Our criminal legal system inherently flawed?

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Forums > All Posts > Our criminal legal system inherently flawed?

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01-07-2011, 08:00 PM

LLBarry
Beverly, MA
Posts: 299

In Austrialia a man went to prision who was innocent. You say this cannot happen here? Well guess what it can. Our system is flawed and not perfect. After a full year in a clinical program, I am unhappy to say that this system does not believe in innocent until proven guilty and that many people go to jail who are innocent. There is a program called the innoncent project in the US that is set up to try and give some relief to people who are innocent. They spend time researching cases where people have been sent to jail for life and see if there is some new evidence to prove them innocent. Many times the new evidence could be blood that is tested or other "new" scientific research such as DNA.

Whats your experience...have you ever been in Jail, visited people in jail, or just need to vent about our flawed system?

01-23-2011, 11:33 AM

LLBarry
Beverly, MA
Posts: 299

Another example of why our system is flawed. See article. " MAN labelled an incestuous pedophile and locked up for a crime he did not commit has told of his betrayal by the justice system.The Victorian man - "AJ" - was jailed for 19 months after the prosecution shelved vital evidence that could have cleared his name.Breaking his silence for the first time the wronged inmate has described how he was stuck behind bars as his beloved mother passed away."I'll never ever get over this. I go to my mate's place and even though my mate knows me, he's known me all my life, I will not be in a room without a witness next to me," AJ told the Sunday Herald Sun."I won't even go into the house unless I know my mate's going to be there 'cos he's got the kids."I don't want this stigma, I don't want this. I stay home now. I don't go out. I might drive to the shops but I don't want to see anyone." "

It's a horrible story. The prosecutor hid evidence she knew would have freed this man, or at least cast doubt on the claims against him. She knew this but went ahead with the trial anywayHe should be heavily compensated for the pain he has been put through. I would suggest he be given a sum of $1.9 million dollars - one hundred thousand for every month he spent behind bars with sicko child molesters.The prosecutor should be sacked, and investigated.

08-12-2011, 09:34 AM

Roger hutchings
Englewood, CO
Posts: 1

This is in response to beating to death of a homeless man by police in orange county California. I have for a long time offered a alternative in handling a situation when the police are attempting to control and secures a disruptive person without causing harm to the person or put themselves in danger. Instead of using a laser or even shooting the disruptive indivualdial the police would have on site a have net that could be thrown over them and after they could be put under control and no one hurt. There have been many situations on the news where the police have lasered or even shot someone that did not have a gun or was not a danger to the police! When talking to a p[police officer, he said using a net would probably be deemed inhuman by the ACLU. Could this beating be inhuman?

02-11-2012, 02:05 PM

progressiveconnie
Julian, CA
Posts: 111

RECENTLY A NEW YORK POLICE OFFICER KILLED AN UNARMED YOUNG MAN OVER A SMALL BAG OF MARIJUANA. OUR DRUG LAWS HAVE KILLED THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT HUMAN BEINGS AND THESE LAWS MUST BE CHANGED.

04-26-2012, 08:54 AM

CollegeGirl
Winston-salem, NC
Posts: 1

What do yall think about non violent offenders receiving more time than a violent offender. I know of someone who got 6 to 8 years for cocaine charge but his cellmate got 3 years for and intent to kill charge. Something is wrong with this picture!!! If there was enough jobs and enough of open minded people in this work drug dealing would not be a problem. The criminal system has been set up to where its easy to get in but hard to get out. A second chance? Its had to get a second chance due to the lack of job available for those with a record. What is a person to do when their kids are at home starving and they have no money to pay the bills? What do they do then , after society has rejected them that second chance at life? They do what they need to do and they do what they know how to do best, not but choice but because for them their are no other options. The lack of resources in certain communities are killing millions every year. Something needs to be done quickly or the world is going to be HELL in about 3 more years.

04-26-2012, 11:36 AM

Former Member
Not Selected
Posts: 5

This Post has been Removed by Moderators. Please note that some members may have replied to this post later in this topic thread before moderators decided to remove it.

04-27-2012, 01:48 AM

Zach F
Denton, TX
Posts: 938

Gaylon, you are by far the most racist person we have had on this site. Sharpton and Jackson did not put a bounty on Zimmerman. The Black Panthers did. The reason that the nurse/baby incident didn't receive national attention was because it was grossly mishandled by the police.

If Zimmerman had been detained [or at the very least properly questioned before being released] by the police, had the incident been properly investigated, then the Florida shooting would have received zero national attention as well. Race is not the reason the media picked this up and ran with it. Sharpton and Jackson did do their part in racially charging the situation and that was wrong.

The only racial issue would be whether or not Zimmerman racially profiled Trayvon. But Zimmerman is allowed to racially profile, he is a private citizen, he can call the cops on anyone he thinks is suspicious. Racial profiling is wrong only when it is done by the government.

I don't like the Black Panthers. To me they are just as extreme as the KKK just on the opposite side of the spectrum. But Obama has not shown any anti-white or racial tendencies. You are just talking out of your ass there.

05-01-2012, 12:01 AM

gymrat22
Charlotte, NC
Posts: 115

I'm with Zack on this one...and Gaylon is no longer with us.I have no idea why he even bothered to sign up here??? And Zack was,as usual,right on the money.Unfortunatly,I know people who are even more racist and hate filled that he was. Just think...what would happen if we all stopped for just one day, and looked around.We would see quickly that the Koch brothers,Harold Simmons,et al...hate whites as bad as they hate blacks as bad as they hate Mexicians....Because the ones they hate...they don't see color,they see poverty,and that is their real agenda.Get the poverty stricken ones out of sight.
Cut out the poor people,cut out the 'freeloaders" and they can have it all. And as long as we stay at each others throats,they just might succeed.

05-01-2012, 12:25 AM

gymrat22
Charlotte, NC
Posts: 115

Now to the original question:is our legal system flawed.In a word,yes.Fatally flawed,not yet.Notice the YET.One problem can be highlighted by the Casey Anthony case.An over reaching prosecutor basically was going to get herself a senate seat on the back of a sensational trial.And lost.Casey was found"not guilty".Now,in our system there is a world of difference between "not guilty" and "had nothing whatsoever to do with the crime and is totally innocent" And she was,totally innocent-of FIRST degree murder. A less politically motivated prosecutor would have looked at what the state had, and gone with something like 1st degree manslaughter.And would have gotten a conviction with relative ease.For those of you who think that would have been a travesty of justice...first degree manslaughter carries (I think)in Florida...25-life.
And here is one of the main areas our system is broken.Prosecutors are supposed to find the truth,not the defense's job.That job falls to the police and the DA.(no,this is not a commercial for Law and Order...but the intro to that show makes a valid point)Too many assistant DA's want to be congress critters and are always on the lookout for sensational cases.And that is one SURE way,to ignore the truth and ignore justice.Not only for the accused(innocent until PROVEN guilty..)but for the victims as well.How to stop this.You got me.
Another problem our justice faces is the enormous difference in capitol available to the two different sides.Unless a defendant is well heeled(almost never in 95% of cases)the prosecution starts with a huge advantage.They can and do call on the entire resources of the police, and in most large cities,The DA have their own investigators.The defendant,however,is given NO funds for his or her defense.And must rely on an overworked,usually new to the practice of criminal law...public defender.While the assistant DA's handle MAYBE 20 cases,public defenders handle three,four five or more times that number.Therein lies another serious flaw.And therein lies many,if not most,of the convictions of people who ARE totally innocent,had nothing whatsoever to do with the crime, and couldn't prove. The great trial lawyer...F. Lee Baily said one time "the criminal justice system in this country has nothing to do with guilt or innocence" And here lies the fundamental problem. How to solve it? I'm wide open for suggestions.This forum and indeed,whole website,is Democrat leaning.I refuse to believe we have NO attorneys on here.Or maybe we even have a judge or two.And this is a problem that deserves our attention,and the attention of the electorate.But you can be certain of one thing...if we don't bring it up, the congress critters won't either.
IDEAS??

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