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US Supreme Court Upholds Indefinite Confinement
An anonymous reader points out the news that the US Supreme Court today upheld a law that allows the federal government to keep prison inmates behind bars beyond the end of their sentences, if officials determine they may be "sexually dangerous" in the future. The case involves one Graydon Comstock, who was certified as "dangerous" six days before his 37-month federal prison term for processing child pornography was to end. The vote was 7 to 2. Three of the justices who concurred with the decision raised an objection to the broadness of the language used in the majority opinion, written by Justice Kennedy.
Don't waste your praise. Thank Scalia. Thomas just echoes whatever votes Scalia dictates he make.
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
You may or may not agree with me, but since I am God, I am always correct and wise beyond your comprehension. You may not question me lest you run the risk of being turned into salt.
Okay. So the SCOTUS decided that it is OK to keep someone locked up beyond their sentence term because of what they MIGHT do? This isn't too far removed from rounding up all people on parole and sticking them back in prison because they MIGHT do something bad. This isn't too far removed from putting people who fit into a particularly risky demographic into prison because of what they MIGHT do.
The justice system that was created in the U.S. was created the way it was largely to remove itself from the ridiculous crap that exists in the British system... and now we're becoming just like them or worse. We shouldn't jail people because of what they might do. That is a slippery slope we don't want to slide down.