San Francisco Considers Legal Protection for Criminals

[spamby]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/07/2...al-protection-for-criminals/??test=latestnews


I've heard it all now. I guess I'm biased but if I'm hiring someone and they've got a felony then I'm gonna hire the person without one. I know people change but I'm not willing to take the chance.

 

[Werewolf]

But ex-cons contend they're immediately disqualified by employers and landlords reluctant to trust anyone with a rap sheet.

Wait! What?

People actually do that?

Huh?

Maybe the human race isn't as all fired stupid as I have imagined.

On the other hand...

Automatically disqualifying folks for past sins that they've paid their debt to society for is an almost sure bet to end up badly for them and society.

ROCK. Meet HARD PLACE.

 

[RidgeHunter]

On the other hand...

Automatically disqualifying folks for past sins that they've paid their debt to society for is an almost sure bet to end up badly for them and society.

ROCK. Meet HARD PLACE.

That's something I've wondered about before. Are they a criminal or were they a criminal? If they are, then why aren't they in jail? If they were, then why don't stop treating them like one?

The more you talk to people the more you realize how some people's lives can really get messed up by a bad record. I know a guy that whose ex-wife and her new boyfriend planted a handgun and drugs in his car during his divorce, then set up for him to be pulled over with it. Talk about a mess; he dealt with all kinds of crap stemming from that for years and years.

It's a real conundrum. The worst is how we treat drug offenders. We pretty much give them a criminal and societal stigma and won't allow them to be anything more than that, unless they are famous or coach a college basketball team.

 

[Biggsly]

I have seen both sides. I hired two felons that were on parole. It was a way to help them. They both ripped me off. On the other hand, my brother is a convicted felon. He works for a bodyshop now, but had trouble getting a job when he got out. After the last felon ripped us off, I let the DOC know that we would not help anymore.

 

[Big House]

Maybe SF should move to Norway.

 

[Vamoose]

Sometimes I get tired of the heat or some other thing in Oklahoma and start thinking maybe it would be nice to move to the West Coast. Then I read about something like this and I don't mind the heat so much.

 

[LightningCrash]

I know a guy who worked his ass off to get a full ride through school, got his masters in philosophical math, and was working hard.
he got 366 days in jail for something, i don't remember what now. he didn't have any money and his public defender sucked, he got steamrolled.

well, he hasn't been doing so hot. he never could find a job that would put his degree to use. nobody would talk to him. after 4 years of working there he finally got promoted to be the manager of a car wash.

 

[RidgeHunter]

I know a guy who worked his ass off to get a full ride through school, got his masters in philosophical math, and was working hard.
he got 366 days in jail for something, i don't remember what now. he didn't have any money and his public defender sucked, he got steamrolled.

well, he hasn't been doing so hot. he never could find a job that would put his degree to use. nobody would talk to him. after 4 years of working there he finally got promoted to be the manager of a car wash.

*Bzzz* Alex, who is Jim Croce?

 

[tRidiot]

That's something I've wondered about before. Are they a criminal or were they a criminal? If they are, then why aren't they in jail? If they were, then why don't stop treating them like one?

The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.

People need to learn that there are consequences to our actions, and some of those are lifelong. From a criminal record for a night of drunken carousing to lifelong sores on your peepee for a one-night stand. Parents are failing their children left and right in this country and THAT is what we can thank for the hole we have gotten ourselves into from a moral and social standpoint.

If you want your kids to grow up better, you'd better be damn willing to spend the time and edumacate them about consequences....

I heard my son squalling the other day from the other side of the house. I comforted him and helped him get over it, then we talked about why it happened. He bonked his ginormous melon on the doorframe... why? Because he was running in the house... Explained that if he had been doing what he was told, that wouldn't have happened. It starts early, and it never finishes. We continue to learn about consequences for the rest of our lives. At least, we should.

Don't complain that no one will give you a chance... MAKE your chance. This is America.

My step-father did 2 stints in state prison on drug-related offenses. When he got out, he stayed out, he worked his arse off in those menial jobs they give felons. Now he own 2 retail stores and lives in a 2-story house with a pool.

It CAN be done, you just have to be realistic and know that you have extra hurdles to overcome because of your mistakes in life.

 

[LightningCrash]

Sounds like a good time to mention this book, as well:
http://www.amazon.com/Three-Felonies-Day-Target-Innocent/dp/1594032556