波士頓老陳網誌 pkchanboston: Criminal Justice Reform 刑事司法改革

Criminal Justice Reform 刑事司法改革

Wayne Yeh 葉華

At what cost is justice served? America has long had a history of excessively harsh criminal justice policies resulting in mass incarceration, over-criminalization of communities of color, and racial injustice. A District Attorney (DA) plays a critical role in determining the effectiveness and fairness of our country’s criminal justice system.

公義的代價是什麼？長期以來, 美國一直有過嚴苛的刑事司法政策, 導致大規模監禁、對有色人種過度判罪和種族不公。地方檢察官在有效裁定和維護本國公平的刑事司法制度，起著至關重要的作用。

The DA is the top prosecutor in a district, and leads a staff of assistant district attorneys. They are responsible for presenting a case against an individual and making recommendations for the sentencing of offenders. They play an important role in making the case for whether or not a person should go to jail, and how long of a prison sentence they should get.

地方檢察官DA 是區內的最高檢察官, 並領導助理地區檢察官人員。他們負責提控針對個人的案件, 並就罪犯判刑作出建議。他們在決定一個人是否應該坐牢, 及他們應該得到多長的刑期案件, 扮演著重要的角色。

Although the criminal justice system is supposed to serve and protect the people, the system is broken and mistreats innocent people of color--particularly Black people and Latinos.

雖然刑事司法制度理應服務和保護人民, 但該制度崩壞, 危害了無辜的有色人種--尤其是黑人和拉美人。

The U.S. prison system is overrepresented by people of color. Forty percent of the U.S. prison population are Black, although they make up only 13 percent of the overall U.S. population. People of color, especially Black males, are also charged with harsher sentences than White people for the same crimes. Between 2007 and 2011, Black males received sentences 19.5% longer than White people.

美國監獄系統擠滿了有色人種。美國在囚人口有百份之40是黑人, 儘管他們僅占美國總人口的百份之13。有色人種, 尤其是黑人男性, 也被控以比白人更嚴厲的刑罰。在2007和2011之間, 黑人男性接受的刑期比白人長百份之19.5。

A study by the United States Sentencing Commission found that on average, Black men who commit the same crimes as white men receive federal prison sentences nearly 20 percent longer.

美國量刑委員會United States Sentencing Commission的一項研究發現, 平均而言, 犯下同樣罪行的黑人男性, 在聯邦監獄服刑的刑期會較長近百份之20。

Adults are not the only ones being impacted by a broken justice system. Youth of color also face harsher punishments at school than White students. A study in 2010 found that more than 70% of students involved in school-related incidents referred to law enforcement are Black or Latino. Black students are also three times more likely to be suspended or expelled than their White peers.

成年人不是唯一受敗壞的司法系統影響的人。在學校, 有色人種年輕人比白人學生，面臨更嚴厲的懲罰。在2010年的一項研究發現，涉及與學校有關的事件，而轉介往執法機關，有超過百份之70的學生是黑人或拉丁裔。黑人學生被罰停學或開除學籍的機率是同輩白人的三倍。

Harsher sentences lead to more of our community members behind bars, but it does not lead to reducing crime. The District Attorney plays an instrumental role in deciding which criminal cases to pursue and what charges to file. Prosecutors also make the decision of whether or not to seek bail, which is the temporary release of a person awaiting trial on the condition that they pay a certain amount of money, sometimes in cash. Oftentimes, people accused of a crime are put in prison before they have even been proven guilty. The only thing they are guilty of is being too poor to afford cash bail.

更嚴厲的判決導致更多的社區成員在監獄裡, 但這並不能減少犯罪。地方檢察官在決定要追究那些刑事案件和起訴什麼罪行方面，發揮了重要作用。檢控官還決定是否尋求保釋, 即暫時釋放等待審判的人, 條件是他們要支付一定數額的金錢, 有時是現金。通常在被證明有罪之前, 被指控犯罪的人已被關進監獄。他們唯一的罪行就是太窮, 不能支付現金保釋。

Cash bail has long contributed to overcrowding of jails. Research shows that cash bail systems discriminate against low-income defendants of color held on nonviolent and low-level crimes.

長期以來，現金保釋是導致監獄有人滿之患。有研究指出, 現金保釋制度是歧視低收入有色人種被告，而被關押的原因是涉及非暴力和低級犯罪。

Did you know that DAs are elected by local voters? With so much at stake in the hands of the top criminal justice official, it’s critical for us to know the impact this position elected by the people can have on the lives of working-class and immigrant communities of color. We hope that our community members who are eligible to vote understand the importance of voting in every election, not just the elections that get the most awareness.

你知道地方檢察官 DAs 是由當地選民選出來的嗎？在高級刑事司法官員的手中, 有如此多的利害關係, 我們必須要知道, 人們所選出來的這個職位，對勞工階層和移民群體的生活，會產生什麼樣的影響。我們希望有資格投票的社區人士, 明白在每一選舉投票的重要性, 而不單是在最有警覺的選舉中投票。

According to a poll conducted by the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, 84% of voters in Massachusetts believe our criminal justice system should be changed so that people are not treated differently based on their race.

美國麻州公民自由聯盟American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts進行的一項民意調查顯示, 百份之84 的麻州選民認為, 我們的刑事司法系統應該改變, 這樣人們的種族才不會受到不同的待遇。

We cannot let another District Attorney’s race go by without being engaged in the election and having a say in who gets to be the people’s prosecutor. Will you commit to becoming more informed of the DA candidates and vote in the September 4 primary election?