www.betweenthebars.org/blogs/908

3-11/12

"CRIMINAL HISTORY"

An interesting subject that I discuss with some of my co-prisoners is what SORT of people should or should not be in prison, who should just NEVER get out...who should NEVER have been incacerated in the first place. Most of us favor rehabilitations over-corrections but all must admit that at SOME POINT, we, as a society, need to give up on some people and keep society safe from them. Even the most hardened criminals recognise those who are completely lost. We go round and round on who, why, when etc...However; the issue is WHAT is the criteria the world at large should use to make such a major determination. My group agrees on at least some criteria -

1) IQ

2) USE OF THE 'MMPI' OR SIMILAR PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDER TEST

3) LIFE STYLE FACTORS: FAMILY, JOB, FRIENDS, MORTGAGES ETC.

But through all our arguments and dicussions - the use of one's "CRIMINAL HISTORY" should BE THE LAST-LEAST USED criteria. @Why?@ is a good question, but the answer is easy.

A criminal history is pretty much all the US of A uses to determine your incarceration future. It is deeply flawed 9i.e. CALIFORNIA'S 3-strikes) and completely ignores all of the good one does or has done or HAS THE POTENTIAL to do.

A 'CRIMINAL HISTORY' is only a window to where we went wrong, not to where we went right. It is too esy to throw away one persons life over a petty theft. a gang affiliation or (WORSE)

And while it's true not every priest, banker, rotarian or accountant is 'ggod'; not every gang-banger, drug-dealer, child molester, or murderer is 'BAD'

No simple overhaul of our exploding prison system can be made, it really has nothing to do with prisons themselb=ves it STARTS with th (IN)'JUSTICE' system and how judges, persecutors (yes - it's spelled right), public pretenders, and the laws that get passed in the name of FEAR, and ends with society saying "yes - we can save this person"! instead of special interests saying "we need more bodies for our prison-industry".

Wake up AMERICA! We are doing to 2 million or OUR OWN MEN, WOMEN and CHILDREN WHAT STALIN, HITLER, POL-POT, BABY DOC, SADDAM HUSSEIN AND OTHERS HAVE DONE TO THEIRS. HOW MANY MUST BE TAKEN? HOW MANY FAMILIES TORN APART?

If we look at all facets of a human condition before we decided a punishement, those who just made a mistake will get help and those who seem beyond repair will get incacerated AND STILL GET HELP!

I'M JUST SAYING

Andy