Many who sexually abuse others were themselves sexually abused. This is not excusing their actions, but it absolutely should be kept in mind when considering th

Many who sexually abuse others were themselves sexually abused. This is not excusing their actions, but it absolutely should be kept in mind when considering the punishment for any sort of crime. From petty to heinous, many people who commit crimes come from very shitty situations. And even those that don't often simply have mental issues. What about the truly evil? Should we not consider them 'sick'? The problem is that justice is seen entirely from a punitive perspective. I hope, in the future, that most crimes will be treated with not a punitive hand but a rehabilitative one. Drug abuse should be met with rehab, not mandatory minimums. Likewise, hopefully it will become the case that we will try to treat violent offenders instead of just carting them off to prison to rot or commit crimes again upon release. Prisons wouldn't disappear of course, but hopefully they would become options of last resort instead of the first solution.