A case of two differing jail sentences
Published 7:00 am Friday, July 28, 2017
Most law-abiding citizens will never know what it’s like to spend time in jail, unless the unthinkable happens.
Such a scenario could occur if you are wrongly convicted of a crime or are later determined to not be fit to stand trial.
We like to think our justice system is good enough that things like that rarely occur, if at all.
But, they do.
Just ask a Kansas man recently released from jail after losing 17 years of his life serving time for a crime he didn’t commit.
Apparently, even though he had a solid alibi, of which several people confirmed during the trial, the jury sent him taway for 19 years.
The worst part?
He won’t be compensated for that lost time because Kansas does not have compensation laws for the wrongfully convicted.
Here in Mississippi, a man who shot his father, and went on a crime spree in 2005 that involved carjacking and stabbing a man and taking law enforcement officials on a chase that led to three deputies being injured will now be released.
This comes after he spent 11 of his years in jail.
This case is different.
His release is based on a schizophrenia diagnosis, leading to the justice system dropping all of the 11 counts against him because the diagnosis makes him incompetent to stand trial.
He will now be released, according to coverage by the Associated Press
These are just two aspects of the justice system that need to be reworked to ensure they don’t happen again.