1.If you are looking for an explanation of why we don't get tough with criminals, you need only look at the numbers.

【難句釋義】If you want to find out the reason why we don't deal with criminals severely, you can just look at the numbers--there is a great many criminals for the society to punish.

2.We already have 2. 4 million people under some form of correctional supervision, 412, 000 of them locked away in a prison cell.

【難句釋義】In our country, there are already 2.4 million people who are receiving punishment with a kind of form; 412,000 of them are serving their prison terms.

【難句解析】under correctional supervision:means being disciplined, or being made to improve one's behavior under the control/charge of the community, etc. as a punishment to lock sb. away: to put sb. in prison 將某人投入監(jiān)獄 to lock sth. away:to put sth. in a safe place and fasten the lock 將某物妥善鎖起來

3.But can we afford to cut off the hands of those who committed more than 35 million property crimes each year? Can we send them to prison? Can we execute more than 22,000 murderers?

【難句釋義】But can we cut off the hands of those who committed over 35 million crimes of stealing, mugging or robbery each year? Can we put all of them into prison? Can we put the more than 22,000 murders to death each year?

【難句解析】property crimes:crimes involved in taking other people's property illefally such as stealing, smuggling and robbery 因涉嫌侵犯他人財(cái)產(chǎn)權(quán)而被量刑的人