what is the superiority of confessions achieved by the coercion of "stacking" in a courthouse negotiation, and those achieved in the bad old days by beatings with truncheons in the back rooms of police stations?
I don't really understand this point. Is the author suggesting stacking is just as bad as physically beating confessions out of people?
375 convicts exonerated by DNA evidence, 11.7 percent had pleaded guilty. Many of the exonerees, caught up in an intimidating process that can be fast-moving and bewildering, were from racial minorities.
Mentioning minorities seems crucial because it suggests racial minorities are more scared of having a racist jury than being imprisoned.
Years can pass without a defendant exercising the constitutional right
I thought that in these scenarios, the defendant still has the choice. They aren't being denied a jury, just given the two options between trial for chance of no jail or long jail time, or plea bargain for small jail time.
The answer to the first question is: the right to trial by jury.
Genuinely expected the right to bear arms.
The workers take on a heavy load, handling cases that fall into the yawning gap between law enforcement and social services.
If they're all volunteers, then do they also have jobs? How are they able to do this five days a week?
homicides fell 50%, shootings fell 25% and the rate of grand larcenies of automobiles also fell even as it rose in other neighborhoods, he said.
Never heard of larcenies but this sounds impressive.
it’s possible that we can police ourselves.
This isn't a modern revelation. That's just common sense and decency.
Residents have embraced the concept
No way people are actually taking this seriously, though. If criminals know they cannot be arrested, then I don't think they'd really care.
trying to ensure that fewer people are arrested and entangled in the criminal justice system.
I like these motives, trying to keep people out of jail.
“They got it,” an officer said.
They're officers? Why did they think it wasn't their job to intervene?
letting neighbors, not the police, respond to low-level street crime.
Stupid. Neighbors don't have the skills or knowledge necessary to respond to crime responsively.