Legal Question in Criminal Law in North Carolina

If a child takes a cookie and you spank the child, you don't let the child off when he does it again because he's already been spanked for taking the first cookie. In fact, you spank the child even harder the second time because apparently the dum dum didn't learn his lesson. Likewise with adult criminals. Being a felon increases your possibility of doing jail time because apparently you didn't learn your lesson the first time. Its not like they are going to say - well, he's already felon why bother punishing him for larceny.