America’s Injustice System
It was probably inevitable that as the United States became an increasingly politicized nation, its justice system would be transformed from one that actually sought justice into one where prosecutors abuse their power to win cases and advance their careers. From district attorney to attorney general to governor is the path that many have in mind and pursue relentlessly. Abstract concerns about due process and fairness take a back seat to the piling up of convictions, especially if the public can be convinced that those convictions have saved them from some great horror, such as drug dealing or stock manipulation.
Here’s how the prosecutor thinks: “If I win, I’ll look good to the public and hardly anyone will know or care that I used vicious and underhanded tactics that ruined the lives of people who did little or nothing wrong. If I lose, the case will be quickly forgotten and I can aim at my next trophy. It’s no skin off my nose that the defendant is put through legal and financial hell.”
Harold
