[SJSAMPLE]

Convicts. Inmates. Offender was just the word my on-board thesaurus came up with that moment.

My point is that minor offenses, which have been criminalized as felonies, can send someone to a hole where any hope of rehabilitation is eliminated.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Yuppers... 'felony' used to mean a crime that was deemed potentially worthy of a death sentence. Now, things fall under that rubric term, that nobody would have dreamed of punishing with a death sentence.

[EGPWS]

My point is that minor offenses, which have been criminalized as felonies, can send someone to a hole where any hope of rehabilitation is eliminated.

Perhaps "minor" offenses should not be considered "felony" offenses.

After all, as the adage goes, "when lutifisk is outlawed...lutifisk eaters will be outlaws".