Plea for Ryan sparks larger issue

Not surprisingly, the people working on behalf of George Ryan are set to make a plea to the outgoing president for his release. Unfortunately, this process of pardons by outgoing presidents has become a staple in American politics.

Hearing Sen. Durbin present a list of reasons that Ryan should be released was interesting. They were all good, heart-tugging reasons. What is particularly disturbing to me is the message it sends - the symbol of how humanitarian pleas are reserved for only a certain set of people who find themselves in our criminal justice system.

Having spent 15 plus years as a private detective, I have seen all sides of the criminal justice system. The inescapable reality is that we have a class system in this country which has created a clear disparity in opportunity.

Conservative thinkers try to deny the existence of it, simply because it is not written into the law.

The war on drugs, viewed as ludicrous by most who have spent time as part of the battle, has put people into our overcrowded prison system for extreme sentences for small offenses. We have the highest incarceration rate of any country, and the prison-industrial complex is second perhaps only to the military-industrial complex. With ideas such as three strikes, mandatory minimums, and the lack of rehabilitation that occurs, it is clear there is a certain class of people our criminal justice system intends to incarcerate, and others who are given a pass.

The question as to whether or not George Ryan should be released should only be answered after considering related questions. How many of the people related to the Savings and Loan scandal received sentences which were fully served? How many of the people responsible for ruining thousands of lives of working people at Enron received sentences which will be fully served? How many of the top-level drug dealers are ever arrested and serve time? How many of the financial "professionals" who wrote us into this economic crisis will face prosecution? How many political leaders will make the humanitarian plea for the release of the thousands of people serving time for minor drug offenses? How many political leaders will make any honest attempt to reform our imprisonment binge, and attack the real problems that lead to criminal behavior? How long before we demand equal treatment under the law for everyone?

I think that Sen. Durbin needs to take pause. Until we address the inequities in our system, until we start to address crime as a social problem created by those inequities, our criminal justice system will always be just that - criminal.

Edward J. Herdrich

Elgin