site banner

Small-Scale Question Sunday for November 27, 2022

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

5
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

Should the United States just double or triple the size of its legal infrastructure (courts, judges, etc.)?

Even if you're not libertarian/minarchist minded, you probably agree that running a legal system is one of the most important things the government should be doing. Yet it seems like so many of the problems of the legal system are simple supply problems. Issues like bail, the costs of litigation, the difficulty of executions (as mentioned by a poster below), the inconvenience of every single legal encounter, etc. would be solved or greatly lessened by expanding legal resources. And relative to the vast majority of things the government does, courts are not expensive. I'm guessing the U.S. could double the entire legal system for less than 1% of the budget.

Should the United States just double or triple the size of its legal infrastructure (courts, judges, etc.)?

Yes, by 1-2 oders of magnitude, if you want at least pretend that sixth amendment means something. Currently, 90-95% of cases are solved with plea bargaining, and for good reason - currently existing courts are clogged even with the small percentage of cases they deal with.

If you want to keep jury system, you would also need large military police force dedicated to rounding up massive numbers of necessary jurors (I do not insult you by suggesting something as unamerican as actually paying jurors living wage).