ABSTRACT
The punishment of individuals is justified as a means of social control primarily because crime is a wrong that harms the public welfare as distinguished from a wrong that merely harms the interests of a private individual. To be sure, when an individual is unlawfully assaulted, it is both a private wrong and a public wrong. The victim of the assault might sue the assailant for compensation while the government might prosecute and incarcerate the assailant for a crime against the order and security of society.
