Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Is Our Justice System Fair?
Think back to the articles you have read for class, the discussions we have had and the videos we have watched on the death penalty and our justice system. Using these resources, please respond to the following question: Is our justice system fair? Explain (use statistics & specific examples to support your response).
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I believe that our justice system is fair in some areas, and unfair in others. Death row is a good example of the part of our justice system that actually IS fair. I found statistics that showed that just about the same amount of Caucasian and African Americans are currently on death row; 41% African American 45% white, 14% Latino & other (http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/race-death-row-inmates-executed-1976), which shows no racial discrimination like you’d expect. And the criminals on death row have all committed such crimes which deserve the punishment of death.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I believe cops are often prejudiced when it comes to minorities such as African Americans and Latinos, lower class citizens, and sometimes even teenagers. Poorer people also get worse lawyers due to lack of money, while the upper class can afford excellent lawyers who help them in convincing the jurors that they shouldn’t be punished, regardless of the crime committed or the law. I also don’t agree with the courts that choose juveniles to be charged as adults. Minors are obviously younger and less experienced than adults, and should not ever be charged as adults if they are under 18.
For the most part, I do believe our justice system is fair. The U.S. has by far the most impartial justice system in the world, and our capital punishment system is mostly accurate. However, discrimination does sometimes occur, especially when searching for a suspect. For example, in the Crosley-Green case, the prosecution “chose” Green as its suspect and criminal. Although there was no physical evidence that Green was inside the truck involved in the murder, he was still put on death row. After 20 years, he is still on death row and awaiting his final sentence (Crosley-Green video). This is one instance of an unfair justice system.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the number of white people on death row (at 56.1%) is higher as compared to that of African Americans (at 41.5%), further showing that there is not widespread discrimination due to race (http://naacpldf.org/files/publications/DRUSA_Winter_2010.pdf). Mostly, our justice system does do a respectable job of punishing the correct suspects in criminal activities.
Of course mistakes happen and, at times, someone is wrongly accused; however, this is actually not as common as one would think. There have been around 268 DNA evidence exonerations since 1989, when DNA evidence became a popular method in forensic crime scene evidence gathering (http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/Facts_on_PostConviction_DNA_Exonerations.php). This may seem like a large number, but when taken into consideration the total of over 3,200 death row inmates in the U.S., this number is not so great (http://www.deathpenalty.org/article.php?id=86). This means that only slightly over 8% of death row inmates have been exonerated through DNA evidence. This also proves that our justice system is indeed just.
Generally speaking, the United States has a fair justice system, especially when compared to other countries across the world. The Bill of Rights grants everyone the right to a speedy, public trial that incorporates the system of due process. Regardless of prejudice and flawed sentencing, everyone has the right to these privileges, which help provide for a fairer justice system.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of prejudice, there is some bias against minorities, especially in the matter of smaller crimes. However, the number of white citizens on death row constitutes for 77%, minorities making up the other 23%. This shows that the sentencing for death is pretty impartial, as whites make up roughly 75% of U.S. citizens. The rate of juveniles being jailed, however, has grown. Whether this is due to preconceptions of juvenile behavior, or actual misconduct, is hard to tell.
The ability to have an appeal after sentencing also allows for more accurate punishment. Around 17 inmates on death row have been released due to DNA evidence that helped free them. Hundreds of other inmates on death row have been acquitted, though it may take years and multiple appeals.
Between all of these safety measures and the data shown by these statistics, it can be inferred that the United States has a pretty fair justice system.
From what we have reviewed and talked about in class, I have found that the justice system in the United States is not fair. In the movie we watched in class, a crime was committed and Mr. Green was accused of it. There were 50 other black people at the baseball game nearby, and the only real description they had on the killer was that he was black. Green was chosen out of all those others men just because he had a prior conviction. Crimes are committed all day every day and Mr. Green was just one of those people committing a crime that got caught. Many criminals no matter how bad are not caught. Mr. Green was just unlucky and got caught for what he did. I’m sure plenty of people in the group of 50 black guys had committed crimes, they were just lucky enough to not get caught. Mr. Green was treated unfairly by our justice system, the officials in charge of the crime didn’t have any good evidence to show that Green did it, yet the accused him of it anyway and he was put on death row where he still is today. Since this tragic thing happened to Mr. Green, I’m sure there are others who have had the same thing happen to them. Our justice system needs to take severe action and not let these kinds of things happen. Especially since there is 68% error rate in our justice system. The United States needs to work on our own problems before we continue to help the rest of the world.
ReplyDeleteI think that in general, the United States has a pretty fair justice system, especially compared to many other countries.
ReplyDeleteI think that death row is flawed in some areas, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of discrimination in race. The percent of whites and percent of blacks executed were pretty equal (http://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/dpusa.htm) which is good. However, death row does have its flaws. For example, in the movie we watched in class, it was unfair that the entire jury was made up of white people, even though Mr. Green was black. And even though there was very weak evidence on him, he was put into death row- where he still remains today. Another big flaw in death row is a lack of DNA evidence. Many people are put into death row, even though there's no solid DNA evidence on them. This issue is improving and some people are being released because of evidence (http://www.star-telegram.com/2011/03/07/2901805/supreme-court-backs-dna-testing.html#) and hopefully this will continue to ensure justice.
I think that the justice system in the U.S. is fair, but it has flaws in some areas. For example, the death penalty is pretty fair, but when it comes to immigration, the new law permitting officers to pull over hispanic people because of their race is very unfair, and racist. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tamara-n-holder/hey-jose-you-look-mexican_b_551344.html). Although illegal immigration is a problem in the U.S., I think the government should come up with a better way to stop illegal immigration such as making it easier for mexicans to get a work visa. Other than this problem, the U.S. justice system is very fair, and it keeps the citizens of the U.S. safe.
ReplyDeleteI think that when it comes to the death penalty our justice system is fair, although the system is not perfect by any means. In my research I found that the current death row statistics by race are that 44% of the people on death row are white as 41% are African American. The other 14% are Latino and other races. However, I found that most of the people on death row were male. The current death row statistics by gender said that 98.2% of the people on death row were male. Also, in the movie that was shown in class there Mr. Green was thought to have killed the young man and even though there was a lack of strong evidence he was still put on death row. I think that it was unfair that the jury was made up of all white people and also that they had no real DNA evidence. Despite this, I think that overall the U.S. justice system is fair and that it is very effective.
ReplyDeleteThe United States Justice System is unfair. There are many statistics that may prove that it is fair, but in the grand scheme of things, innocent people are being wrongly kept in prison, jail, and death row. There may be a small amount of people that are being wrongly accused and jailed but for the system to be fair, everyone needs to have good and strong evidence to show their guilty and not everyone does. Crosley Green, who seems to be innocent, is and has been kept on death row for a crime that he did not commit. It’s unfair for him to have to sit in there and have his life ruined when he didn’t even commit the crime he was accused of committing.
ReplyDeleteIn theory our justice system is fair, but I believe it isn’t all that fair because of the human aspect. We as humans are bound to be biased towards one direction and were bound to lie. As in the case of Crosley Green, the case became unfair for Green because people like his sister lied to escape their own charges. That isn’t fair at all for people to come in and offer you to remove your own charges if you sway another man’s case by lying. It was also unfair how the jury was all white. With Crosley being a black man, there is bound to be prejudice. Racial tensions aren’t gone yet, especially in the south.
ReplyDeleteThese examples are just touching the ways our justice system ends up being unfair. When examining it on paper it looks fantastic and fair, but since we are free thinkers and beings its not as its going to be. And hey, is anything fair in this world? -Fairness cant be divided equally.
In my opinion, the Justice System is about as fair as it can be. People can complain about it being racist, but at the end of the day all decisions need to make by somebody, and it is impossible to get a completely unbiased judge, and a completely unbiased jury. This results in unfair trials, and in some cases unfair punishments. The way that the jury and judge work together to reach a decision is fair on paper, but in reality robots would be required to make every trial as fair as possible.
ReplyDeleteFor example, in the Crosley Green case, three of the witnesses admitted to lying some ten years after the incident. Unfortunately terrible things like this can happen, and overall can decide the fate of someone who, in some cases, may not even have been involved with the initial crime.
As long as humans are running the justice system, it will be impossible to have a completely fair trial.
The justice system we have in place isn't fair. As time changes, so do the crimes committed and we need to be keeping up with the changes. I think we're getting a little lazy or just trying to get things out of the way without really considering the people in the situation or the consequences. There should be solid evidence (checked several times) in order for anybody to have to be punished in such a cruel way. Years taken from someone's life can't be given back or replaced with money.
ReplyDeleteNow, with that said, it's never gonna be perfect. There are different opinions and outlooks on everything and there isn't always one answer. But there are definately some things that could be improved on in the system. For instance, in the Crosley Green trial, the witnesses should have been looked into just as much as the person being accused. Especially if that's where the information is coming from.
Fairness in the system is possible, perfection in the system is not.
In my opinion the justice system is mostly fair. I also think that because of how harsh and tough the system is its doing a good job convicting the right people. I do think sometime that being to hard leads to untruthful cases. For example the Crosley Green case, many people that testified against crosley green were bribed by the justice system to tell lies.
ReplyDeleteLike any other system there are going to be mistakes made. Sometimes after a person has been convicted a few years down the road the system finds new evidence that shows that the person convicted of committing a crime actually had nothing to do with the charges brought on him.
The justice system is usually fair but even though mistakes happen and they can't make up for those mistakes, the justice system can't change the way they deal with cases.
When I think about the question, "Is our justice system fair" I wonder what other way would there to be to put the correct punishment on those who deserve it? I absolutely think that the way the United States does justice is fair compared to other countries but it does have its flaws. One example I can think of, in the Crosley-Green case, the court accused Green as its suspect and criminal. Even though there wasn’t any physical evidence (such as DNA) that Green was involved in the murder, he was still put on death row by an all white jury. Now after 20 years, he is still on death row and awaiting his final sentence. This is only one instance of an unfair justice system and there are many others! I found that the current death row statistics by race are that 45% white as 41% are African American. The other 14% are Latino and other races. However, I found that most of the people on death row were male. I believe that race is still a big factor as to crimes but I also believe perfecting the justice system is nearly impossible.
ReplyDelete• (This is Riely Allen)
For the most part I think the United States has a pretty fair justice system, but there are some areas that need work. For example I think the United States stays true on what they believe in and we are not afraid to execute certain actions when we truly believe in them or in certain situations when certain measures of action need to be taken. Now, I’m not saying that the justice system is perfect, I just don’t think it’s unfair. Yes, in some situations there has been actions taken that the system has failed or the operators controlling the system has falsely accused or implied certain this that someone has done. For example, the Crosley Green trail. We never found of who did what, but the documentary showed us how a courtroom full of people can decipher what your future of your life is going to look like. The death row is a serious thing and can last for long periods of time, and a person can suffer his/her life even if they didn’t commit a crime. The justice system is practical of knowing what to do for certain things but, when the system fails, I think that’s when certain actions need to be met. I think instead of just letting the person suffering go when they are falsely accused, the United States should be held responsible for helping the human get back on their feet. I’m not saying support them for the rest of their lives, I just think to help them get started in the right direction again. So, either way the justice system is going to be unfair in many humans eyes, but if you take a step back and look at the basic guidelines and rules of the justice system, I think the system is well operated, yet there is still little areas for improvement.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the United States justice system is pretty fair. However, due to faults that come with being a human, the justice system can never be entirely fair.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is privileged enough to have the Bill of Rights stating that we have the right to a speedy trial and that the government cannot enforce cruel and unusual punishments upon us. These rights are fair and it is very lucky that these laws are enforced. Also, statistics show that Caucasian men and African American men are very close to equal when it comes to those on death row. As time goes on, I think that people’s racial bias will improve and that it will continue to be fair in the future.
On the other hand, I think that there are some things that are unfair with the U.S. justice system. For example, the jury should be full of race, gender, and ethnicities to ensure that there isn’t bias. Like other people have said, the Crosley Green case is unjust in the fact that an African American man was being tried by an all Caucasian jury. Also from his case, there was no physical evidence. I think this is awful because a potentially innocent man is sentenced to death because of an unjust legal system.
Overall, the justice system in America is pretty fair, but there are some things that need to be changed.
I don't think that the United States justice system is fair. They just recently started using DNA evidence to justify whether a person on death row, for example, gets put to death or not. The knowledge of DNa has been around since the late 1800's (http://www.accessexcellence.org/RC/AB/BC/Search_for_DNA.php), but sometimes in the late 1900's did they figure out how to use it in solving a crime. So why are they still hesitant to use it to save the lives on death row? do they figure that too much time has passed, so it is okay to just leave it? Or does it cost money? I think they need to out in the time to look deeper into the crime scene investigation sooner to the crime, so they don't waste time. the longer the justice system takes, the more lives could be killed due to lack of a legitamate case.
ReplyDeletei think that the justice system is and isnt fair. for exaple i dont think that things like drugs(unless a hard core drug like meth or heroin and cocain ect.) should be as legal as they are i think if its being takin in there homes then it should be ok. but death penalty is more then fair i think it should be inforced more then it is and in more states. if a human is murdered and they have enough evedence to prove it id say sit in this chair and throw the switch me self.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the justice system is trying to be fair but in actuality is flawed and therefore unjust. The saying, “An eye for an eye” is used in our justice system regarding the death penalty. When someone murders another, for a reason that is not acceptable, they will put the victim on death row, eventually leading to death. In order to back up this theory there have been many deaths that have resulted in the victim being proven innocent later on. They have been proven innocent with DNA evidence, more physical evidence, and talking to suspects that share a new story. The justice system in also unfair because it takes away our hard earned money and spends our taxes on the many trials each death row victim receives on their path to death. Combined it costs tax payers $114 million dollars a year. There are many reasons as to why our justice system in unjust, these are just two reasons that are easily understood and explainable.
ReplyDeleteThere are other ways that the justice system could be far without using the method of the death penalty. If we were to keep our death row victims in prison for the rest of their lives and let them suffer, I think that this would be a fair punishment. Some would argue that this would only add to the overcrowding in prisons. To that statement I would say that the percent of death row victims compared to all the people currently in prison is so small that it doesn’t even compare. Some say it would also cost more to keep them in prison rather than kill them, this isn’t true either, each victim gets 15 trials that taxes pay for in addition to prison during that time and the execution method. When added up it is cheaper and doesn’t affect overcrowding when death row victims are held in prison for the remainder of their lives.
I think that after learning about our justice system in the United States, that it is fair but still has some flaws that need to be taken care of. For one thing, we need to be able to physically prove that a person convicted and given the death penalty is actually guilty with real evidence. We also can't have prejudice in the jury against white or blacks. If the person that is being convicted is black and the jury is all white, that should have no affect on whether or not that person is pronounced guilty. Also, I think that investigators should move faster in order to solve the crimes so that a person convicted doesn't have to stay on death row for years and years. Especially if they are innocent. Another thing that should be done, is not to bribe the witnesses of the crime to lie because this can lead to an innocent person being executed, or serving life in jail which you can never pay back to anyone. However some good things about our justice system is that we do have the opportunity to speak out and be given a chance. This is something that very few countries have, and is also something that I am extremely thankful for.
ReplyDeleteI think that the US justice system is partially fair. I think that on many cases, more than the public knows, discrimination and other forms of unjust justice occurs. For example, in the Crosley Green case, there was no physical evidence against him and the people who testified lied! They were pressured into testifying against Green and in return, they were benefited. His sister received less years in prison for saying her brother confessed to the murder. Also, this case was on trial 20 years ago. There was still quite a bit of discrimination, especially in Florida. When the ex-girlfriend said a black man attacked them, I think that that was possibly a stereotype. There has actually been evidence that has proven a man or woman innocent after they have been already put to death. I believe that if there is no physical evidence and a case like Cosley’s happens again, the case should be put on trial again as well as be looked at again. With this example, the justice system of America is flawed, because if this is just one out of numerous cases that seems fishy, how many fishy cases were wrongly put to rest? According to an article online, depending on what state you live in can determine whether you get the death penalty or not. I think that it should be the same for all states, no matter race, sex, or age. If there is a level plane across the board, the justice system just might be a bit more fair.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-penalty-black-and-white-who-lives-who-dies-who-decides
and Crosley Green video
I agree with the United States justice system. I think that the way they treat people who need to be disciplined is fair. However I do not think the way that our government leads up to it is. I believe that people who have committed serious murders do deserve to be prosecuted. I think that the United States needs to clean up the death row actions. From the research we have done in class, we have learned that they have killed many people who were not the murderers and they have also kept the wrong people on death row for long periods of time because they think they are who they want. People on death row should be top priority and they should do everything they can to solve that case as fast as possible. Other than that I think that the justice system completely fair.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, our justice system is not fair. Our justice system isn't fair because too many innocent people are either sent to jail or sentenced to death. This is caused mostly by the lawyers who claim to care about their clients when all they really care about is their check. Most prosecutors could care less about the people they send to prison even if their innocent. We need a better system that can identify if the person on trial is guilty because if we don't, more innocent people are going to go to jail, and some even put to death. Do you want that blood on your hands? I sure don't.
ReplyDeleteThe American justice system is undoubtedly unfair. This is very clearly shown in the case of Crosley Green. How can a man be locked up and put on death row with no real evidence against him and no true testimonies from any witnesses? In a perfect system, Crosley Green would be a free man and the real murderer would take his place on death row, however, there are too many factors that contribute to any given case that will keep it from ever being completely fair. For example, plea bargains actually reward witnesses for providing false information to a jury who could be potentially biased in the first place. Who knows how many were falsely imprisoned due to these causes? I think that the American justice system is fair and just on paper but in reality there are too many outside influences on a case that keep it from ever being ideal.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, our justice system is not fair. One flaw that I see in the system is that people who are less wealthy are more likely to be put on death row, because they cannot always afford the same quality of defense as wealthy defendants. This is shown by the fact that while 84.1 percent of people in the U.S. have a high school diploma (or equivalent), only 51.7 percent of death row inmates have one. Since it has been proven that, in general, the longer one stays in school the more money they earn, this goes to show that death row inmates are typically not affluent people. Another statistic that indicates to me that our justice system is not fair is the fact that 42.9 percent of death row inmates are African-American, compared to a mere 12.8 percent of the national population. I think these facts give evidence to my belief that our justice system is flawed. We live in a country where money can buy freedom and a lack of money can, quite literally, spell a death sentence. We need a more objective system that merely looks at the facts, rather than the skewed truths presented by lawyers in a trial. Another flaw I see in our system is the execution of youth offenders. The United States is the only first world country that still executes minors for committing crimes. I think that much more consideration needs to be put into these cases, and that while life in prison may be warranted for some, executing a minor is never justified. Our justice system has some major flaws, but they are not easy flaws to fix.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the US justice system is fair. There are many regulations and reasons why it is very powerful. I do believe that there are some things that could be fixed with it though. The death penalty is pretty fair, minus the part where they sometimes don’t do enough to prove inocient. They have the same rules in every case. A good example of this is Crossly Green, even though some believe he did commit the murder and others don’t, they make him go under the same regulations and obey the same laws as convicted and non-convicted people.Yes nothing is perfect, not even the justice in America. There is racial profiling, teenage profiling, and mistakes made. Wrongly accused citizens are out innocently put in jail, and laws are broken, but things happen, and overall our justice is fair in America. So ask again is the US justice system fair? People are wrongly accused, and some people get let off the hook, but overall our system keeps a safe and sustainable place to live.
ReplyDeleteI think that for the most part our justice system seems to be fair. After researching the statistics on what the race, sex, and average age of the people on death row were, I found that it is seemingly even across the board. Not to say that our justice system is perfect, because I know that it isn’t. For example the Crosley Green video we viewed in class. It was a, for lack of a better word, sketchy case. The evidence contradicted itself; like how the ex-girlfriend said that Crosley held the gun pointed at her while he stick shifted the car himself, and then told the ex-boyfriend’s parents that she helped Crosley shift the car while he controlled the clutch. There were more instances like this in which the evidence just didn’t seem to match up. Crosley Green is to this day on death row for a murder he still claims he did not do. However, this is only one example of an unfair case out of the many cases that go to trial each year.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the justice system that we live under is fair and good in ideals. However, there are certain instances where the people working in the justice system are not fair or just. These instances are fortunately rare, but they do happen. Citing facts that a there are more of certain races in prison than others does not make the justice system unfair, it just means that there are more of those specific people in prison. One of the symbols of justice is lady liberty wearing a blindfold holding a scale to even out the sides. This is what the system is based on, un-biased truth. It is true that richer people can afford better defense lawyers than those who have to use public defendants, but that doesn’t make the system unfair. There will never be true fairness among people nor is every case the same. Some citizens may have harder prosecutors than others, there are a lot of things to take in account. In the end of every trial, it is not a competition to see who is a better lawyer or has a more convincing argument, it is to see if the defendant is guilty or not and what the punishment should be. There may be innocent people in prison but that is one of the costs of trying to get every criminal off the streets, that is something that we can strive to improve.
ReplyDeleteNo I do not think that the current justice system is fair. I think that our justice system does not use the right kind of punishments for crimes. Over 50 percent of the people incarcerated are incarcerated on drug charges without life sentences. These people have heavy addictions to hard drugs. Sticking them in prison for five years will not break those addictions or change their life styles. I think that one of the jobs of the justice system is to stop crime. Say you incarcerate a drug dealer. You still have the druggies who need a fix and another drug dealer willing to sell to them. Now you have the same amount of illicit activity plus one person who is now living off tax dollars. If instead we invested the money used for incarcerating druggies on helping them recover then we could probably lower the prison population by a good 40 percent and help a lot of people.
ReplyDeleteI think are justice system isn’t really fair. I don’t think it’s fair because innocent people can get sent away for stupid things. I don’t think it is fair when someone gets sent away for a dumb crime but then others might not get sent away for a crime that was worse. I think the justice system should have more evidence or something before they judge or anything. Thats what i think about the justice system.
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