Prison State (pun intended)

New Zealand has long had a problem with prison population, and we currently have 199 inmates for every 100,000 citizens, the 7^th highest inmate: citizen ratio in the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development). It is also predicted that if current trends continue New Zealand will soon be 3^rd, following The United States and Poland, which is quite concerning considering the US has almost 25% of the world’s inmate population. This is clearly showing that New Zealand’s justice system is greatly failing.

The reason for New Zealand’s high crime rate is that there is no real fear of going to prison, and why would there be? Free rooms, hot meals, heated floors, recreation facilities, and in some cases sky television, these sound more like the amenities of a small motel, not a penitentiary. Should we really be offering murderers and rapists such a lifestyle?

H. Naci Mocan, from the University of Colorado at Denver, created a study that looked at over 3000 US counties over a period of two decades, and came to the conclusion that every execution saved 5 lives. He went on to say "I personally am opposed to the death penalty... But my research shows that there is a deterrent effect."
The return of the death penalty (new Star Wars title?) in New Zealand would create a strong deterrent against crime as it has done in the United States.

Obviously we can’t execute everyone, death for petty theft would be insane, so I would purpose capital punishment only be plagued upon those who have committed murder, treason, and crimes of a sexual nature i.e. child molesters and serial rapists. But of course more concrete and specific regulations would have to be put in place if New Zealand was to become a capital punishment state again.

Along with the death penalty, I also believe stronger punishment and sentences are needed right across the board, life imprisonment should mean till death not 10 to 15 years. And for those who have committed lesser crimes perhaps the money that will no longer be spent on housing high risk prisoners (as they’ll be executed), could instead be spent on rehabilitation programs helping to prevent repeat offenders.