Decriminalize drug use. Place people in mandatory medical drug rehab protective custody rather than incarcerating them for possession of all addictive drugs. The length of time "served" should be a minimum of a year, including supervised sober living, so they can get really clean and break old habits and the neurons in their brains can rewire.
I could not agree more - short, sweet, and very well put. RobOriginally Posted by Teacher Terry
I think the entire plea deal arrangements are bogus, at least for the more serious crimes. You can be charged with a certain crime, which one would think the evidence supported during an arrest, but get the charge reduced in exchange for a guilty plea? The DA and the judge shake hands and agree on an arrangement that may not be truthful. Or if you are a drug dealer or in politics or what ever you can do something pretty nasty and flip on someone higher up and get your charges reduced or gone altogether.
Some states, NJ sticks in my mind, have already made significant changes in this area. I tend to think this reform makes sense. I don't know what the numbers are, but I doubt someone that can't even come up with a few thousand bucks for bail is a serious flight risk.
Amen! Yes, the justice system is highly imperfect and the shooting of unarmed black men has got to stop. But, as someone with several cops in my extended family, I can see things from the cops' point of view, too. This country is swimming in guns, and every street cop knows that one split second of hesitation could be his last. Sure, it's a dangerous job, but it shouldn't be a kamikaze mission, either. There's also a curious lack of discrimination on the part of the BLM people as to whom they elevate to martyr status. What happened to that poor guy in Sacramento was horrible, but trying to turn Michael Brown, whose last act in life was robbing a convenience store, into a poster child for police brutality struck me as an odd choice. But maybe that's another conversation.
But there is, to my mind, no more blatant example of racism in the US justice system than the misbegotten, misconceived, feckless and destructive "war on drugs." A lot of racism is perceptible only through nuance, but the plain facts of the war on drugs' racism stare you in the face--e.g., blacks use marijuana at roughly the same rate as whites but suffer five times as many arrests. The current concern about opioids is another example. Opioid addiction has been around a long time, but now that it's a white problem, suddenly it's a real problem.
It's easy to see why, despite its abject failure on every front, the WOD keeps shuffling along like a zombie. There's a huge segment of society--the prison industrial complex, the law enforcement complex, even the drug treatment complex--that benefits hugely from the status quo. It's time to end the madness.
Those who are put behind bars for violent crimes need to serve their full sentence. There are too many shootings in Chicago where you learn that the suspect was previously behind bars for another gun-related crime, but served very little of his sentence. Gun charges are often plea bargained away here.
I would like to see the restoration of trial-by-combat.
It's so nice that things are starting to slow down for me a little - just a little until around mid April - so I can come back and comment and actually have time to do so!
Tradd, don't be shocked but on the one hand I agree with you here - I don't like gun offenses being pled away and I would agree when a gun enters the picture my take on an auto not guilty vote as a juror would be much much much less likely if even possible - having a gun enter a crime reads intent to me, for better or worse. So I agree that these issues should not be pled away. And I don't care for (proven) suspects of a shooting not serving all their time....I agree with you here, too. Surprise!
Here's the on the other hand, though.....you knew there was a but coming, right? The problem I have with my take above - even though I stand by my words above they do cause me some grief and guilt - if we are to crack down on these perps getting out to soon and on plea bargaining these offenses down - we need to hold police accountable to the full extent of the law in situations such as what recently took place in Sacramento. Otherwise the rule of law means nothing, the Constitution means nothing, and the United States truly is not worthy of our talents, drive, and ambition - truly America has not earned our presence in this country if we address the former but not the latter. Personally, I don't have much hope for the future of this country, but that's no surprise to you at this point, and neither are my reasons for this stance new to you at this point, so I will close here before going on and on and on.
My general point? I agree with the overall gist of your post, but only if we address the overkill (good word when you stop and think about it, no?) on the part of American police in general. Addressing your issues without addressing mine is not going to solve any problems long term, though it could be a start, I'll give you that much. And never let it be said that someone from the 85006 (or a similar US zip code) can't be reasonable and concede a point or two. Rob
OMG +1,000,000,000 and then some. I fully believe the war on drugs really is all about financing the extensive court, probation, and prison system, along with keeping those who make a middle class living on the overincarceration of US Citizens solidly in the middle class. My take is that much incarceration in the United States has nothing at all to do with justice whatsoever. Yet another reason I see America as I do....and I'll stop here and not go on and on and on.
My point? I could not agree with you more, Yppej. Rob
WE could close a ton of prisons if we decriminalized drugs. People need treatment and not punishment. Private prisons which are ripe with abuse would go away completely.
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