US justice system failing — RT

The World Justice Project released its 2010 ‘Rule of Law Index’ ranking the top 11 developed countries based on its citizens’ access to civil justice. The US ranked the lowest.

The report also found that less than one in five low income Americans get the legal assistance they need.

“Wealthier people get good lawyers, private lawyers. They get out of whatever they were accused of and the same accusation against a low income person of color will lead them to jail for lengthy periods of time,” said Medea Benjamin, an activist and co-founder of CODEPINK.

The study also looked at other factors including absence of corruption, limited government power and fundamental rights. The US ranked below seventh out of the eleven developed countries in all categories except one.

Many say the results are not surprising. Within the justice system, it’s not just low income Americans who sometimes miss out on legal services. Many argue that race plays a role too.

“In the United States, we have this terrible problem when it comes to bigotry, American bigotry, racist bigotry, class bigotry, within a system of white capitalist supremacy where we still have a large part of the population celebrating the idea that white people are superior to black people,” said lawyer Thomas Ruffin Jr.

Americans also point to the shocking stories of police brutality which have led several police departments across the country including the NYPD to shell sometimes up to $1 billion to settle some of these cases as evidence that the American justice system is broken.

“Everybody interacts with police and you’d think they’re there to serve and protect us, but you know police officers need to understand that they swore an oath to the Constitution and the number one factor they should provide in their job is constitutional protection for the citizens of this country. I think that’s been lost,” said George Hemminger, the founder of Survive and Thrive TV.

The study also found that when it comes to limited government power the United States ranks 9 out of the 11 developed countries studied. Last year the National Legal and Policy Center found that the White House might be spying on Americans on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media websites. And not too long ago, President Obama re-signed the Patriot Act that allows the government to spy on Americans and seize personal and private records in the name of homeland security.

Some Americans say that while the U.S. continues to wage wars abroad in the name of freedom and democracy, it might need to look to solve the problems within its own borders first.

“Here we are going around the world bombing and invading other countries to bring democracy to them when we really should be focusing on improving our democracy here at home,” Benjamin said.

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