Punishment as Deterrence

Punishing “poor slobs” is the cornerstone of deterrence for most crimes, why doesn’t it apply here as well?

Part of punishment is to act as deterrent to others.

we shouldn't punish a thief because they might steal even more? that doesn't sound right.

Why is punishing people more important than preventing recidivism?

In other words he's not being punished for what he did; he's being punished to dissuade others from copying him. I think people should be punished for their actions and not to increase utility of society.

It's mainly a punishment and deterrent here. As a society I think we are better off trying to stop other people from doing a similar crime than trying to rehabilitate her.

I don't agree with this. It's about incentives. If you make it too painful to conduct this type of crime, perpetrators will give up.

It’s not one or the other, especially if there’s intent. Yes punish, but don’t scapegoat the whole systemic problems on the individual and then think you solved the problem by creating a ‘deterrence’ to others. Life doesn’t work that way. Imagine if every serious crime prompted a review and action to stop it ever happening again - imagine how much further along we’d be to a more just society.

Why? Shouldn't be about punishment so harsh that it becomes an effective deterrant, and thus protection for society against future crimes?

The punishment isn’t only a punishment for the individual. It’s a deterrent to keep the next person from doing whatever it was that was illegal. You can argue if that’s right or wrong, but that’s one of the points of many sentences — to send a “message” to others who might commit a crime.