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cC2Panda t1_ivfkuu3 wrote

Reply to comment by Im_Not_Really_Here_ in Left Unmonitored In His Cell, He Etched His Suicide Note Into a Wall On Rikers Island by hau5keeping

I've said this a dozen times before on this sub, but we need to better fund out court system to actually make it "fair and speedy". We spend more than $1,500 per day for someone to be in Rikers. Even if you are someone who believes in small government the financially intelligent thing to do is better fund our courts so that people get to trial in a timeframe that doesn't ruin their life. The societal, economic, and human cost of putting the average person awaiting trial in prison for 4 months is disastrous.

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Grass8989 t1_ivgzp7y wrote

And what happens if/most likely when they’re found inevitably guilty. Are we then okay with the prison sentence? Or do we just want to get rid of jails all together? The majority of people on rikers have violent priors, that’s the reality of the situation.

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mission17 t1_ivhaex6 wrote

Riker’s comes before the trial and before any guilty verdict. Riker’s is not a prison.

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cC2Panda t1_ivh61x6 wrote

The entire system needs massive reform. We need a system that focuses on rehabilitation rather than punitive actions.

Our current system does not provide fair and speedy trial as dictated by the sixth amendment.

Our prisons create worse people and have some of the highest recidivism in the developed world, so clearly it's not working.

44% go back to prison in the first year of release. And then we just blow even more money. The financially smart thing is to try to reduce recidivism by actually helping the prisoners. Less wasted taxes and less victims.

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