Matt Taibbi Quotes

I strongly believe that for serious and violent criminals, we must absolutely hold them accountable for their crimes and send them to prison.

More prisons, more enforcement, effective death penalty.

America's criminal justice system isn't known for rehabilitation. I'm not sure that, as a society, we are even interested in that concept anymore.

Our laws are too lax, our justice system too weak - particularly when it comes to violent, dangerous offenders.

The question is, does the punishment fit the crime? So we're not saying that we shouldn't punish people. We're not talking about a society that tolerates lawlessness. We should be very tough on people who are perpetuating violent crimes, for example. But we should make sure that it's tailored and not arbitrary.

Nothing will deter crime but the certainty of punishment.

We should be extremely cautious about continuing to increase sentences as a routine response to concerns over crime.

We must be particularly careful when we enact policies in response to a specific crime, a specific type of crime, or crime wave simply by increasing punishments.

We have determined as a society, as a country, as a people, that the incarceration and the supervision and the specific fines for a particular crime are that person's debt to society.

If we believe in our current penal process, then the penalties imposed by judges and juries should be the only sanctions for one's crime, not the invisible sanctions of the legislature.

We make no apology for people who should be in prison being in prison.

For the past seven years we have been cracking down on crime in Missouri, passing tougher laws for drug crimes and sex offenses and requiring prisoners to serve more time.

I'm not in favor of the death penalty. But I'm in favor of locking these people away in maximum security units where they can never get out. They can never escape. They can never be paroled. Lock the bad ones away. But you gotta rethink everybody else.

Every first year law student learns that sentencing has four goals: retribution, incapicitation, deterrence, and rehabilitation.

The majority of our criminals that we lock up are non-violent offenders.

Every day, lax sentencing costs lives.

I think that far too often we let those who commit crimes in our society off far too lightly.

I think we will be safer when we can concentrate law enforcement and criminal justice resources and energies on those individuals who truly need, for the safety of society... to be incarcerated.

Incarceration is supposed to keep the community safe from your behavior.

You will feel the full force of the law and if you are old enough to commit these crimes you are old enough to face the punishments. And to these people I would say this: you are not only wrecking the lives of others, you are potentially wrecking your own life too.

Punishment can do a lot for criminals, and send a message to the rest of society.

All emphasis in American prisons is on punishment, retribution, and disparagement, and almost none is on rehabilitation.

All issues of crime are better addressed at the state level.

Well, I don't think prisons are the answer to everything, obviously.

Generally speaking, the public appetite for criminal justice policy is just tough talk.