There's a cycle here where once you have a conviction record, you're very unemployable. That didn't used to be the case in the US...back in the 80's and prior, only really big employers could do thorough background checks, more undocumented jobs/work, etc. It's also not the case in other countries where the government just gives employers a yes/no of a candidate/job pairing based on the offense. Chronic unemployment is underrated as a one of the underlying problems.
We demonize people who have been through the criminal system which is entirely wrong. Being convicted shouldn't prevent you from work. Be convicted of something that conflicts with your occupation yes.
I don't disagree with you. It is just that we need a better model.
The black and white, night and day. Non-flexible meanings in criminalization and rehabilitation are problematic.
