In the latter regard, the rich and famous are given the benefit of the doubt as to their level of “risk” while the poor are almost always consid-ered risky.
NOT HAVING MONEY TO GET PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT TRIAL
Theoretically there are only two situations that call for incarceration: a criminal conviction that results in a prison or jail sentence, or because a defendant awaiting trial is considered a flight risk or danger to public safety. “It really exemplifies the two-tier nature of the American criminal justice system, where you have one system of justice for the poor and politically unconnected and another system of justice for the wealthy and politically connected,” said PLN editor Paul Wright. Now even that bastion of equal treatment has fallen with the rise of pay-to-stay jails for well-off prisoners who can afford them. Jail was jail for both the rich and poor. The one place in the criminal justice system where there was at least an appearance of equality among the economic classes was incarceration. Simpson murder prosecution, Simpson’s “dream team,” headed by late attorney Johnnie Cochran, cost an estimated $3-6 million. Wealthy defendants can hire private counsel or even a team of lawyers. Indigent prisoners are represented by overworked and underfunded public defenders with huge caseloads, or court-appointed attorneys who may or may not be experienced or competent in criminal cases. For the very rich, bail can range into the millions of dollars, which they can easily pay. at a strip club earlier that night.įollowing arrest, poor defendants often have to sit in jail – sometimes for years while their cases wind through the court system – while those with sufficient funds can afford to make bond. At the time of the traffic stop Kid Rock was wanted for punch-ing a D.J. “We don’t have any way of knowing, had the field-sobriety test been done, how that would have come out,” said Vanderbilt Police Captain Pat Cunningham. This assumes that people with means and influence are arrested in the first place, of course.įor example, when musician Robert Ritchie (known as Kid Rock) was stopped by a Vanderbilt police officer in Nash-ville, Tennessee in February 2005, the officer chose not to perform a sobriety test and instead issued a warning. The affluent are frequently allowed to “turn themselves in,” usually accompanied by their attorney. The poor are often arrested during SWAT-type raids in the middle of the night that leave their front doors, and possibly their entire homes, in a shambles. criminal justice system begins with arrest. It also highlights the inequities of a two-track system of justice in the United States in which the wealthy enjoy privileges and perks behind bars while the poor are resigned to less comfortable and more dangerous conditions of confinement. This nicer-jail-stay-for-pay scheme not only allows the rich and famous – as well as the more modestly affluent – to avoid the brutality, squalor, abysmal medical care and other unpleasant conditions typical in public jail systems. Some even let prisoners (who are referred to as “clients”) bring in their own food. These pay-to-stay programs, also called self-pay jails, cost wealthy prisoners between $45 and $175 a day and include such amenities as iPods, cell phones, computers, private cells and work release programs. The other justice system is for everybody else.Īs one example of this dichotomy, for over a decade suburban jails in Southern California have been renting upscale cells to affluent people convicted of crimes in Los Angeles County. One is for people with wealth, fame or influence who can afford to hire top-notch attorneys and public relations firms, who make campaign contributions to sheriffs, legislators and other elected officials, and who enjoy certain privileges due to their celebrity status or the size of their bank accounts. There are two criminal justice systems in the United States. Share: Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on G+ Share with email
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