Why are prisoners protected by constitutional rights or by the ACLU?

Question

as a tax payer I want to know why I have to work so hard to and obey the laws in order to be left alone by the government yet these criminals are housed, fed, clothed, and doctored for free for them paid by us?

what I am trying to find out is "why is it that for one if an individual is found guilty by a jury of his or her peer's beyond a reasonable doubt of a heinous crime why do these incarcerated have to stay incarcerated why not have them serve their country on front lines of a war or set out on a remote island to fend for themselves i understand that time served is to rehabilitate and educate but repeat offenders don't seem to mind checking back in once in awhile at my expense.

Answer 1

If you think you get a bad deal, feel free to commit a crime and spend your time in prison, clothed, fed, doctored (poorly), confined, censored, beaten, extorted and raped.

Or try this answer: you ask why does the US Government have to follow the law, and isn't free to do whatever it wants, to criminals? Maybe because if it doesn't have to follow the law, it doesn't have to when it deals with those who aren't criminals either.

Answer 2

The answer is simply because the men and women in prison are also human beings. The Constitution of the United States of America doesn't provide the qualifications to be a human- it simply states that all men are created equal, and they are entitled to certain rights.

It would become a logistical nightmare (to some extent, it already has) to argue which criminals do or do not qualify to keep their rights. How would you do that? Based on the crimes they commit? If that were the case, we'd have to wait until they were tried and found guilty. We'd still end up spending our tax dollars to shelter them until their court date.

You're not paying taxes and to the government obeying the law to be left alone, you're paying taxes and following laws to help establish order in this society. It may seem unfair to some that the criminals are fed, sheltered, etc. while we work hard- however I will say this:

Prisonlife isn't Club Med. They're not exactly basking in the sun and playing volleyball.

Besides, what would you propose to do with the criminals? Kill them all? So a murderer and someone who stole from Wal-Mart both get the same punishment? Would you have them pay for their jail time? With what money?

Again, we're not paying for them to have a holiday, we're paying to keep them OUT of our society, and if possible, to rehabilitate them so they can return.

It's just like paying taxes for the city to come and haul your garbage away.

If you think it's unfair, then stop paying taxes, murder someone, and live your days in jail. You get three hots and a cot, all on my dime, at no expense to you.

Answer 3

Two ways to look at it.

One, your alternative to prison is to return to the old medieval system where every felony was punishable by death. No appeals, and mistakes don't matter. If you don't want to pay for prisons, then either felons get set free or killed. Or dumped in some other country. Those are really the only options.

Or think of it this way. When society takes away a person's rights, they need to compensate that person. These people did bad things, yes. But they are still people. So, if they are in prison for a year, or three, or ten, or thirty -- they are not able to work, not able to live where they want, not able to exercise most of the civil liberties we take for granted. Because they cannot support themselves while in prison, the state must do so, to balance the fact that their rights to work and travel and association are being taken away. You said it yourself: you are being left alone by the government (mostly). They are being controlled every minute of every day by the government. Different situation.

Why do prisoners get constitutional protections? Because that's the way the Constitution was written. Now, we're already on a downward spiral where those accused of some crimes are entirely stripped of constitutional protections and held in confinement with no rights.

Do you really want us to become a society where all prisoners are just thrown in a pit with leftover food dumped in once a day?

Answer 4

I too am a taxpayer however 35 years ago I was labeled a criminal because I smoked pot I was " housed, fed (albeit mashed potatoes three times a day) and doctored" I see three choices: decriminalize marijuana, execution or housed, fed, clothed and doctored. Mind you I was imprisoned for 2.66 grams of marijuana that's about one joint other than that, I have never broken the law and unless you come from a family of saints I'm sure you or family members of yours have probably done a lot worse.

In addition there have been several cases in the past few years where gov. labs run by the FBI and some by the army were found to have doctored DNA evidence in order to obtain false convictions. In one case a Jacqueline Blake who worked for the FBI admitted to falsifying over one hundred DNA reports which caused over one hundred Innocent people to be "housed, fed, clothed and doctored at you the taxpayers expense. Now hopefully she, who thought like you is being housed, fed, clothed and doctored at you the taxpayers expense, or would you rather have her executed with all the Innocent victims she helped to incarcerate?

Answer 5

Because liberals love and cry for criminals, and couldn't care less about innocent victims. They think criminals should be rewarded with all the things the law-abiding have to work for. Just look at the hissy fits they throw if they ever hear of a prison making prisoners work if they do not want to. What is so wrong with telling those in prison to work for their food and clothes while they are in there?

Someone above said, "When society takes away a person's rights, they need to compensate that person."

That person CHOSE to harm another person, "society" did not "take away" their rights for no reason. They took away that other person's right to be safe, or their right to life. Is the innocent victim, or their family, compensated? NOPE! Does the victim get health care for free? NOPE! Does the victim get anything for free? NOPE! So why should the criminal?

Answer 6

They are like children left in your care. You are
responsible for their care, and well being.
Trust me, seeing them miss out on the rights and
freedoms they used to have does hurts them.

Answer 7

Ask me this again if you are ever wrongfully accused of a crime. It does happen, you know.

Answer 8

because it is humane however we need to execute some of the ones that want to die.and aclu needs to go sit down and talk to themselves cause I don't want to hear it