Should Eric Illsley go to prison for fiddling expenses or is community service a better option? Interestingly the public asked so far favour community service rather than prison because he is not a danger to the public, it costs the taxpayer less and he is forced to do something for the community which is visible.
Your view might depend on what you think the purpose of prison is. Is it intended to protect the public from dangerous people, punish someone by depriving them of their freedom or both? When talking about dangerous people do we mean people who threaten our physical safety or is it broader than that? Is stealing money not dangerous for those losing it? Or are we saying that Eric Illsley is not dangerous because he no longer has the opportunity to steal money or has learnt his lesson?
I am not sure a lesson needs to be learnt. Eric Illsley knew he was doing wrong. He got caught. He is responsible for setting the example. He therefore needs to set the example in terms of punishment for his crime. Whatever your view is as to what the punishment should be it should then apply to everyone else – including those stealing from their employers.
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