ABSTRACT
The criminal justice system (CJS) dispenses justice by apprehending, prosecuting, and punishing individuals who break the law. These activities may also prevent crime by three distinct mechanisms: incapacitation, specific deterrence and general deterrence. Convicted offenders are often punished with imprisonment. Incapacitation refers to the crimes averted by their physical isolation during the period of their incarceration. Specific and general deterrence involve possible behavioral responses. Specific deterrence refers to the reduction in re-offending that is presumed to follow from the experience of actually being punished. The threat of punishment might also discourage potential and actual criminals in the general public from committing crime. This effect is referred to a general deterrence.
