The ‘debt’ is not ‘paid.’
The convict has been punished. That’s all. The window is still broken, the victim has not been made whole. There is no reason to extend trust.
If Mr. Stossel wants to fix this, I recommend he look into establishing a bonding system for ex-cons. Employers can then hire ex-cons knowing that they have recourse if the ex-con betrays them.
How do you recommend a person repay the debt then? By unbreaking the window? By unmugging the victim? All justice is, by definition, retributive. If there’s no restorative or rehabilitative value in the punishment, why administer it? Sadism? Vengeance?
The idea of a bond isn’t necessarily bad, but it’s impractical. How is a con supposed to come up with the money for a bond when he just got out of prison and can’t get a job?
Not a bad idea!
And they have to fix the broken window...