Our justice system is certainly blind in some aspects. Since you didn't specify why you wrote what you did, I can only assume you have had some first hand experience with the broken system that we call the courts of justice. More and more I see the scenario played out: No innocent deed goes unpunished, and the guilty go free. I live in a County that is broken. The guilty should be punished, but how about a court system who takes a first time drug offender (not a seller), and the system keeps them paying for over 2+ years with court appointed community service (6 months), $2500 fine or more (which accrues interest if not paid in full), plus whatever classes they are legally mandated to take, and are charged for such (including books). They cannot miss one class. If they can't find child care, transportation, or they are too sick to stand up. They are given no excuse, or they wind up in jail....no questions asked. Then the cycle begins again. Of course if you have enough money, any sentence can be altered. I'm not saying that crime doesn't require punishment, but the punishment should match the crime.
A celebrity got in a car accident in my town (County seat), and the County got greedy. They had numerous court dates, and it was forever being extended. Just trying to "milk" as much from the person as possible, because the County knew the celebrity had it, and would pay for whatever they wanted just to keep their name out of the media. They tied that incident up for over a year.
A speeding ticket in this County will garner you $100 for each mile over the speed limit. They will mandate you go to drivers school (only those they choose), and pay a hefty price for it, even though it will do nothing to take the points off your record. Don't even try to fight it in court, as you NEVER win, even when it's clear the officer made a mistake. The County just hired 75 more police officers to boost their revenue in this area. However, if you need a police officer for a real emergency, be prepared to wait an hour or more for help. They have laid off people that are sorely needed like child welfare, and social services, because they don't generate revenue like law enforcement.
Anybody can get a restraining order against anyone else. I've heard of people getting restraining orders without any proof whatsoever of wrongdoing. This is outrageous. This stays on a persons record forever, and it's public information for anyone who wants to access it. I've seen people lose jobs because a background check brought up a restraining order that was issued only because a dubious person wanted to hurt someone. A father (ex husband) that receives (even though innocent), is also restricted from seeing his kids, and that's just the start of his woes. The County charges a lot of money for restraining orders (and other court documents/mandates/forms), so if you are willing to pay it, they will issue it. I've seen warrants issued on innocent people, and then when the police realize that they have the wrong person, they digress, but the warrant is still on the person's record, and never removed, even though they were innocent. It takes a court order to get erroneous mistakes removed, and be prepared to pay a lot of money trying to do so. Attorneys and court time is very expensive, the County sees to that.
A lot of County's are losing money in this economy, but this one isn't. I'll be moving soon, and making arrangements even to relocate. It's pretty where I live, but this corrupt system in place, is getting worse. Many big contractors have been thwarted from building affordable housing because the wealthy do not want the poor around. The County only has to refuse permits. It happens all the time. This County wants the affluent, but not the poor and disabled, and are taking steps continually to make sure this goal is reached. If you think my County is the only one with this agenda.......think again.
Community Forum
Topic: justice in america (Read 963 times)
June 04, 2009, 03:30:28 pm
