Penal Systems
From Wild Southwest Wiki
The Penal Systems of the Southwest vary between individual States and Settlements. Punishments applied are usually intended to serve three equally important concepts - deterrence of crime, amendment of debts to society and protection of the public.
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Types of Punishment
There are three main punishments employed in the Southwest - Servitude, Exile and Execution. Monetary fines may be applied for minor infringements but "paying your way out of" more serious crimes is frowned upon.
Servitude
Servitude is the most common form of punishment. Prisoners are placed into the care of the local authorities, who organise them into work gangs. These gangs are used to carry out work needed by the local community such as repairing roads, harvesting crops, collecting lumber or quarrying stone. Depending on the individual nature of the prisoners and the type of work, the prisoners may or may not be chained or shackled during this work. Sentences of servitude usually range from a few months for minor offenses to up ten years for more serious crimes.
At least some prisoners learn valuable skills on work gangs and go on to profitable careers after their release.
In the Southern States the rights of work gangs are protected by law. They cannot be placed into unreasonable peril, or worked for more than ten hours a day. They must also be adequately clothed, fed, and provided with shelter. Conditions in the Settlements and Warlord Realms may not be as salubrious.
Exile
Exile is the punishment of choice for habitual criminals or for serious crimes that do not quite merit execution (owning or transporting slaves for instance). The guilty party is banned from a specific town, area or even State and if subsequently found in that area faces more serious punishment including lengthy servitude or (in some cases) execution.
Some jurisdictions brand exiles with an easily recognised mark on the hand, arm or chest. These unfortunate individuals often have problems gaining employment and many eventually drift to the Warlord Realms where such marks are viewed with less suspicion than in more law abiding areas.
Execution
Execution is reserved for the most serious crimes such as rape, willful murder, treason, and slave trading. The standard method of execution is hanging, although firing squads are occasionally employed. In the Southern States executions are carried out in private - although victims and their families may be invited to attend - elsewhere they may take place in public. In the Warlord Realms they tend to be major social events.
Incarceration
Incarceration of prisoners in dedicated jails is rare. Most towns will have a lockup for holding prisoners awaiting trial and for the use of work gangs, but there are no large scale jails anywhere in the Southwest. Exile and execution tends to take care of the kind of career criminals jails housed before the War.
Categories: Law | Society
