Dark Cloud Over The Criminal Justice System
The criminal justice system as the name suggests is aimed at providing justice to all the people regardless of their race, religion, social status or country of origin. Unfortunately, this has not always been the case. There have been numerous cases of well known criminals who have been acquitted by the courts. Cases of corrupt judges and court officials who rely on the social status on individuals to deliver rulings have been prominent in the United States. It is even worse to think that law enforcement officers who are caught disobeying the law are hardly punished. This can be cited through the case of Robert Leone who was brutally beaten by the police from Pennsylvania. The officers involved in the brutality incident went unpunished. This is a case that made the Pennsylvania criminal justice system to appear unjust and unfair. The public lost immense trust in the criminal justice system. This incident can be compared to the Rodney King brutality incident where the issue attracted public interest and triggered demonstrations.
Secondly, the criminal justice process has been cited as a laborious and slow process that calls for immense patience and commitment. More often than not, the prolonged process may sometimes end up interfering with the justice served. This can be clearly demonstrated through the case of Fort Collins police Lt in North Colorado. Mr. Collins was acquitted by Judge James Hartmann of Greeley on technicality bases. Collins made up a murder case which resulted in the incarceration of Tim Masters for ten years. Interestingly, the district judge argued that according to the Colorado laws, the case ought to have been brought before him with three years of commission of the crime. The attracted fury and dissatisfaction from the Colorado residents since the judgment given was viewed as unfair.
Corrupt relationships between the law enforcement officers and some well known criminals has for decades compromised the integrity of the criminal justice system. People no longer trust the criminal justice system as they did fifty years ago. This can be clearly demonstrated through the case of James “Whitey” Bulger who was a notorious and dangerous criminal in Boston. James had a corrupt relationship with various senior criminal justice officers in Boston and he got away with crime for over twenty years. He was a boss of a violent criminal gang in Boston. Although James was later captured, it is clear that his escapades with the criminal justice system tainted its image. It is clear that there is indeed a dark cloud over the criminal justice system in the United States. The public has lost trust and belief in the system and only the rich are able to get justice.