that they violated federal laws too thus making the vulnerable to federal prosecution. But this to me is akin to trying people for what are essentially the same acts, just sliced differently.

It rubs me the wrong way.

 

Also, I am sure the state trial will be appealed. He probably loses it, but they probably view it as best to make sure.

 

Found guilty on the hate crime crarges, too.

Live updates: Ahmaud Arbery's killers found guilty on all counts in federal hate crime trial