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I wonder how much we could free up the courts if we stopped wasting time on useless laws? Example (that is drenched in personal opinion): How much time would w

I wonder how much we could free up the courts if we stopped wasting time on useless laws? Example (that is drenched in personal opinion): How much time would we save the courts if we stopped prosecuting people for personal drug abuse?

rplst8 9y ago
I gave you an upvote, but how overwhelmed will our social services become if personal drug use goes unchecked by policing? (orphaned children, neglected or abused children, poverty/welfare of possible increase in drug use) I'm not saying I agree with the war on drugs, but we may just trade one problem for another
- CaptSpify 9y ago
  I don't necessarily disagree with you, but how many children are pushed through social services because their parent is waiting a proper trial? FWIW, my point is not about drugs, that's just an opinionated example. It's about wasting time policing things that shouldn't be policed.
scarmig 9y ago
It's an appealing story to think that the main reason the courts and prisons are so overburdened is personal drug use. Since most (of us) agree that rehabilitation or laissez-faire is better than imprisonment, we get to solve another huge problem by adopting our preferred solution. Unfortunately, they're not particularly complicated cases, and drug offenders only make up like a sixth of the prison population. So, it'd help, but the USA would still be a huge outlier internationally, let alone among developed Western countries.
- CaptSpify 9y ago
  > It's an appealing story to think that the main reason the courts and prisons are so overburdened is personal drug use. I don't believe this at all (simply due to lack of evidence), which is why I phrased it as a question. Additionally, it's just an example, in which I tried to be clear that my personal beliefs make me biased in. Feel free to substitute your own "useless prosecution" in it's place |;) That being said, 1/6 seems like a pretty hefty amount.
- TheCoelacanth 9y ago
  It's a good first step. Other steps we should take are to make it easier (and cheaper) for people who are awaiting trial to get out on bail if they aren't a flight risk and to cut sentence lengths across the board to be more in line with other countries.

rplst8 9y ago

I gave you an upvote, but how overwhelmed will our social services become if personal drug use goes unchecked by policing? (orphaned children, neglected or abused children, poverty/welfare of possible increase in drug use) I'm not saying I agree with the war on drugs, but we may just trade one problem for another

CaptSpify 9y ago
I don't necessarily disagree with you, but how many children are pushed through social services because their parent is waiting a proper trial? FWIW, my point is not about drugs, that's just an opinionated example. It's about wasting time policing things that shouldn't be policed.

scarmig 9y ago

It's an appealing story to think that the main reason the courts and prisons are so overburdened is personal drug use. Since most (of us) agree that rehabilitation or laissez-faire is better than imprisonment, we get to solve another huge problem by adopting our preferred solution. Unfortunately, they're not particularly complicated cases, and drug offenders only make up like a sixth of the prison population. So, it'd help, but the USA would still be a huge outlier internationally, let alone among developed Western countries.

CaptSpify 9y ago
> It's an appealing story to think that the main reason the courts and prisons are so overburdened is personal drug use. I don't believe this at all (simply due to lack of evidence), which is why I phrased it as a question. Additionally, it's just an example, in which I tried to be clear that my personal beliefs make me biased in. Feel free to substitute your own "useless prosecution" in it's place |;) That being said, 1/6 seems like a pretty hefty amount.
TheCoelacanth 9y ago
It's a good first step. Other steps we should take are to make it easier (and cheaper) for people who are awaiting trial to get out on bail if they aren't a flight risk and to cut sentence lengths across the board to be more in line with other countries.