Is the Criminal Justice System Failing to Address the Real Problem When it comes to Administering Justice and if so is there an Answer?
By: Mark Astor, Esq. Dedicated to Marchman Act and Criminal Defense Representation
Here is an excerpt from the above article found on page 15 of The Advocate. View the full article by following the link below!
As a young Assistant State Attorney fresh out of law school, a baby lawyer as I was often referred to, I was convinced that anyone, and everyone, that had been arrested and was in the criminal justice system was bad and should be punished.
Fast forward a few years and I concluded that there are actually three (3) groups of people in the criminal justice system. The initial 10% have committed minor offenses, such as Petit Theft, Trespass, Criminal Mischief, Possession of Fewer than 20 grams of Marijuana, and DUI. Another 10% are individuals who have committed serious offenses such as Murder, Rape, Armed Robbery, and other crimes of violence. The remaining 80% are, I would argue, people who suffer from drug, alcohol, and/or mental health disorders.
That conclusion appears to be confirmed by statistics. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse confirms that the majority of people in our prisons are there because of drug or alcohol addiction. The Center for Disease Control estimates that 114 people a day die because of drugs (TIME magazine offers a much higher estimate), and 6,748 will be sent to hospital emergency rooms for treatment.
While addiction and substance abuse are undoubtedly major problems in the US, a survey conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration found that as many as 90 percent of people who most need drug rehab do not receive it.
