Law and Democracy in Latin America
Brazil

Crime and Punishment

Continuing with the trend started in the previous two units, this unit deals with another important issue that affects the performance and quality of democracy. Crime, the social conditions that underlie it and the responses of the state to this problem will be the main focus of our analysis. In most Latin American countries the immediate response to crime was to lengthen sentences, lower the age at which minors can be tried as adults, and criminalize more behavior. We will see how this approach engendered poor prison conditions and overcrowding. Finally, we will discuss other possible solutions and their comparative advantages and disadvantages.

The text by Stanley will show the spin on crime that both media and some sectors of the political sphere have imposed. Ungar's text on prison conditions will show how problematic this issue is, and how it has not been fully addressed in the past. Our task will be to imagine a more effective response to the very real problem of crime and insecurity, and one that does not threaten to undermine democracy itself.