5.5. Neoclassical 
BRIAN FEDOREK 
Modern deterrence theory is perhaps the most dominant philosophy of the American criminal justice system. 
Deterrence theory tries to change a person’s behavior through laws and punishments. As a form of social 
control, there is a belief that perceived punishments will serve as a warning of possible consequences, which 
would hopefully deter the person from committing the crime. There are two types of deterrence: general 
deterrence and specific deterrence. General deterrence uses punishment to deter crime among people in the 
general population. It uses punishment as an example for those people not punished. For example, capital 
punishment can serve as an example to other would-be offenders if they were thinking about murder. 
Specific deterrence uses punishment to reduce the crime of particular persons. The effect of the punishment 
depends on the nature of the punishment and who is punished. 
News Box. In 1994, Oregon voters passed Measure 11, whcih established mandatory minimum 
sentencing for several serious crimes. Besides removing the judge’s ability to give a lesser sentence, Measure 
11 prohibited prisoners from reducing their sentence through good behavior. Additionally, any defendant 
15 years old or older who was accused of a Measure 11 offense was automatically tried as an adult. Recently, 
the Oregon Justice Resource Center reported the effects of Measure 11 on juveniles, esepcially minorities. 
Below are links to the news article and the report itself. 
The Oregonian – “New Report Calls Measure 11 Sentences for Juveniles ‘Harsh and Costly'” 
Oregon Justice Resource Center’s Report 
Measure 11 Exercise 
After reading the above box and hyperlinks, please explain why many juveniles are not deterred from committing 
serious crimes in Oregon. 
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