Over at the Volokh Conspiracy, Eugene Volokh is posting about Wrongfully Imprisoned people in England being charged for Room and Board when they are finally released! It's so unbelievable it's almost humorous. He links to a story in the Sunday Herald :
WHAT do you give someone who’s been proved innocent after spending the best part of their life behind bars, wrongfully convicted of a crime they didn’t commit? An apology, maybe? Counselling? Champagne? Compensation? Well, if you’re David Blunkett, the Labour Home Secretary, the choice is simple: you give them a big, fat bill for the cost of board and lodgings for the time they spent freeloading at Her Majesty’s Pleasure in British prisons.
And another story in the Guardian :
If the appeal succeeds men such as Vincent and Michael Hickey, who served 18 years after being wrongfully convicted of the murder of Carl Bridgewater, will have to pay £60,000 each, about a quarter of the compensation they received.
So, let me get this straight - they put these people in prison for YEARS. With all the attendant little problems that go along with being in prison - like no freedom, no family, being exposed to real criminals... you know, minor stuff like that. THEN when these people are proved innocent of wrongdoing - they are given some bit of monetary compensation along with a BILL for living expenses!!!
This boggles the mind - it almost defies imagination that these officials could take away the best years of a person's life and then demand payment - of ANY kind! I wonder what the public reaction to this is in England?
Of course what else would we expect from a country that will charge you with a crime for defending yourself?
Sounds like something Kerry would propose to balance the budget.
Posted by: Tammi | March 18, 2004 at 08:16 AM
LOL - I never thought of that one!
Posted by: Teresa | March 18, 2004 at 10:32 PM