Criminal Justice : Routledge : 9780789000613 : 078900061X : 16 Jun 2004 : There are nearly two million inmates in America today. Are there better alternatives to incarceration? Criminal Justice: Retribution vs. Restoration presents new answers and unconventional suggestions addressing America's overcrowded prisons and jails, high recidivism rates, and weakened family and community relationships with ex-prisoners. Experts in the field discuss the benefits and failures of America's criminal justice system at various times in history and today, then explore possibilities to improve on that system. This groundbreaking book introduces encouraging, therapeutic approaches to criminal justice that include treatment, rehabilitation, and the direct involvement the victims, the families, and the communities. Criminal Justice looks at America's over-reliance on punishment and retribution as the means of responding to prevalent social problems and examines the justice system's tendency to incarce