Band 7 essay sample | There should be fixed punishments for each crime

The following is an essay submitted by one of our students.

Essay topic

Some people believe that there should be fixed punishments for each type of crime. Others, however, argue that the circumstances of an individual crime, and the motivation for committing it should always be taken into account when deciding on the punishment.

Discuss both views and give your opinion.

Band 7 essay sample

With the alarming rise in crime rate, it is believed by some people that crimes should be categorised and accordingly punishments be pre-decided.  However, other people are of the opinion that all surrounding factors of committing a crime should be well considered before punishing the criminal.

If the matter is viewed objectively, it is true that fixed punishments will take away a lot of wrong practices  from the judicial system. The judgements will be impartial, people will witness rather quick and fair decisions. For instance, many cases have been brought up by media where it is observed that the judge’s religious or personal beliefs impacted the severity of the punishments. Sometimes the punishments are too severe, and sometimes too liberal. Categorising and pre-deciding the punishments will make the system fair and impartial to a large extent.

On the contrary, it is not just the responsibility of the judicial system to punish the criminals but to also help control the crime rates  to begin with. It is extremely crucial for the judicial system to understand the underlying cause that led to the crime in the first place. For instance, a crime involving murder for greed of money is different from the murder committed in an attempt to save oneself from getting killed. Evaluating the prevailing circumstances, the psychological health of the criminal, in his or her motivation behind the crime are all factors that cannot be marginalised.

With all the different aspects mentioned above, I think that pre-deciding the punishments for a crime is not the most practical solution. It is more important to comprehend overall situation and let the judge analyse and decide upon a punishment that instils fear in the criminal for committing a crime again but at the same time does not prohibit them to live a normal life after completing their punishment.