U.S. Criminal Justice System Essay Example

Our country has a history of forgetting the poor, neglecting those who need help, and giving out cruel punishments for crimes that dont deserve it. It was only in 2002 when the supreme court banned executions of people with intellectual disabilities after 44 killings already happened by the government. We need to make a change quickly, by supporting organizations like the EJI, that help fight unfair treatment of minorities and the less fortunate within our justice system. We need to support and donate if possible to the Equal Justice Initiative because of the continuous lack of treatment we give those who need it along with our corruption and absence of rational judgment in our justice system. 

The United States justice system has a history of prosecuting the metally ill. These people cannot control what they do and need to get the help that they deserve. A fact from the EJI website states ”Mental health experts estimate at least 20% of people on death row today have a serious mental illness. At least 10% of the people currently sentenced to death nationwide are military veterans, many of whom suffer from documented trauma disorders.”(EJI 2022) This quote explains a huge problem with our system, and talks about how the U.S prosecutes and kills the mentally ill. Someone who is not able to control their actions should not be held as accountable as someone who is fully able to control themselves and still commits a crime. Instead of giving the people who need our help such as military veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), we decide to let them go off on their own and suffer through the pain of their past, and then we convict them and send them to death row. In the book Just Mercy written by Bryan Stevenson, he tells a story of Herbert Richardson. Herbert was a Vietnam war veteran and was placed on death row. Herbert, like many other returning war veterans, suffered from PTSD, and didn't receive much help throughout his lifetime. A direct quote from Bryan Stevenson in the book says “Where were all these helpful people when Herbert was three and his mother died? Where were they when he was seven and trying to recover from physical abuse? Where were they when he was a young teen struggling with drugs and alcohol? Where were they when he returned from Vietnam traumatized and disabled? (Stevenson 70)” This quote shows how Bryan was very confused on why the government wasn’t helping Herbert even when he was drug-addicted as a teen and needed the help. This supports my claim about the justice system not paying enough attention to people who need it because it shows a real example of how that is affecting people today. The Equal Justice initiative helps people like Herbert, and make change in our society so that someone who can't control what they do doesn't get an unfair punishment. 

Furthermore, the EJI handled one of the biggest cases involving a black man named Walter McMillian. This case shows the corruption and impartial decision making in important cases within our justice system. During the case of Walter McMillian, a white man accused him of a murder he didn't commit. The man was pressured by police to do so and they ended up putting Walter on death row before his case was even presented to a court, which was completely unheard of. He spent 15 tortuous months on death row before he was put on trial. Despite having many black alibis from within his family from the day the murder happened, The court still found him guilty. The EJI knew this was wrong and knew that the court was being heavily influenced by the police and the racist justice system in Alabama. This case shows that the people of Alabama at the time only wanted to convict him because he was easiest to blame. A quote taken from the website of EJI says “Walter McMillian was among the first exonerated from death row in the modern era. A 60 Minutes segment and other national press coverage about his case led to other exonerations. Today, more than 160 people who were on death row have been proved innocent and released” (EJI 2022). The EJI has proven multiple times that they can make a change and better The United States as a whole by getting innocent people off death row. This is so important to fix in order to prevent further division and unfairness in our country that has based itself so much on individual freedoms and equality. In the end, Bryan Stevenson was able to uncover important information that proved the accuser of Walter was lying. This process took a grueling 6 years but it worked out in the end with the help of Mr. Stevenson and the EJI. This is yet another example of why we should support this organization because without it, many more innocent Americans would be dead today, including Walter McMillian.

In closing, our country is not yet completely equal. We need organizations like the Equal Justice Initiative to support and help make progress. Through the EJI, Corruption has been held back and accountable along with more awareness brought to mental illness in crimes committed. When looking at the bigger picture, no matter what’s thought about the U.S justice system, there are always improvements to be made. While most sit back and have others do the work, EJI is out making the world a better place every day, which is why we must support and donate to this important cause in order to ensure a more equal future.