It is not at the table, but in prison,
It is not at the table, but in prison, that you learn who your true friends are.
The worst of prison life, he thought,
The worst of prison life, he thought, was not being able to close his door.
The perfection of a thing consists in
The perfection of a thing consists in its essence; there are perfect criminals, as there are men of perfect probity.
Kill a man, and you are an assassin.
Kill a man, and you are an assassin. Kill millions of men, and you are a conqueror. Kill everyone, and you are a God.
Well does Heaven have care that no man
Well does Heaven have care that no man secures happiness by crime.
The reformative effect of punishment is
The reformative effect of punishment is a belief that dies hard, chiefly I think, because it is so satisfying to our sadistic impulses.
Distrust all in whom the impulse to
Distrust all in whom the impulse to punish is powerful.
There's no greater threat to our
There's no greater threat to our independence, to our cherished freedoms and personal liberties than the continual, relentless injection of these insidious poisons into our system. We must decide whether we cherish independence from drugs, without which there is no freedom.
The virtue of justice consists in
The virtue of justice consists in moderation, as regulated by wisdom.
I sometimes wish that people would put a
I sometimes wish that people would put a little more emphasis upon the observance of the law than they do upon its enforcement.
Written laws are like spiders' webs, and
Written laws are like spiders' webs, and will, like them, only entangle and hold the poor and weak, while the rich and powerful will easily break through them.
Justice renders to every one his due.
Justice renders to every one his due.
No crime has been without a precedent.
No crime has been without a precedent.
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.
We don't seem to be able to check crime,
We don't seem to be able to check crime, so why not legalize it and then tax it out of business.
The mellow sweetness of pumpkin pie off
The mellow sweetness of pumpkin pie off a prison spoon is something you will never forget.
Let us remember that justice must be
Let us remember that justice must be observed even to the lowest.
Laws do not persuade just because they
Laws do not persuade just because they threaten.
Well, I don't think prisons are the
Well, I don't think prisons are the answer to everything, obviously.
While crime is punished it yet
While crime is punished it yet increases.
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.
Man is condemned to be free.
Man is condemned to be free.
The world is a prison in which solitary
The world is a prison in which solitary confinement is preferable.
Mere factual innocence is no reason not
Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached.
Nor cell, nor chain, nor dungeon speaks
Nor cell, nor chain, nor dungeon speaks to the murderer like the voice of solitude.