It is the spirit and not the form of law that keeps justice alive.
By noiselessly going to a prison a civil-resister ensures a calm atmosphere.
I never saw a man who looked With such a wistful eye Upon that little tent of blue Which prisoners call the sky.
No written law has been more binding than unwritten custom supported by popular opinion.
He was a first-time nonviolent possible offender, ... And under the mandatory minimums, he was put in prison for 15 years. Not only does the punishment not fit the crime, but the mandatory minimums don't give judges any discretion to look at the background of the case, to read into the specifics of the case. I don't know a judge who really is in favor of the mandatory minimums.
To trial bring her stolen charms, and let her prison be my arms.
Every instance of a man's suffering the penalty of the law is an instance of the failure of that penalty in effecting its purpose, which is to deter.
I have been studying how I may compare this prison where I live unto the world; Shut up in the prison of their own consciences.
Pardon is the virtue of victory.
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.
The idea that the sole aim of punishment is to prevent crime is obviously grounded upon the theory that crime can be prevented, which is almost as dubious as the notion that poverty can be prevented.
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.
The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons.
Oh who is that young sinner with the handcuffs on his wrist? And what has he been after that they groan and shake their fists? And wherefore is he wearing such a conscience-stricken air? Oh they're taking him to prison for the colour of his hair.
Governments have tried to stop crime through punishment throughout the ages, but crime continued in the past punishment remains. Crime can only be stopped through a preventive approach in the schools. You teach the students Transcendental Meditation, and right away they’ll begin using their full brain physiology sensible and they will not get sidetracked into wrong things.
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.
To make punishments efficacious, two things are necessary. They must never be disproportioned to the offence, and they must be certain.
Body is a home, a prison and a grave.
Crime is a logical extension of the sort of behavior that often [is] considered perfectly respectable in legitimate business.
As we grow in wisdom, we pardon more freely.
Nelson Mandela and Malcolm X came out of prison stronger.
Reality becomes a prison to those who can’t get out of it.
Laws grind the poor, and rich men rule the law.
We are prisoners of ideas.
