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.
To be in prison so long, it's difficult
To be in prison so long, it's difficult to remember exactly what you did to get there.
I never saw a man who looked With such a
I never saw a man who looked With such a wistful eye Upon that little tent of blue Which prisoners call the sky.
Civilization is maintained by a very few
Civilization is maintained by a very few people in a small number of places and we need only some bombs and a few prisons to blot it out altogether.
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.
When is conduct a crime, and when is a
When is conduct a crime, and when is a crime not a crime? When Somebody Up There -- a monarch, a dictator, a Pope, a legislator -- so decrees.
No written law has been more binding
No written law has been more binding than unwritten custom supported by popular opinion.
Self is the only prison that can bind
Self is the only prison that can bind the soul.
Since 1957, black people have
Since 1957, black people have experienced double-digit unemployment - in good times and bad times. Look at the population of African Americans in prison. They represent more than half the population of prisoners in the country, 55 percent of those on death row.
Some laws of state aimed at curbing
Some laws of state aimed at curbing crime are even more criminal.
I am an expert of electricity. My father
I am an expert of electricity. My father occupied the chair of applied electricity at the state prison.
In a civilized society, all crimes are
In a civilized society, all crimes are likely to be sins, but most sins are not and ought not to be treated as crimes.
One man meets an infamous punishment for
One man meets an infamous punishment for that crime which confers a diadem upon another.
What restrains us from killing is partly
What restrains us from killing is partly fear of punishment, partly moral scruple, and partly what may be described as a sense of humor.
Experts and the educated elite have
Experts and the educated elite have replaced what worked with what sounded good. Society was far more civilized before they took over our schools, prisons, welfare programs, police departments and courts. It's high time we ran these people out of our lives and went back to common sense.
The solution to our drug problem is not
The solution to our drug problem is not in incarceration.
One should respect public opinion
One should respect public opinion insofar as is necessary to avoid starvation and keep out of prison, but anything that goes beyond this is voluntary submission to an unnecessary tyranny.
The degree of civilization in a society
The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons.
Laws grind the poor, and rich men rule
Laws grind the poor, and rich men rule the law.
If you want total security, go to
If you want total security, go to prison. There you’re fed, clothed, given medical care and so on. The only thing lacking…is freedom.
I know how men in exile feed on dreams
I know how men in exile feed on dreams of hope.
Money will determine whether the accused
Money will determine whether the accused goes to prison or walks out of the courtroom a free man.
It is better that ten guilty persons
It is better that ten guilty persons escape, than that one innocent suffer.
The only effect of public punishment is
The only effect of public punishment is to show the rabble how bravely it can be borne; and that every one who hath lost a toe-nail hath suffered worse.
I can tell you this on a stack of
I can tell you this on a stack of Bibles: prisons are archaic, brutal, unregenerative, overcrowded hell holes where the inmates are treated like animals with absolutely not one humane thought given to what they are going to do once they are released. You're an animal in a cage and you're treated like one.
