Strenghtening of the Penitentiary System in the Function of Crime Prevention

Igrački, Jasmina and Stepanović, Ivana (2017) Strenghtening of the Penitentiary System in the Function of Crime Prevention. In: International Scientific Conference "Archibald Reiss Days", Belgrade, 7-9 November 2017. Academy of Criminalistic and Police Studies, Belgrade, pp. 171-179. ISBN 978-86-7020-378-5

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Abstract

This paper analyses the role of the penitentiary system in prevention and control of crime which has been constantly growing over the last decades and which is being expressed in different and more and more severe forms. While looking for mechanisms for fghting against crime, the prevalent opinion is that the more severe penal policy and longer prison sentences have greater effects on deterring future perpetrators. The role of the penitentiary institutions in combating crime can be viewed from three perspectives which correspond to three schools of thought. The first theory claims that penitentiary institutions repress criminal behaviour because the discomforts of life in prison and negative social stigma contribute to crime prevention. The second school of thought claims that the prisons are “schools of crime”, namely, that they teach criminals and reaffirm their criminal behaviour. The third theory which is ofen called the “minimalistic theory” claims that the consequences of penitentiary institutions in crime prevention are largely minimal and that being in prison has more negative than positive effects. This paper emphasises the need for strengthening the penitentiary institutions which would then be qualifed to influence the change of criminal pattern of behaviour of the perpetrators which would signiffcantly contribute to crime prevention. There is a general consensus in the field of penology that it is necessary to strengthen the penitentiary institutions in two directions: the first one is towards an improvement of normative acts and organisation of the prison system in line with international standards and the second one is towards the introduction of new, contemporary treatment programs which would respect individuality and personal characteristics of convicts, i.e. specialisation of treatments for speciffc categories of prisoners.

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