The Criminal Justice System: Classical And Positivist Approach

The criminal justice system has always been a topic of strong controversy, with various contrasting sides and multiple opposing opinions. In reference to these differing views are the two schools of criminology: the school of classics and the school of positivist. Simply put, the school of classics focused more on the crime and punishment of the criminal whereas the school of positivist focused on the criminal and how to typically “rehabilitate the criminal” in order to prevent the crime. Note that while there may be two distinct schools with differing ideas, there cannot be such a case that is so one sided that fits under that school exclusively, rather it must be a “combination of classical and positivist principles” (Kubrin 9). However,
Piper was a woman who no one would even believe committed such a crime. As she declared, everyone “doubted that a ‘nice blond lady’ like me could ever end up in prison” (Kerman 22). With no previous or recent situations and involvements in any crime, she had a “sympathetic story to tell” (Kerman 23), one in which could appeal to the fact that she was not in the right state of mind; she was in love. The crime that she was entangled in was due to the fact that her lover at the time was in a drug smuggling operation and that her emotions got in the way of her right state of mind. The fact that Piper even states herself that she has put that incident in her past signifies that this was something she has forgotten or at the very least tried to forget, which ultimately ties in the sense that Piper Kerman is not a woman who thrives on committing crimes but is a human being that was in love at the time and got involved due to the fact that she simply wanted to “help” her lover in any way she could. This correlates to the idea under the school of positivist that “crime is determined by factors largely outside the control of the individual” (8). When asked what Piper did with the money she responded saying that she wasn’t in it for the money, which implies that she was simply involved because of the situation she was in that was beyond her control. Being in love can cause a person to do
Piper allowed her situation at the time to get ahold of her which caused her to commit a crime. In a sense, Piper was technically manipulated to get involved. This state of manipulation and influence caused her to become entangled with the drug smuggle, and as a result, the situation was not from Piper’s own free will but rather from the emotional and situational manipulation. As stated under the school of positivist, “since criminals did not freely choose their criminal behavior, it is inappropriate to punish them for their crimes” (Kubrin 8). However, since Kerman did commit the crime, the goal under the school of positivist is that “individualized treatment must be achieved” and an “important means for achieving this goal of particularized treatment is the indeterminate sentence: offenders remain in prison for as long as it takes to effect a ‘cure’” (Kubrin 9). Therefore, while Piper may not have committed the crime for any other reason than simply being in love, her incarceration is to help rehabilitate and prevent her from committing any future crimes like the such. Piper’s punishment should not be the same as others who were involved for other reasons but rather aim to help “rehabilitate”