Judges Who Should Be Put Under the Jail
Posted: Friday, February 20, 2009
by Terry Mitchell
http://commenterry.blogs.com
Two Pennsylvania judges have pleaded guilty to receiving more than $2.5 million in kickbacks for conducting kangaroo-style courts and sentencing youthful offenders to privately-run juvenile detention centers.
Luzerne County Judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan, who were removed from the bench when they were originally charged in January, will probably spend more than seven years in prison as a result of their plea agreements.
Many of the kids they sent away were first-time offenders who had committed minor offenses like possession of small amounts of marijuana, writing fake notes, and spoofing Web pages. For stuff like that, most courts would have sentenced them to probation and remanded them to the custody of their parents.
This is an appalling abuse of power and a complete breach of the public trust. Judges – especially those who are put in charge of juvenile justice – hold a delicate position in our society. The fate of a young person's freedom and/or future is often in their hands.
Any violation of this trust, especially one in which it is compromised for personal gain, is a serious crime that must be dealt with severely. A mere seven-plus years in prison doesn't seem like a kind of punishment that fits this crime. Nor does it appear to have much deterrent power against any such future perversion of the halls of justice. Those guys should be put under the jail and the keys ought to be thrown away.
An impartial justice system is one of the cornerstones of a free society. We must have zero tolerance for anyone – particularly those in positions of power – who would attempt to manipulate it for selfish reasons.
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Top-level comments on this article: (5 total)I can't believe that people are not rioting in the streets over this. It is absolutely an outrage. These 2 judges should be in jail & the keys thrown away.Rich JohnsonRich, I'm glad to see that I'm not alone in feeling that way. Thanks for commenting.
Terry, This is an outrage. I had heard something about this in my local newspaper, but they didn't sensationalize on it in any way. But if this is what they were referencing, I am appauled that they only got 7 years...these two judges should be put into general population, so that some of the people that would have heard about this would deal with them in the general population. Even convicts have a code of ethics. They do not tolerate any, and I mean any form of exploitation of our youth, for any reason....they wouldn't last long in the general population...I agree with your closing statement and I quote;"An impartial justice system is one of the cornerstones of a free society. We must have zero tolerance for anyone – particularly those in positions of power – who would attempt to manipulate it for selfish reasons".Amen....wonderful article and informative, and thank you so much for bring this to light in our searchwarp community. I am writing an article on my favorite writers that I am a fan of, you might want to read it, it has your name in it...amongst other of my favorite writers. Great article....your friend in pen.....Gary. The name of the article will be "What Is a Fan"Gary, thank you for your kind words. I am honored to have you as a fan.
I agree with your outrage Terry, but 7 years in jail is hardly negligable.They should have got more, but justice always has to be tempered by mercy, even if the individuals concerned hardly deserve it.Jonathan, I understand your point, but these guys were once in a position to show mercy, but apparently, due to their greed, they rarely did.
This is bizarre! Why on earth would they receive money for upping the sentences of youths to place them in already overcrowded youth detention center? I don't get this..I'll have to look this up. There has to be more to this story.Jennifer, these were privately run facilities that got paid based on the number of kids that were sent their way.
Of course the abuse of power is absolutely deplorableJonathan, it certainly is.
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