Our Justice $ystem

[_DoubtingThomas]

Police agencies have a strong financial incentive to keep the drug war churning.

Balko, R. (2014, February 17). The drug war's profit motive. Retrieved March 22, 2018, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the ... e67906da32

The war on sex has turned out to be immensely profitable and useful for others—not only for politicians and academics, therapists and police officers, journalists and moralists, but also for a multitude of interested parties. It is not about to end any time soon. And, as in most wars, fog and shadows, propaganda and disinformation conceal the contours of events.

Halperin, D. M., & Hopper, T. (2017). The war on sex. Durham: Duke University Press.

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, political action committee contributions to federal candidates from for-profit private prison companies CoreCivic (formerly CCA), GEO Group, and Management and Training Corp. totaled over $476,000 in the 2016 federal election cycle, with just over $406,000 going to Republican candidates. In addition, the GEO Group’s PAC gave $215,000 to the Trump Victory PAC.

Schindler, M., & Ashton, P. (2017, February 28). Private prisons place politics and profits over people. Retrieved March 22, 2018, from http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/c ... ver-people

[_MeDotOrg]

Back in 2008, one of the most horrific scandals was called Kids for Cash.

The "kids for cash" scandal unfolded in 2008 over judicial kickbacks at the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Two judges, President Judge Mark Ciavarella (who served as juvenile court judge from 1996 to 2008) and Senior Judge Michael Conahan (who served as President Judge from 2003 to 2007), were convicted of accepting money from Robert Mericle, builder of two private, for-profit youth centers for the detention of juveniles, in return for contracting with the facilities and imposing harsh adjudications on juveniles brought before their courts to increase the number of residents in the centers.

Ciavarella disposed a substantial number of children to extended stays in youth centers for a variety of offenses as trivial as mocking a principal on MySpace, trespassing in a vacant building, and shoplifting DVDs from Wal-Mart. Ciavarella and Conahan pleaded guilty on February 13, 2009, pursuant to a plea agreement, to federal charges of honest services fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States (failing to report income to the Internal Revenue Service, known as tax evasion) in connection with receiving $2.6 million in payments from managers at PA Child Care in Pittston Township and its sister company Western PA Child Care in Butler County.[4][5] The plea agreement was later voided by a federal judge, who was dissatisfied with the post-plea conduct of the defendants, and the two judges charged subsequently withdrew their guilty pleas, raising the possibility of criminal trials.

Got that? A company pays $2,600,000 to bribe judges to put kids in prison. This always struck me as being one of those There's a special place in hell types of stories.

[_Themis]

Private for profit prison's is one of the worst ideas.

[_Gunnar]

Private for profit prison's is one of the worst ideas.

Thanks to the horrible, infamous Supreme Court ruling on Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission in 2010, it is an excellent and extremely lucrative idea, if you happen to be a corrupt politician or judge who hopes to gain by virtually unlimited political contributions and/or bribes from outrageously avaricious and immoral corporate types, including those aspiring to run for profit, private prisons.

In September, a Bloomberg poll about the facts behind the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision, found that 80 percent of Republicans and 83 percent of Democrats opposed it.

Analysis: How might the ‘Citizens United’ decision be undone?
As long as it remains possible for the wealthiest of the wealthy to buy elected officials and judges, like they are doing now, the legitimate wishes of the general voting public will tend to be ignored in favor of a tiny minority of wealthy, avaricious and unconscionable, wealthy elite.

[_Themis]

As long as it remains possible for the wealthiest of the wealthy to buy elected officials and judges, like they are doing now, the legitimate wishes of the general voting public will tend to be ignored in favor of a tiny minority of wealthy, avaricious and unconscionable, wealthy elite.

I would suggest campaign finance reform is the most important change needed in the US.

[_Gunnar]

I would suggest campaign finance reform is the most important change needed in the US.

Agreed!