Prison VS Work

[Souichiro]

And what is your opinion on citizen retrieval? I mean if some dutchie Commits a crime in lets say Thailand and gets tried there and is found guilty. In Holland we have the tendency to retrieve those prisoners and let them sit out their punishment in our prisons I say let them stay there! So what if the treatment is worse there it's a criminal!

[Politically Incorrect]

Exactly "Hell on earth" as Jordonj calls it, is exactly where a criminal should be!!
Why should they even be considered to have rights? The person(s) they victimized didnt have any rights in the eyes of the one that commited the crime.
To much time, energy and money goes into making certain that prisoners have "rights" and all the comforts of home.

At the end of the day, after an honest day's work, the free man goes home, to rest and relaxation (or a family).  Whereas a prisoner stays in the same place years on end, no change, nothing typically exciting, and you sit in a concrete 8'x6' hole.

Where that "free man" goes home and turns on the local news to learn that "a man that was convicted of raping 13 boys between the age of 7-14, only spent 13 months in prison to be released, was just arrested again for the rape of two young boys, now the concern is that there are many more victims since the man was released 19 years ago" (this is a recent story and is true)

For 19 years after this bastard was released he was out on the streets, commiting the same hideous acts that got him arrested the first time!!!!
For those of you that are compasonate towards how prisoners are treated I guess your views will remain unchanged until you or your family become the victim of a serious crime, and if and when that happens I hope you dont expect the pity of the " free man" because I have told you already that a criminal should already be living in "Hell on Earth"

[TacitBlue]

Especially the guy in your example! I cant believe they let him out after only 13 months  :-/. Several peoples lives are messed up for good, and the guy who did it only spends just over a year in prison!? I am outraged  :-/

[Hagar]

I cant believe they let him out after only 13 months

This is an extreme example & not the fault of the prisons themselves. This sort of thing does seem to happen too frequently now but it's the sentencing & parole systems that need to be looked into.

If the prisoner is a murderer then he deserves very little rights as he has denied a person the right to live, which surely is the biggest right anyone could take away from anyone

I have no sympathy for convicted criminals but there are many different offences involving a prison sentence. Most people in prison are not murderers or rapists & in Britain many are on remand awaiting trial, so not even convicted. However soft it might seem nowadays I wouldn't imagine having my freedom taken away to be a pleasant experience.

Whatever offence they're guilty of I think convicted prisoners should lose all social rights, including the right to vote or carry on a business while serving their sentence which many appear to do. A civilised society must have rules & if you break the rules you should lose the rights that go with them. Prison must be a deterrent or there doesn't seem much point in locking anyone up.

[Saitek]

Everyone knows my views - I make them known too much! But I would point out that although US prisons may be awful, British ones are not. The latest rights prisoners should have is internet access.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4574739.stm

The whole thing sickens me to the core. I firmly believe the majority of people against the death sentence or life imprisonment (proper life) would alter their views if their 5 years old was raped so that he was traumatised for life or their 10 year old daughter and her ten year old friend were murdered (as with the recent Ian Huntly case).  It's amazing how effective an experience can change people's minds, yet they can read EVERY DAY of people suffering the same grief and remain unmoved.

[ATI_7500]

Internet for prisoners is a nice idea. If you can help educating them and getting back into a normal life by that, it might be worth the funds.

[jordonj]

Internet for prisoners is a nice idea. If you can help educating them and getting back into a normal life by that, it might be worth the funds.

This too, is a complicated issue...

I agree with Trucker that it's wrong that Prisioners should be treated better than Senior Citizens or Veterans.  The thing is, Donnie has a point too.

A judge is known to have said "you can't treat human beings like garbage, and expect them to become good citizens".

A good movie for some perspective is "The Shawshank Redemption".

I have a friend who is a Heating/Cooling tech, and was looking into a job at Jackson Prision (I and another friend of his talked him out of it).

Of course, our prisons have nothing on Turkish prisons...or Japanese ones (or so I've been told).

On the other hand, here in America, 1 in 142 US residents is now in prison.  A pretty significant number.  Something is not right with a number that high.

Where that "free man" goes home and turns on the local news to learn that "a man that was convicted of raping 13 boys between the age of 7-14, only spent 13 months in prison to be released, was just arrested again for the rape of two young boys, now the concern is that there are many more victims since the man was released 19 years ago" (this is a recent story and is true)

For 19 years after this bastard was released he was out on the streets, commiting the same hideous acts that got him arrested the first time!!!!
For those of you that are compasonate towards how prisoners are treated I guess your views will remain unchanged until you or your family become the victim of a serious crime, and if and when that happens I hope you dont expect the pity of the " free man" because I have told you already that a criminal should already be living in "Hell on Earth"

Released sex offenders also is complicated.  It was a similar case that led to the Sex Offender Registries in several states.  

It turns out to be the ultimate "NIMBY" issue.  People have been known to buy property or open day cares to keep Sex Offenders from being placed in housing near them.  The other problem is that released sex offenders (who have served their setence) have to live somewhere.  Remember, that I am a father of a 6-year-old girl and I don't have any wish to have one live near me either...remember that pedophiles generally men that prey on young girls.

But if they are unable to get housing or jobs, the chances that they'll commit the crime again is high...

The Sex Offender Registry is not perfect either.  You go there for any crime related to sex.   You could be a 17-year old that had consentual sex with a girl of 14 (and she may have told you she was 16, the legal age).  That is a crime called Statutory Rape.  Also, before it was struck down, if you were Gay, and had Sex in Texas, you would be charged with a crime, and have to Register as a sex offender...

Little disclaimer...

THIS IS NOT A DEBATE ABOUT GAYS...DON'T START ONE!!!

Now , whatever your opinion about Gays or Teens having sex, I do think we can all agree that there is a world of difference between two Gay Men (or women) in a consentual relationship or a Teen who made a mistake when he was 17, and a Sexual Predator such as a Pedophile.  However, once you are on the registry, you are there for life.  And there is no way to challenge your presence there.  A few unfortunate souls have gotten on due to identity theft as well (a pedophile stole their identity).

Okay, back to real pedophiles...

It's getting to be the general practice to keep repeat sex offenders in Mental-type Institutions after their sentence is up.  I applaud that.  Though it is no secret that I am a liberal, for anyone who says that is not fair, would you want them living next to you?

[Saitek]

I entirely disagree with some of your views which most people could guess at.. but I would certainly acknowledge that that is a very important point you have raised and one that should be dealt with. I don't think we have that problem (mixing pedophiles with some of the lesser crimes you mention) in Britain as our registery I think works differently.

Also our registery I don't think is necessarily for life.