Consider This...

February 23, 2007

 

What do the Duke lacrosse case and the Jim Black scandal have in common?

In talking about both cases, too many people are focusing on one bad actor and missing the larger, systemic problems.

Instead of blaming all the woes of the justice system on Mike Nifong, try taking a closer look at prosecutorial misconduct in other cases (the ones without million-dollar attorneys). You may come to the conclusion that the justice system needs more checks and balances on the power of prosecutors on the local level.  

Similarly, Jim Black is a regrettable example of what happens when too much power gets concentrated in the hands of one man. Leadership term limits are essential. And why is everyone so much more outraged when Black’s bribes were revealed to be explicit rather than implicit? Don’t we all know what big-time campaign fundraising is all about by now?

The General Assembly needs public campaign financing today, so we can bring policy creation out of the restaurant bathrooms and onto the floor of the legislature, where it belongs.