NCJ Number
60534
Journal
Journal of Orthomolecular Psychiatry Volume: 8 Issue: 3 Dated: (3RD QUARTER 1979) Pages: 193-199
Date Published
1979
Length
7 pages
Annotation
THE ORTHOMOLECULAR SOLUTION GOES BEYOND PSYCHOSOCIAL TREATMENT AND MUST BE APPLIED TO PERSONS ACCUSED OF CRIME AND TO THEIR PUNISHMENTS.
Abstract
THERE IS NO MODEL TO CLARIFY THE QUESTIONS OF CRIME AND PUNISHMENT, BUT PRECISE DEFINITIONS MUST BE MADE. BY STUDYING THE EPIDEMIOLOGY OF CRIME, CONCLUSIONS CAN BE DRAWN ABOUT WAYS TO REDUCE CRIME. FACTORS IN THE EPIDEMIOLOGY INCLUDE AGE OF CRIMINALS, KINDS OF CRIME, EFFECTS OF PUNISHMENT, RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE KINDS OF PRISON AND THE PROPENSITY TO REPEAT THE CRIME, AND THE OUTLOOK OF THE COURTS. TAKEN TOGETHER, THESE SUGGEST TWO APPROACHES: (1) PUNISHMENT MUST BE REPLACED BY REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL REFORM, AND (2) PUNISHMENT MUST BE MORE SEVERE. ANY SOLUTION MUST CONSIDER BOTH THE PSYCHOSOCIAL AND THE BIOPHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS. A COMPARISON OF THE HUMAN BEING WITH THE HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE OF A COMPUTER SUGGESTS WAYS OF REDUCING CRIME BY DEALING WITH THE PROBLEM WHERE IT ACTUALLY EXISTS. FOUR MODELS OF ACTIVITY USING THIS ANALOGY ARE DISCUSSED. HARDWARE CAN BE ADVERSELY INFLUENCED BY SUGAR ADDICTION, ALCOHOL ADDICTION, PERCEPTUAL DISTURBANCES CAUSED BY VITAMIN DEFICIENCIES, OR CEREBRAL ALLERGIES. PERSONS WITH THESE PROBLEMS CONSTITUTE A LARGE PROPORTION OF THE CRIMINAL POPULATION. THUS, EVERY PERSON ACCUSED OF A HIGH-FEAR CRIME SHOULD BE GIVEN AN ORTHOMOLECULAR EXAMINATION. INCARCERATION SHOULD INCLUDE APPROPRIATE MEDICAL TREATMENT FOR ANY DISORDERS FOUND, REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED. (RFC)