International Journal on Criminology • Volume 8 , Number 1 • Winter 2020 / 2021
Foreword | Better Late Than Never : Major Criminology Policy Changes
This journal will be especially timely in the coming years , perhaps regrettably . A new administration in Washington in 2021 doesn ’ t necessarily result in major policy changes as far as attitudes towards crime , but this time around there may be a sea change in the United States legal remedies , and as a consequence possibly a rethink of world attitudes . Better late than never might be the retort .
President Biden has a special interest because of his frequent regrets and repudiation of his earlier attitudes while a United States Senator . He had a very hard nosed view of how to cope with crime , which had a good deal to do with draconian penalties and the incarceration of millions of people over the years for relatively minor offenses . He now belatedly concedes that more harm than good was done . A particular example was the criminalization of drug offenses , which destroyed many lives .
Indisputably the penalties were particularly harmful to the African American community . Cynics might point out that their votes were especially important to the Biden victory at the polls , but his remorse and call for reversal of sentencing
There has been a sort of Oxford Union debate between countries for years about the severity of punishment , with the American courts handing out what in many other countries would be regarded as virtually life sentences . Certainly , this will be an area where an acceleration in policy repair can be expected .
Moreover , the maxim that new occasions teach new duties again will prove true . Computer offenses have been increasing , and we all know too well that hacking no longer applies to horse drawn carriages in parks . Lindbergh style child snatching has been supplanted by holding data for ransom , which has become an alarming trend . Nor are the police appearances at Friday end-of-theweek office parties a surprise as we try to escape the virus .
If that were not enough worry , the use of pardons has become a troublesome political issue without a ready solution . And the major entry of business into space has created a whole new area for misadventure .
In short , crime is a growth industry . So we can expect as usual that the issues presented in these pages will handsomely test our notions of morality and ethics , as well as uses of technology . Misadventure and its consequences are firmly in the saddle .
Paul Rich President , Policy Studies Organization v doi : 10.18278 / ijc . 8.1.1