Corporal Punishment
In 1994, Michael Fay, an American teenager was convicted of spray painting parked cars in Singapore and was flogged as punishment. The flogging (called caning because it is done with a bamboo rod) sparked an international outcry from opponents of corporal punishment. In this country, however, it also led to a rebirth of interest in physical punishments—especially for teenagers and vandals.
The last official flogging of a criminal offender in the U.S. took place in Delaware on June 16, 1952, when a burglar was tied to a whipping post in the state’s central prison and was given about 20 lashes. Since then, no sentencing authority in this country has imposed flogging or whipping as a criminal punishment, and most jurisdictions have removed all forms of corporal punishments from the statutes. Amnesty International, however, reports that whipping is still in use in parts of the world for certain kinds of prisoners.
After the Fay flogging, lawmakers in eight states introduced legislation to institute whipping or paddling as a criminal sanction- arguing that it would do less harm (for offender and society) in the long run than sending them to prison. Mississippi legislators proposed paddling graffitists and petty thieves, Tennessee lawmakers considered punishing vandals and burglars by public caning on courthouse steps, the New Mexico Senate Judiciary Committee examined the feasibility of caning graffiti vandals, and Louisiana looked into the possibility of ordering parents (or a correctional officer if the parents refused) to spank their children in judicial chambers. So far, none of these proposals have become laws.
1.) Would a return to corporal punishments, in the form of whipping or paddling, be justified for some offenders? Why or why not?
2.) Might paddling be appropriate for some juvenile offenders? Why or why not?
3.) Do you think that any state legislatures will eventually pass legislation permitting the paddling or whipping or criminal offenders? Why or why not?
4.) Do you think corporal punishment could have some benefits for offenders and/or for society, as opposed to other forms of punishment (e.g., intensive supervision probation, incarceration)?