“During the first half of the 20th century and into the second, the incarceration rate in America hovered around 100 people per every 100,000. Then politicians decided to get “tough on crime.” By 1996 there were 427 imprisoned for every 100,000. Today, there are about 707.
Thanks to the “criminalization of everything,” almost three times as many felony cases enter the court system today as they did 25 years ago. If every one of those cases went to trial, the justice system would quickly collapse under the load. Thus, more than 96 percent of all cases end in a plea bargain.
“The system isn’t geared to discover innocence or guilt — it’s geared to get people through the system as quickly and efficiently as possible,” says John Pollok, a defense lawyer who has defended clients ranging from the mayor of Waterbury, Connecticut to members of the Gambino crime family. “What it comes down to for a defense lawyer is really to try and minimize harm.”*
Read more here: https://news.vice.com/article/why-are-there-up-to-120000-innocent-people-in-us-prisons
Cenk Uygur (http://www.twitter.com/cenkuygur) and Ana Kasparian (http://www.twitter.com/anakasparian) of The Young Turks discuss. Tell us what you think in the comment section below.
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