> Criminals aren’t deterred by the punishment terms, and upgrading minor thefts to serious crime levels is contributing to the mass incarceration problem across

> Criminals aren’t deterred by the punishment terms, and upgrading minor thefts to serious crime levels is contributing to the mass incarceration problem across the US. I think the problem with mass incarceration is more one of mental illness and punishing the associated problems [0] than punishing intelligent-but-lazy people who’d rather wreck people’s rides by stealing catalytic converters than apply themselves productively. [0] https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/numbers-mental-illness-behind-bars https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/numbers-mental-illness-b... Going after rings of catalytic converters thieves is appropriate, if you look for the smart people at the top (head gangster providing direction, etc). I agree with your last paragraph. Several of my passengers were not well served by their punitive punishments - they had more problems (PTSD, etc) after prison than before.