What does Justice Look Like?
Q1. Judge- A judge’s responsibility is to administer justice, considering the facts presented to them and the presiding rule of law. It is expected of them by the people, the profession, and the justice system. However, certain situations present hardships in their line of work, such as balancing morality and professional ethics. From the judge’s point of view, the case of Adam highlights an individual that participated in a criminal activity that went sour. The defendant voluntarily took part in a robbery, but the victim ended up suffering more than was intended. But, Adam cannot raise enough to pay for his bail. Yet, situations that present offenders with debt burdens have been noted to be ineffective at raising revenues to deal with growing prison populations in addition to causing re-incarceration of these individuals as they try to meet fines, fees, or bonds (Council of Economic Advisers, 2015). Thus, for justice to be accomplished, a risk-assessment approach, as suggested by the Council of Economic Advisers (2015), should be implemented and incarceration applied since Adam is a repeat offender, and this would allow him reform.
Defendant- Adam is a husband and a father of three; already, the wife has to work three jobs to keep up with the bills and home expenses. His children are not connecting with the idea of school, and the eldest son has been getting into trouble with the local authorities. Moreover, Adam has pending court fees, accrued interest charges, and no driver’s license. Adam did not also intend for the sales clerk to get injured during the robbery. As such, it may seem unfair to him to have him incarcerated or receive the $25,000 bail, yet he has pending court fees, which he and his family have not been able to meet previously. For Adam to believe justice was served, alternative sentencing needs to be accorded onto him. He could be released on parole since he participated in unarmed robbery, and also, the Council of Economic Advisers (2015) suggests, incarceration dramatically decreases a person’s possibility of acquiring gainful employment upon release, which could lead to re-offense. A parole officer would be there to ensure Adam does not get into trouble again; it would keep him disciplined and would allow him to take care of his state debts and his family.
Q2. If the judge were to meet Adam, an agreeable determination electronic monitoring as suggested by Dobbie, Goldin, and Yang (2016) to ensure Adam does not re-offend. Adam should also consent to pay the initially accrued state fees, which can be used to compensate the sales clerk. This is because the application of a $25,000 bond is quite unlikely to be met, resulting in incarceration that adds on to the issue of overpopulated and underfunded prisons (Council of Economic Advisers, 2015).

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