I have very mixed feelings about this kind of thing. There are thousands of people that are basically in jail simply because they aren't white. Or who have ridiculous sentences because the judge wanted to make an example of them. But then there are people who would beat you within an inch of your life, or flat out kill you, just because you "disrespect" them. A good friend of mine was a prison psychologist for 20 years and he has some truly chilling stories. So, while I hate the idea of exiling someone for life or even for a few weeks...it feels like there are precious few alternatives in some cases.
This is just speculation. You don't know what they would do if you gave them a chance, a second chance, a third chance, lots of love and a few material means. As a proof, incarceration rate is lower in my country [1] and we have less violence on the street.
