Posted by Ray Kidder on 5/28/2009, 6:12 pm, in reply to " An oxymoron?"
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Jim,
I agree that our criminal justice system has flaws, but I at least sense a certain level of true justice, as compared to what some other countries have. You mentioned how in Illinois 14 of 28 persons sentenced to death were later found to be innocent. I have to wonder what the definition of "found to be innocent" was in regard to this statistic. It is one thing for investigators to prove that the accused could not have committed the crimes worthy of death, as compared to investigators to have merely found reasonable doubt with respect to such crimes. I am in favor of administering the death penalty only in cases where there is very little doubt of innocence, but I do not consider the mere reasonable doubt of having commited the crime to be the same as factual innocence.
You mentioned the granting of college educations for the incarcerated. I do not understand what you wrote, but it seems like the granting of free educational benefits to the incarcerated can work against the incentive not to commit crime.
I thought Federal Prison Industries (AKA UNICOR) is a program that teaches inmates job skills, and causes them to work to help in offsetting the costs to the taxpayers for incarceration.
Ray Kidder
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