The contagion of crime is like that of
The contagion of crime is like that of the plague. Criminals collected together corrupt each other; they are worse than ever when at the termination of their punishment they re-enter society.
The number of laws is constantly growing
The number of laws is constantly growing in all countries and, owing to this, what is called crime is very often not a crime at all, for it contains no element of violence or harm.
The world is a prison in which solitary
The world is a prison in which solitary confinement is preferable.
There is a point at which even justice
There is a point at which even justice does injury.
Do not lay on the multitude the blame
Do not lay on the multitude the blame that is due to a few.
On average, drug prisoners spend more
On average, drug prisoners spend more time in federal prison than rapists, who often get out on early release because of the overcrowding in prison caused by the Drug War.
I never told a victim story about my
I never told a victim story about my imprisonment. Instead, I told a transformation story - about how prison changed my outlook, about how I saw that communication, truth, and trust are at the heart of power.
Pardon is the virtue of victory.
Pardon is the virtue of victory.
No crime has been without a precedent.
No crime has been without a precedent.
The severest justice may not always be
The severest justice may not always be the best policy.
The only real prison is fear, and the
The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.
To seek the redress of grievances by
To seek the redress of grievances by going to law, is like sheep running for shelter to a bramble bush.
A country is in a bad state, which is
A country is in a bad state, which is governed only by laws; because a thousand things occur for which laws cannot provide, and where authority ought to interpose.
Prison, dungeons, blessed places where
Prison, dungeons, blessed places where evil is impossible because they are the crossroads of all the evil in the world. One cannot commit evil in hell.
The common argument that crime is caused
The common argument that crime is caused by poverty is a kind of slander on the poor.
Crimes generally punish themselves.
Crimes generally punish themselves.
I can work for the Lord in or out of
I can work for the Lord in or out of prison.
Punishment, that is the justice for the
Punishment, that is the justice for the unjust.
I asked a man in prison once how he
I asked a man in prison once how he happened to be there and he said he had stolen a pair of shoes. I told him if he had stolen a railroad he would be a United States Senator.
Crime succeeds by sudden despatch;
Crime succeeds by sudden despatch; honest counsels gain vigor by delay.
Nor stony tower, nor walls of beaten
Nor stony tower, nor walls of beaten brass, Nor airless dungeon, nor strong links of iron, Can be retentive to the strength of spirit; But life, being weary of these worldly bars, Never lacks power to dismiss itself.
Distrust all in whom the impulse to
Distrust all in whom the impulse to punish is powerful.
We have our own system, ... and
We have our own system, ... and journalists in our system are not put in prison for embarrassing the government by revealing things the government might not wish to have revealed. The important thing is that our system, under which journalists can write without fear or favor, should continue.
One crime has to be concealed by
One crime has to be concealed by another.
It is the spirit and not the form of law
It is the spirit and not the form of law that keeps justice alive.
