Jailhouse Justice; Is it Legal?

I have very little experience about prisons, but from reading many posts posts at Prison Talk Online http://www.prisontalk.com/ and my minimal experience in the Orange County jail, there seems to be more crime inside than there is outside. Outside I can understand, but inside a prison? From what I understand, when it does occur, the authorities will turn a blind eye most of the time.
Among the top offenses in Jailhouse Code is being a “Snitch” and being a “Sex Offender”.
If this is true, and it is allowed to occur, then justice has failed us. If inmates are allowed to continue with criminal activity, even inside a prison, or a jail, we as a society have a failed justice system.

In this article by the Burlington Free Press   Jacques lawyers fear he could be killed in prison a judge has denied a request to protect this man from this kind of Jailhouse Justice…

Michael Jacques’ lawyers say he is at risk of being killed in jail by fellow inmates because of his reputation as a serial child sex offender.

His attorneys wanted a judge to recommend that Jacques be placed in an Arizona penitentiary that could offer protection from such attacks. But the judge declined to do so.

“He will be targeted for death by other inmates,” stated an eight-page motion filed secretly by Jacques’ legal team at U.S. District Court in Burlington. Judge William K. Sessions III ordered the motion unsealed after Tuesday’s sentencing hearing.

“It is the nature of the inmate code that the presence of such an inmate will not be tolerated by fellow inmates,” the defense claimed. “The fact that he murdered a child makes the situation even worse.”

I do not condone his actions nor his crime, but should inmates be allowed to execute justice or punishment? If prisons are not safe, then why are they not? What gives an inmate, or inmates the right to judge and take the law into their own hands? What makes them more righteous than anyone else?
If we allow criminals to commit a crime while inside a Tax Payers confinement facility, have we not again failed as a society?

5 comments for “Jailhouse Justice; Is it Legal?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.