It's not about retribution or revenge, but costs (which are way beyond just monetary).
That's also why it's not up to the wronged personally to decide, but the State (the process; but other people, their peers).
If the victim of a horrific triple-homicide (let's say their family) decided to "forgive and forget", and let someone truly destructive free (which letting them live out gives the risk of, like when violent criminals were released due to overcrowding and COVID), they would be externalizing all the associated costs/risks of having that person live or be free onto us and the rest of society.
Yes, it needs serious controls around it (the few times the option is actually used). But like we see with some officials, the pendulum has swung so far the other way where even violent crime is sometimes downplayed out of "tolerance" and "empathy", pitting the value of his rough childhood against the expectation of safety of your child.
That's also why it's not up to the wronged personally to decide, but the State (the process; but other people, their peers).
If the victim of a horrific triple-homicide (let's say their family) decided to "forgive and forget", and let someone truly destructive free (which letting them live out gives the risk of, like when violent criminals were released due to overcrowding and COVID), they would be externalizing all the associated costs/risks of having that person live or be free onto us and the rest of society.
Yes, it needs serious controls around it (the few times the option is actually used). But like we see with some officials, the pendulum has swung so far the other way where even violent crime is sometimes downplayed out of "tolerance" and "empathy", pitting the value of his rough childhood against the expectation of safety of your child.