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In general, do you think the courts in this area deal too harshly or not harshly enough with criminals?
Harshness of courts toward criminals, no volunteered option · Asked in 3 waves, 2021–2024 · 3,514 responses · weighted estimates computed from individual responses
Shares of people who gave an answer. Each column is one wave, evenly spaced rather than to scale in time; hover for exact shares.
Shares of people who gave an answer. A group’s column is left blank in waves where its effective sample is under 50; hover for exact shares.
| Group | Too harshly | About right (phone mode only: volunteered) | Not harshly enough | n | MoE | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All respondents | 21% | – | 79% | 650 | ±5 | |
| Lower income |
| Poll | Field dates | Mode | Respondents | Responses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Social Survey 2024 | 2024-04-05 to 2024-12-02 | mixed | 3,309 | 650 |
| General Social Survey 2022 | 2022-05-08 to 2023-01-08 | mixed | 3,544 | 877 |
| General Social Survey 2021 | 2020-12-03 to 2021-05-02 | web | 4,032 | 1,987 |
| 29% |
| – |
| 71% |
| 195 |
| ±10 |
| Middle income | 14% | – | 86% | 194 | ±10 |
| Upper income | 21% | – | 79% | 183 | ±10 |
General Social Survey 2024 · US adults 18+ living in households (English, and Spanish since 2006). Shares of people who gave an answer. n is unweighted; ± is the 95% margin of error at 50% from the weighted effective sample. Groups with an effective sample under 50 are grayed; under 20, hidden.