Prompt: Some people believe that there should be fixed punishments for each type of crime. Others, however, argue that the circumstances of an individual crime, and the motivation for committing it, should always be taken into account when deciding on the punishment. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

It is true that the crime rate is increasing nowadays therefore, some people think that fixed punishments should be given for specific crimes. On the other hand others believe that there are certain circumstances behind the individuals that led them to commit such crimes and it is necessary that their situations should be considered before penalizing them. In my opinion, a fair and thorough investigation of criminal cases should be conducted before making judgements so that the innocents will not get punished. Ċ Firstly, the pre-determined punishments will save time and money as there would be lesser time consumed in running a case and deciding punishments. Furthermore, these resources could be used for fulfilling the basic necessities of common people rather than spending on notorious ones. A survey conducted by a research institute showed that the countries with harsh and strict laws has lesser crime rates. Secondly, it might cultivate the fear among the offenders so that they would be afraid to commit such crimes. For example, if the child abusers aware how would they be punished in the future, they would think twice before carrying out such activities. Thus, it can be said that fixed penalties are beneficial in cutting down offences, and there should be specific for each type of misconduct. Ċ On the flip side, some people argued that there are certain conditions such as poverty, blackmailing that force these underprivileged people to execute these felonies consequently, it is critical for the judges to consider the past of the individuals before making decisions. For instance, a woman whose family was dependent on her and has no source of income might drag herself to prostitution out of pressure. Ċ Finally, it can be rightly said that the fixed law structure should be made in reducing crime rates in the societies while it is also necessary to consider the situations of a person that forced him to become a criminal. In my view, there should be a complete and fair analysis of each illegal pursuit so that the innocents would not get punished for the crimes they did not do. However, it is the duty of every citizen to help these vulnerable people so that they would get another chance to revive their lives.