Sounds like a good idea to me. The one time that my nine year old daughter tried shoplifting I sent her back into the shop to return the item and apologise to the shopkeeper. She never did it again.

I like the idea of 'making the punishment fit the crime' for minor infractions. I think that, for a lot of people, it would give more respect for the law. As for spending a night in the woods - I wouldn't want to do it - too many bugs and definitely not comfortable, as well as the psychological trauma of being out in the dark with all the strange noises - I trust that, like the kittens she abandoned, this lady was not given any of the amenities of camping! No light, no shelter, no bed? I would reckon that would stop her in her tracks.