Over the last several months I've had three people who I've ministered to go to jail, and it bothers me. Not that they are bad people, nor have they committed bad crimes, they just got crossways of the system. One man was sent to jail for a second DUI. Another man was sent to jail because he's seriously behind in his child support. Then, the lady was sent to jail also for being behind in her child support. The reason their separate plights bother me is because I thought jail was reserved for people who commit serious crimes, like murder, bank robbery, and grand larceny.
I won't argue that drunk driving is bad. My Mom was hit by a drunk driver and almost died. People shouldn't drink and drive, but at the same time, alcohol is the drug of choice for Americans. While we spend big money touting the evils of smoking and tobacco use, do you ever hear of anyone being sent to jail because they poisoned the air in a public place with their cigarette?
It turns out that most, yes upwards of 50% of all incarcerations involve substance abuse (drugs), domestic violence, and infringements against the state, like failing to pay child support or driving without a license.
In fact, it's getting down right frightening for what you can be sent to jail for doing, and
frankly, I think it's getting way out of hand.
Think about it. We don't have a justice system anymore; we have a legal system. This means that anybody can go to jail for anything the law specifies. Jurisprudence is not prudent anymore. Case in point: earlier I had another man in jail for child molestation. Oh wow! Everybody gets all bent when that subject comes up. Well, my friend was a school bus driver, and on his route he'd pick up little kids who obviously had no one at home to care about them. He felt so sorry for them that he'd hug one every now and then. Well, somebody turned him in for "inappropriate touching," which finally was turned into acharge of "child molestation" by the state. He went to jail, and when he got out, he was on probation for six years plus being registered as a child molester.
Hey. The guy was innocent! All it takes is for someone to accuse you of just about anything and our legal system says that you're guilty. I thought that we were innocent until proven guilty? Well, evidently not anymore.
Then, once you've gone to jail, they treat you like a dog. In fact, it was observed recently that if we treated dogs like we treat people in jail that the public would be incensed.
While these three people were in jail, I tried to visit them as a pastor. Fine. The person in charge of visitation told me on the phone that I'd need to send them "my papers" to verify that I am a pastor of an active church. I did that and waited. Finally after several weeks I called to see if my name was on the list. It wasn't because they couldn't find my paperwork. Well, from that point, it took me another month before I finally talked with "the right person," and I was told that I'd have to take a special class before I could visit in the jail as a pastor, even through the glass! Now, I'm waiting to take that class and wondering what else they'll come up with.
In the meantime, both men have been transferred to other institutions. I didn't get to visit them. The lady is still there, and I did get to visit her through the glass as a family member on the specified day within the very narrow time limits.
Here's my advice: Whatever you do, make every effort to keep from going to jail. And by the way, remember that our legal system and law enforcement can arrest you and put in jail for just about anything. So, beware. And by the way, read The Glasshouse by Truman Cappote for a clear take on our bankrupt penal system.
Pastor Tom Brown 11/17/10

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