I’m not going to validate my right to be compassionate by proving I’ve known shit people and had shit experiences.

More to the point, I believe you’re referring to sociopathy and psychopathy when you talk about a lack of empathy, but that’s old science. Newer research shows improvement, especially with early intervention, in treatment of antisocial personality disorders. Psychiatric treatment of comorbities shows overall improvement in symptoms. And, recent studies on ASPD in neuroscience reveal that cognitive empathy isn’t a sliding scale, it’s a gamut, and it’s not even consistent within an individual. So IF someone has ASPD and we’re not just going to kill them, the best option is still evidence-based care.

It’s difficult to diagnose cognitive empathy disorders at a young age, but it’s possible the kid has a conduct disorder — which, along with ASPD, almost certainly has genetic groundwork but is strongly tied to early cognitive development (how he was raised,) and family history.

Regardless of what he has or where he came from, restorative justice is still more effective across the board socially and economically. I think of the worst people I’ve ever known when I consider my view of justice, and I still believe in restorative measures. I’m not only compassionate because I have empathy, but because evidence shows corporal punishment increases recidivism, exacerbates and often causes mental health disorders, and is ultimately an expensive monolith to an outdated belief in justice that isn’t based in fact.

Do I want every lying, cheating, violent piece of shit to face justice? Hell yeah I do. But I want that justice to be JUST and actually fix society instead of taking the bad and making them worse.