Justice in Palmerston and Darwin - When is justice served?

Prison Chaplain Gary Taylor points out that convicted killer Daniel Heiss has served his time. Heiss who was convicted of murder from an 1989 incident had been sentenced to 20 years jail. News has it that now politicians want to extend the sentence. Sounds like a nice gesture, and people can sit back and say, 'Ah well, he deserves it', but I ask, 'When is justice served?' When is enough, enough? When does punishment end and rehabilitation begin?

It's not good enough to simply lock people up and throw away the key. No matter what we may think of an individual, we need to balance the need for justice and punishment, with the rehabilitation of the person.

Palmerston, Darwin and the NT have been criticized for being too heavy handed with criminals in the past. We seem to seek out law inforcement, without considering the overall improvement of the individual. The NT has an issue with lawlessness, sure, but we need to consider strongly ways to build community, to curb drinking, to get teenagers off the streets, to give armed robbers a sense of purpose in life, etc, etc and not just throw people in the cells.

Well, if you've got an opinion, comment below.
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