JUSTICE BUILDING BLOG

WELCOME TO THE OFFICIAL RICHARD E GERSTEIN JUSTICE BUILDING BLOG. THIS BLOG IS DEDICATED TO JUSTICE BUILDING RUMOR, HUMOR, AND A DISCUSSION ABOUT AND BETWEEN THE JUDGES, LAWYERS AND THE DEDICATED SUPPORT STAFF, CLERKS, COURT REPORTERS, AND CORRECTIONAL OFFICERS WHO LABOR IN THE WORLD OF MIAMI'S CRIMINAL JUSTICE. POST YOUR COMMENTS, OR SEND RUMPOLE A PRIVATE EMAIL AT HOWARDROARK21@GMAIL.COM. Winner of the prestigious Cushing Left Anterior Descending Artery Award.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

THE SHAME OF THREE STRIKES

If you have a conscience, then spend a few minutes and watch this shattering video op ed piece on California's three strikes law. 4,000 individuals have been sentenced to life on non-violent third felonies in California. 

Bottom line: minimum mandatory sentences for non-violent offenses are offensive to American ideals of justice, fairness, due process, and redemption. We challenge you-after watching this brief piece- to explain why the criminal justice in this system is any better than the system in China, Iran or North Korea. 

Five dollars of drugs with two non-violent  priors in California gets you a trial, a conviction, and a life sentence. Shameful. Just shameful. 




Upon reflection, what we are talking about is the difference between guilt and punishment. An enlightened society with a fair criminal justice system understands the difference. Three strikes laws abrogate that difference and throw everyone into the same cesspool. There is nothing enlightened about that. There is nothing "due process of law" about that. There is nothing American about that. And yet, it is what we do. Shameful. 

38 comments:

Anonymous said...

Speaking of shame, is it scrupulous and legal to charge for a case search in the Federal Circuit?

GB said...

Rumpole - these two are sucking the life out of the blog, at least the comments section . no ability to self modulate.

Anonymous said...

Rump, in response to your comment, the state had a duty to investigate the facebook issue because there were initially some allegations of inappropriate "sexual" conduct with these girls while they were under the age of 18. As the parent of a young girl that attends one of the targeted schools, I do not believe this investigation to have been a waste of taxpayer money. To the contrary.

Anonymous said...

I remember a cop who, after "redirecting" the defendant to the ground, stopped answering question at his deposition and invoked his right to remain silent and his right to counsel.

Rumpole said...

Really guys. Enough. People are complaining.

Rumpole said...

that's enough. i am putting a sop to this nonsense,

Anonymous said...

Thanks rump. That's an important video about an important subject and those two dopes don't even bother to comment about it.

Rumpole said...

Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life in prison by South Africa in 1973 and he served 27 years. His crimes were crimes against the state.
He wasn't the only one who was thrown in prison in South Africa.

How is California and the rest of the states and the federal government any different?

There has to be a difference between guilt and punishment.

Rumpole said...

That should read "throw"

Anonymous said...

Rump,

The intent of the legislative bodies in these states, combined with the apathy of the judges who preside over these cases is the problem.

Now, everyone knows what's wrong, but who's going to do something about it, not just whine and complain and continue to plea out defendants.

Anonymous said...

PRIVATE PRISON CORPORATIONS ARE TO BLAME!!

Inmates for profit means you have to have a steady supply of inmates, hence minimum mandatory sentences for stupid, non violent stuff.

Inform yourselves people.

Rumpole said...

I disagree because these three strikes laws came into being in the late 1980s, early 1990s, before prisons became private.

AM- I blame in part Hollywood and news media. The one case where someone is acquitted or where a judge gives a lenient sentence in a difficult case is splashed all across the headlines and movies are made and the public wants "something done." The reality is who will win an election: the good ol boy running on "getting tough on crime and locking them up and throwing them away" or the sweet social worker who says "crime has social roots and to address crime we need to address social inequalities and not warehouse people". I know who wins that election every time.

We should look at Portugal- they legalized possession of drugs, took the money away from criminalization and enforcement and spent part of it in education and rehab and prevention and solved the problem and saved money to boot.

fake matters and adelstein said...

Cool

Anonymous said...

Rumpole you ol sly dog- I just saw two pieces you authored on a WWII blog. One, a detailed analysis of Ike's decision to pick Bradley as the commander for D-Day and the second an insightful analysis of the Italian invasion, the landings at Salerno, and a critique (mostly positive) of German general Von Kesserling's decisions and how he nearly drove the allies back into the sea. I never knew the Italian invasion was so precarious and so nearly turned into a defeat for the allies. You posted this on September 13, which it turns out was the anniversary of the solidifying of the Salerno beachhead. Very interesting. When did you start writing WWI history?

Anonymous said...

Can CA Governor Jerry Brown (D) pardon this man? Would CA's US Senators Barbra Boxer (D) and Diane Feinstein (D) support Governor Brown's pardon? Have such sentences been challenged as 8th Amendment Violations? Have they been upheld as passing the Rational Basis Test? Just wondering?

Fake Josh Gradinger said...

Too bad baseball didnt require 6 strikes for an out.

Anonymous said...

Who's up for a Macanudo or Perdomo Royale at the Shumie Ye Olde Cigar Shoppe tonight whilst we watch the game?

Anonymous said...

The piece on California's 3 strike law was appropriate and informative for your readership. I would like to cast my vote to limit the posts of Mr. AM and Mr. DS, both of whom are borderline morons and bring nothing to the table. The Shumie posts are juvenile in nature and do nothing other than bring ridicule to the Blog. Keep those clowns from posting and I will visit much more often. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Shumie = Loser.
Loser.

Anonymous said...

Like Ice Cube said - we live in "Amerikkka with the kkk"

Rumpole said...

I hear you 6:43. I've taken steps to calm the DS/AM war that no one else is interested in. Shumie is ....well...silly but not overbearing. No harm every now and then.

The issue with DS and AM is if-for instance- they were having a serious discussion on three strikes, I would encourage it. But it had spun out of control. The sharks who read this blog smelled blood and just started savaging DS and I had to stop the fight.

Anonymous said...

So cool you tweeted meeting POTUS rump. How much that set ya back?

Anonymous said...

RUMPOLE, PLEASE INFORM YOURSELF:

"Since our inception in 1984, GEO has become successfully established within the industry through our quality of service, innovative operational solutions, and efficient cost-effective operations. Our achievements are paralleled by an executive management team with a combined total service of over 98 years with the company."
Taken from the Geo homepage. And, that's just one of them.

Private prisons have been in existence a LONG time. You give Hollywood too much credit. Hollywood may incite the riot, but the legislation that is ultimately enacted is not lobbied for by Hollywood groups. That legislation is purely private prison corporation fodder.

You're getting soft, the kitty picture was the first clue.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


DEBATE CENTRAL.

Biden unbuttons coat. Ryan keeps coat buttoned. And we're off.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


Lots of red in Ryan tie. And bigger American flag on Ryan. Just like it was with Romney.

What's with the hair cut though on Ryan. Hair seems flipped up in the middle front.

Biden couldn't hold back. "That's a bunch of malarkey". Malarkey. Malarky. Who uses that in a debate

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


They told Biden 100 times not to laugh, not to smile, not to look like a goof ball. He just can't help himself.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


50 million people watching. How many know who BeBe is?

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


Now Biden sounds like a debater.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


Now this is a debate. Hooray. Maybe Obama is watching and can learn something.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


Martha Raddich needs to be the debate commentator for all the debates. She is so much better than anyone else in years.

She is strong and is not taking any shit.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...


Word of the day guys. Quick. CONFLATING. Biden used it.

CAPTAIN JUSTICE said...



Much more enjoyable event tonight than last one. Good job by both candidates.

Bravo to Martha.

Now do yourselves a favor. Turn off the TV and ignore the spin mysters

Anonymous said...

Capt,

I can appreciate the word for the day being "conflating",but word of the Willard camp "Malarkey",because they're full of it.

~AM~

Anonymous said...

CONFLATING = eating conflates. Cereal brand not important as long as lobbyists spend big money to subsidize the con with which the conflates are made.

Anonymous said...

Martha is hot.

Anonymous said...

9:20 pm, it's spelled Bibi.

Anonymous said...


Joey Ganem's case came out pretty favorable. I wonder how state cases he's testified in as a cop/drug user?

Yeah I know this is different blah blah blah. Differential treatment in the justice system,bottom line. I can name a slew of officers who have gotten breaks. Don't we trust and hold them to a higher standard especially when they testify for the SAO?

Fake DS said...



Decriminalize drugs, man
All incarceration for intoxicating substances should be legal/ Only DUI, BUI, FUI (Flying) sholud be illegal.

Fake DS