To be at peace in crime! Ah, who can
To be at peace in crime! Ah, who can thus flatter himself.
I just remember that disturbing feeling
I just remember that disturbing feeling of walking into that prison, the complete loss of privacy, the complete loss of stimulation, dignity.
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.
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.
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.
It was only when I lay there on the
It was only when I lay there on the rotting prison straw that I sensed within myself the first stirrings of good. Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not between states nor between social classes nor between political parties, but right through every human heart, through all human hearts. And that is why I turn back to the years of my imprisonment and say, sometimes to the astonishment of those about me, bless you, prison, for having been a part of my life.
Only free men can negotiate. Prisoners
Only free men can negotiate. Prisoners cannot enter into contracts.
The worst prison is not of stone. It is
The worst prison is not of stone. It is of a throbbing heart, outraged by an infamous life.
He who profits by a crime commits it.
He who profits by a crime commits it.
We are prisoners of ideas.
We are prisoners of ideas.
He who opens a school door, closes a
He who opens a school door, closes a prison.
One man meets an infamous punishment for
One man meets an infamous punishment for that crime which confers a diadem upon another.
Prosecution I have managed to avoid; but
Prosecution I have managed to avoid; but I have been arrested, charged in a police court, have refused to be bound over, and thereupon have been unconditionally released - to my great regret; for I have always wanted to know what going to prison was like.
Steal goods and you’ll go to prison,
Steal goods and you’ll go to prison, steal lands and you are a king.
The thoughts of a prisoner - they're not
The thoughts of a prisoner - they're not free either. They keep returning to the same things.
A man will be imprisoned in a room with
A man will be imprisoned in a room with a door that's unlocked and opens inwards, as long as it does not occur to him to pull rather than push.
Justice is justice though it's always
Justice is justice though it's always delayed and finally done only by mistake.
The virtue of justice consists in
The virtue of justice consists in moderation, as regulated by wisdom.
Let us remember that justice must be
Let us remember that justice must be observed even to the lowest.
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.
In the halls of justice, the only
In the halls of justice, the only justice is in the halls.
The difference between tax avoidance and
The difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion is the thickness of a prison walls.
The power of punishment is to silence,
The power of punishment is to silence, not to confute.
It becomes not a law-maker to be a
It becomes not a law-maker to be a law-breaker.
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.
