Tuesday, December 12, 2023
What happened yesterday
As described in this New York Times piece, yesterday my office agreed to the release from prison a man named Marvin Haynes, who had been sentenced to life in prison when he was 16 for a murder.
Some people will disagree with our decision, while others will be heartened by it. Criminal law sometimes seems-- from the outside-- as an exercise in precision, fueled by those forensic scientists you see on TV. In truth, it is often messy and muddled, and produces troubling outcomes. When that happens, the best we can do is to keep looking at it, and never be so sure that we become blind to the messiness.
