I’m having a hard time understanding how this isn’t a violation of the constitutional right to a speedy trial. Apparently “speedy” is open to interpretation?

I do not believe for a second you know what you’re talking about.

I also voted for legalization here, and for similar reasons. Also because back in 1989 —my first semester of college— the DA of the time talked to my government class. He said that our prisons were clogged with people who had been convicted of or who were awaiting trial for drug possession. The majority of those…

John Oliver did a piece on it after it trended on Twitter, he even retweeted the article before he did the bit.

I’m not sure how true all of this is but for now let’s say everything you said is correct (which it probably is). My problem is I’m not even sure how much this is going to help poor people.

“supervision options including daily check-ins, text-message reminders and required drug or behavioral therapy.”

The “at worst” is that somewhere along the way, people decided that any crime, no matter how minor, means you don’t deserve due process, basic human rights, or second chances.

Especially, especially when you consider that these are people who HAVE NOT YET BEEN CONVICTED. Not that criminals deserve the inhumane conditions you describe either. But to think that a completely innocent person would lose their job because they are sitting in jail unable to make bail is baffling.

I think this is great and overdue. But its really going to change a lot a scenes in Law and Order: SVU

Slacktivist! You should use one less method of protest because back in my day blah blah blah....the streets....blah blah Bob Dylan blah The Weather Men blah blah Lazy kids blah.

3/4 of the people in NYC jails are waiting for trial and are too poor to post bail? I’d say this is overdue. Maybe reducing the population there will free up money in the budget for other things, like basic quality of life, human rights type stuff. The cells should not be over 100 degrees or lacking running water.…

It can’t come soon enough, and needs to happen all over. The system fails people in a lot of ways, but that’s one of the biggest.

A good start, but I get worried when I see things like “required drug or behavioral therapy.” Many times those programs have unreasonably strict requirements, violating them is a violation of the terms of your release, and you go right back into the system. Hopefully that is not the case with this program.

Kalief Browder’s situation enranges me so much. The New Yorker did an awesome article about him that just highlights how tragic his entire situation was. And then another follow up after he committed suicide. I shouldn’t need to say more.

Let no one say social media has no impact. This story would have disappeared without the pressure and backlash.

(since I “follow” you I saw this out of context and hoped it was a Blade Runner reference. Hillary could have hired Replicants. Unless they are only hired by Republicans)

Looks more like Hillary Clinton is trying to take notes from Bernie Sanders, especially given her sudden change of heart regarding POC and LGBTQA+ individuals, and now this.

I’m reading The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander right now and it goes into this topic in depth.

I think of that sometimes when I look at my students. Most of them are boys. Most of them are black and low income. They also have learning disabilities and/or “conduct disorders,” i.e. emotional issues. The deck is stacked against them. They are just kids, but not for long.

Except for this:

Thank you for posting this Ellie. Man, is it my imagination, or were the articles especially good today?