Not really. You're still forgetting the actual punishment and that is keeping them locked up for a big part of their lives, giving them disgusting food, repetitive jobs and generally depriving them of their freedom.
Nope, as you can get as many drugs on the inside of jail as the outside. However, if it was a necessity, I would rather be in jail in America than Mexico. All comes down to a quote from a movie.."Do you want to be someone's senorita or someone's bitch?"