Posted on 05/25/2016 10:22:01 AM PDT by reaganaut1
A federal judge in Brooklyn, in an extraordinary opinion that calls for courts to pay closer attention to the impact of felony convictions on people’s lives, sentenced a young woman in a drug case to probation rather than prison, saying on Wednesday that the collateral consequences she would face as a felon were punishment enough.
The judge, Frederic Block of Federal District Court, said that the broad range of such collateral consequences served no “useful function other than to further punish criminal defendants after they have completed their court-imposed sentences.”
The judge noted that there were nearly 50,000 federal and state statutes and regulations that impose penalties, disabilities or disadvantages on convicted felons.
Such consequences — the denial of government benefits, ineligibility for public housing, suspension of student loans, revocation or suspension of driver’s licenses — can have devastating effects, he wrote, adding that they may also be “particularly disruptive to an ex-convict’s efforts at rehabilitation and reintegration into society.”
The issue of collateral consequences and sentencing has been considered by other courts, but Judge Block’s 42-page opinion appears to be one of the most detailed examinations yet, combined with his call for reform.
He noted that the inability to obtain housing and employment stemming from a conviction often results in “further disastrous consequences, such as losing child custody or going homeless,” and leads to many ex-convicts “becoming recidivists and restarting the criminal cycle.”
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
The judge is behind the times -- they're not "felons" but "justice-involved individuals", according to the Obama Administration.
They’re just ethically challenged people.
Who are we to punish them? Ethics after all depends on the situation.
Let’s not judge.
“The judge, Frederic Block of Federal District Court, said that the broad range of such collateral consequences served no “useful function other than to further punish criminal defendants after they have completed their court-imposed sentences.”
Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time or accept the consequences for your actions.
Judge Block is a blockhead.
In case you’re wondering, no one is forced to commit a crime.
And people who are behind bars deserve to be there.
Well, he does make one good point at least. If you are a felon who has served their sentence and you want to go “straight”, but can’t get a legitimate job, can’t get housing, and can’t get public assistance, it’s most likely just going to discourage you from your goal and encourage you to go right back to crime.
The New York Times puts up a sob story of the hard life a convict faces.
Never mentioned is the damage done to the victim.
I bet Judge Frederick Block never considered that angle worthy of his attention.
And right back to prison.
Some people simply can’t make it in society.
Bingo!
You make a GREAT case for the stupidity of crime.
Never mentioned is the damage done to the victim.
I bet Judge Frederick Block never considered that angle worthy of his attention.
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Exactly. How many lives did the felon destroy? Why should we care about theirs?
No, he actually makes a great case about the wanton stupidity of liberal judges.
write on the blackboard 100 times, "I will not spit on the sidewalks of New Yawk"
Unless the "charge" is changed ... you be a felon, mama.
I'm a one time felon from 1969 ... jast a few months after the gun control act of '68, and I've been a goody two shoes ever since
still can't have a gun
And WHO appoints these liberal judges?
The judge is full of **it and trying to polish himself into a bronze turd; when in truth they all know - there is simply no more goddamned room. We need more prisons, and put them in the bluest of blue citystates.
And if you can't get a job, or can't rent an apt it's kinda hard to go straight.
Again, women serve much less prison time then men for the same crime.
And he is right that criminal records prevent reintegration. How about we call it what it is, "DEBT PAID TO SOCIETY!" End of story. Good luck and don't do it again!
As for drug use, as long as no violent action was involved they need to be put into rehab not prison. It'll save us money in the long run instead of having to shell out money for 3 hots a cot and a sissy for these people. Plus, We wont have to pay welfare benefits when they get out of prison and go back to hitting the pipe while on skid row.
FOLLOW THE CONSTITUTION PEOPLE! USE OUR FOUNDING FATHERS VALUES! THEY WORK! This tyranny which is cruel and unususal punishment doesn't.
Amazingly I find myself agreeing somewhat with judge blockhead. Just goes to show a broken clock is right twice a day.
Just goes to show that it doesn't work. Meanwhile plenty of criminals who wont go straight carry guns.
I don’t think anyone will argue it isn’t stupid.
However, discouraging criminals from reforming and becoming law abiding citizens (which is supposed to be our goal) seems just about as stupid.
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