In prisons, those things withheld from
In prisons, those things withheld from and denied to the prisoner become precisely what he wants most of all.
Every crime has, in the moment of its
Every crime has, in the moment of its perpetration, Its own avenging angel--dark misgiving, An ominous sinking at the inmost heart.
While crime is punished it yet
While crime is punished it yet increases.
Do not lay on the multitude the blame
Do not lay on the multitude the blame that is due to a few.
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.
To be at peace in crime! Ah, who can
To be at peace in crime! Ah, who can thus flatter himself.
Hanging was the worst use a man could be
Hanging was the worst use a man could be put to.
Any punishment that does not correct,
Any punishment that does not correct, that can merely rouse rebellion in whoever has to endure it, is a piece of gratuitous infamy which makes those who impose it more guilty in the eyes of humanity, good sense and reason, nay a hundred times more guilty than the victim on whom the punishment is inflicted.
It is more dangerous that even a guilty
It is more dangerous that even a guilty person should be punished without the forms of law than that he should escape.
A variety in punishment is of utility,
A variety in punishment is of utility, as well as a proportion.
In the halls of justice, the only
In the halls of justice, the only justice is in the halls.
I know how men in exile feed on dreams
I know how men in exile feed on dreams of hope.
Prison continues, on those who are
Prison continues, on those who are entrusted to it, a work begun elsewhere, which the whole of society pursues on each individual through innumerable mechanisms of discipline.
I am certain that nothing has done so
I am certain that nothing has done so much to destroy the juridical safeguards of individual freedom as the striving after this mirage of social justice.
Clemency alone makes us equal to the
Clemency alone makes us equal to the gods.
Vices are not crimes.
Vices are not crimes.
The only difference between me and my
The only difference between me and my fellow actors is that I've spent more time in jail.
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.
Whatever you think of de Sade, he was a
Whatever you think of de Sade, he was a complex figure and we should not look for easy answers with him. He was, strangely perhaps, against the death penalty, and he was never put in prison for murders or anything like that.
Fear can be like a prison. It is,
Fear can be like a prison. It is, however, a self made prison. Many are imprisoned by fear. No one else can liberate them from this prison. Others may inspire them but they must liberate themselves.
Trial by jury itself, instead of being a
Trial by jury itself, instead of being a security to persons who are accused, shall be a delusion, a mockery, and a snare.
It is impossible to go through life
It is impossible to go through life without trust: That is to be imprisoned in the worst cell of all, oneself.
There is a point at which even justice
There is a point at which even justice does injury.
Corporal punishment falls far more
Corporal punishment falls far more heavily than most weighty pecuniary penalty.
Well, I don't think prisons are the
Well, I don't think prisons are the answer to everything, obviously.
