Turning pints are inevitable occurrences in one’s life and they often result in varied consequences. They represent a significant event in the individual’s life which results in a shift or the irrevocable change in their general life direction. One consequence of turning points is desistance from crime. An individual who experiences a major event in their life, one that may be caused by their engagement in crime or different factors; may choose to abandon crime and change for the better. For instance, a person who almost dies from a gun shot during criminal activity or looses their limbs would decide to reform to avoid such occurrences in the future and to generally preserve their life. Another individual would choose to stay away from crime when he or she becomes a parent because their criminal life poses a danger to their child or they may not want their children to adopt such a lifestyle. It is an indication that turning points will affect desistance from crime in different ways.
I believe that the turning point that would work best in encouraging distance from crime, as suggested by Samson and Laub, is meaningful work. Many criminal activities occur because people do not have a reliable source of income. They therefore adopt criminal strategies that can help them get money quickly and easy. When criminals are provided with an opportunity to engage in meaningful work, that which does not only fulfill their financial needs but results in a significant level of satisfaction in life, the individuals will opt for such comfort and desist from the risky criminal life.
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A program that considers this turning point would be implemented right from the incarceration period to when the individual is released. Correctional facilities need to establish training strategies where inmates can be trained in given arts and professions. This should involve training that will benefit the individual even after being released. The facilities can then work in conjunction with the community to identify job placements that would be beneficial to these individuals without considering their past. Immediate placement into a meaningful job after being released would ensure hat these individuals are engaged, gradually connect with the job, are fulfilled financially and develop a certain form of satisfaction from this job. This would greatly promote desistance from crime.