THE FIVE PILLARS OF JUSTICE IS LIKE A CHAIN

The five pillars of justice namely law enforcement, prosecution, adjudication, corrections and rehabilitation are like a chain that should not be broken, otherwise there will be a breakdown of justice, and we will all suffer. A chain is a series of links that should always be connected to each other, otherwise, if one of the links will snap, the entire chain will break. Looking at our present justice system now, it seems that corrections and rehabilitation are the weak links that are causing the entire justice system to break. It appears however that corrections and rehabilitation are back-to-back parts of the process that should really complement each other. In reality, it is difficult to tell where corrections would end, and where rehab would start. Except for those who are imprisoned for life or those who have been given the death sentence, all PDLs are supposed to be “corrected” and “rehabilitated” in preparation for their reentry back to society, where they are expected to become law abiding, responsible and productive citizens. Probably because of overpopulation and the mismanagement of our prisons and jails, this preparation for reentry does not seem to be happening and on the contrary, some prisoners and detainees have become more hardened criminals than when they came in. by definition, corrections also include probation and parole, aside from incarceration. Let us look into these two options as solutions to overpopulation. IKE SENERES/12-31-23