Philosophy of Crime PaperCollin DavisCRJ 451Professor GriffinMay 2014Philosophy of CrimeCrime control, consisting of many elements of prevention and punishment, is a widely debated and often controversial topic. Myriad agendas occur in government and society, depending on the type of organizational or philosophical goal being sought to achieve. There are policy differences within the criminal justice system that are based on certain models, techniques, and methods associated with crime prevention. Society functions as another element in crime control, as an underlying fear often creates pressure to enact programs and laws. The media enters as a forum to present conservative and liberal views to promulgate and enforce criminal laws and punishments. A debate about crime often strives to define prevention and punishment, in models that make these terms mutually exclusive, versus the view that crime prevention is an outcome and punishment only a possible means of achieving that outcome. The different forms of punishment in relation to the criminal justice system will be discussed, as well as the purpose served by punishment, problems relating to punishment and a view on improvements and solutions. False beliefs about crime and the criminal justice system are often created by media coverage. Statistics on crime rates, violent crime, racial involvement and youth crime are often misrepresented, furthering society's fear of crime. These crime myths tend to lead the public to resort to more punitive solutions and severe sanctions for criminals. However, many Americans also want to rehabilitate and examine the underlying causes of crime. To understand the possible forms of punishment, one can look to the… center of the paper… over the last few decades, when a tough approach to crime has been adopted in the United States. According to Barkan and Bryjak this approach has not served as a deterrent to crime. What has happened is overpopulated prisons and prisoners being released into society with little to no rehabilitation, causing a vicious cycle of repeat offenders. The focus of the criminal justice system must shift from punishment to prevention. Prevention can manifest itself in many programs: focusing on at-risk urban populations, targeting younger children to provide mentors to help them avoid falling into patterns of criminal behavior, creating jobs to help low-income and better families rehabilitation programs for those who do. end up in the prison system. Shift the billions of dollars spent on incarceration to a framework that will succeed: prevention.