Overcriminalization is downright profitable. Real criminals are an expense, hard on staff morale, kick the windows out of the squad car, throw poo, and want to kill the judge and his dog. They don't pay their fines, and are a drain on the system.
Well said. Worth repeating.
The American Justice System is fascinating when studied all the way back to it's founding. If you're a Tocqueville reader, it's rich. Most countries round up their criminals, sell them off as slaves, kill them, or make them do work which would kill people over time. Warehousing them and paying for their care is an American quirk all our own. In a public treasury faced with reduced receipts, for the same industry to flourish which existed a decade ago, we need to flip the economic rules on criminals. Crime needs to be a profit center, not an overhead or expense. We are in the midst of that transition right now and the PR balancing act.
In another decade, the only murderers, rapists, and thugs on the streets will be working for political causes and union groups. The criminal justice system will be full of nice criminals offered debit cards to pay for their weekly parole officer visit and anger management counseling sessions.