The debate around reducing the punishment for crimes has been ongoing, with some people believing that lighter sentences will deter criminal behavior. However, this idea is misguided and dangerous, as it ignores the fact that reducing punishment does not prevent crimes from happening.
In many metropolitan areas, we have seen the consequences of district attorneys creating exceptions to the rule of law and making non-enforcement choices. This approach leads to an increase in crime, as criminals see that they can commit certain crimes without any real consequences.
When district attorneys choose not to charge certain crimes, it creates a mindset that these crimes are now permissible with little or no punishment. This, in turn, opens the door for people who would not have committed a crime in the past to now do so. It is creating more criminals, which is not acceptable on any level, whether it’s on the county, city, state, or federal level.
Sadly, this same dangerous mindset is being pushed into laws on the state level, where the punishments for certain crimes are being reduced. By doing this, lawmakers are introducing the mindset that these crimes are not as bad as previously thought, which will ultimately lead to more crime. For Example, in California the bill SB 145 passed both legislative houses, and would remove the requirement for offenders to register as a sex offender after committing certain sex acts with minors within a 10-year age difference. Before it was signed into law, Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove tweeted “If signed into law, a 24-year-old could have sexual relations with a 15-year-old child without being required to register as a sex offender” (2)
The consequences of these changes are becoming more apparent, with businesses leaving entire cities, such as Walmart’s recent decision to close all stores in Portland due to them being “financially underperforming”. This event clearly shows the failure of reducing punishment for crimes, and even Texas Governor Greg Abbott has commented on it in a tweet, saying “This is what happens when cities refuse to enforce the rule of law.” (1)
The Texas Patriot Republic firmly supports maintaining the rule of law, and we do not support district attorneys that want to undermine the law and create more criminals. One of our core principles is responsibility, and we believe that people should be held accountable for the crimes they commit. It is essential to remember that reducing punishment or removing punishment for crimes does not prevent crimes; it creates more criminals and increases crime.
References:
- Governor Abbott. “This is what happens when cities refuse to enforce the rule of law.” Twitter, 5 March 2023, https://twitter.com/GregAbbott_TX/status/1632396800509321219.
- Senate Republican Leader Shannon Grove. “If signed into law, a 24-year-old could have sexual relations with a 15-year-old child without being required to register as a sex offender” Twitter, September 1 2020, https://twitter.com/ShannonGroveCA/status/1300897141678772225
