Justice vs. Public Safety
Professor Jennifer Chacon and Professor Floyd Feeney commented in the The Sacramento Bee on a recent case in which rape charges were thrown out but inmates remained in custody. This does seem to conflict with our broad sense of justice, said Chacon, a specialist in criminal procedure and criminal law.
Two cousins exonerated in what was first thought to be a gang rape case remained in a Sacramento County jail for 21 days after the charges were dropped. Professor Floyd Feeney, a specialist in criminal justice, said it's not unusual for authorities to keep inmates in custody if they believe some aspect of the criminal case was true but lacked the evidence to prove the charge.
April 14, 2006/The Sacramento Bee
http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/in_the_news/full_text/view_clip.lasso?id=14898
Two cousins exonerated in what was first thought to be a gang rape case remained in a Sacramento County jail for 21 days after the charges were dropped. Professor Floyd Feeney, a specialist in criminal justice, said it's not unusual for authorities to keep inmates in custody if they believe some aspect of the criminal case was true but lacked the evidence to prove the charge.
April 14, 2006/The Sacramento Bee
http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/in_the_news/full_text/view_clip.lasso?id=14898