The "Right" For Prisoners to Attend Funerals of Loved Ones

There has been a bit of controversy surrounding the whole notion of whether Jodi Arias should be allowed to attend the funeral of her grandfather.  At the end of the day, I believe that this is not a decision to be made by our judicial system, but should be a personal one.  Here is why.

1. I know what Jodi has been convicted of.  She has been convicted of the murder of Travis Alexander. (Not the murder of one of her family members, not that it would make a difference)
2. The individual who has passed away was the same man that Jodi had been living with.  She had been living with her grandparents.
3. Yes, it was determined that Jodi had stolen the gun from her grandparents and had staged a burglary. 

These are the facts.   We fight for equal rights, we fight for our rights to have due process, we advocate for our justice system to be fair and equitable, we have things in place like the exclusionary rule, we have defense attorneys NOT to let murderers and such go free, but to make sure that every person has the same black and white rules that we all want upheld, being upheld.  

Let's switch places.  Lets say you were in jail (doesn't matter what the crime) and your parent, spouse, sibling, or grandparent passed away.  Would you want the opportunity (not saying you would be welcomed or invited, but just the opportunity) to go to mourn their loss with your other family members?  

Yes, everyone has their feelings and emotions about what Jodi did and what happened to Travis. This, however, is not what the issue is.  The issue for the case at bar is a clear black and white issue,  "Should a prisoner be allowed to go to the funeral of a relative."  Now, it's a completely different issue whether or not it's THE RIGHT PERSONAL decision for Jodi to attend the funeral.  That is a completely separate issue which is a judgment call on her part, just as it would be for any other prisoner.  Jodi will be judged for the decision she ends up making.  BUT, the fact at hand is that we have a judicial system set up with rules and precedents and statutes and such, and those are the rights we fight for every day in court.  We want to make sure that if for some weird or strange reason we are ever charged with a crime, it's because we actually did the crime and scenarios such as cops planting evidence, or coerced confessions were not involved.  We want our justice system to protect us if we are victims AND also if we are the offenders and defendants. We want to make sure that we are treated the way the laws intended us ALL to be treated.  We theoretically can't just pick and choose which prisoners we want to apply the rules to. (Although, inside the jail, the reality is a much different scenario to be addressed in a different post) At least that is the intent behind the judicial system.  

Take away the fact that this scenario is Jodi Arias and the murder of Travis Alexander.  Say that this is just Prisoner A who has had a family member pass away while they are incarcerated.  Should they be ALLOWED to attend is totally different than if it is a GOOD PERSONAL DECISION for that prisoner to attend.  Yes, we want our judicial system to uphold our rights, but only when it benefits us the most. I think that if anyone is to judge whether or not Jodi should be allowed to attend the funeral, it should be HER family.  Perhaps HER family does not even want her to attend.  If that is the case, and if Jodi attends, then that just brings more attention to her and her own decision making.  

There was justice for Travis Alexander when she was convicted of Murder.  Jodi will never be a free woman again, whether she spends her life in prison or is sentenced to death.  Either way, she is being punished for her crime, a crime she DOES NOT DENY.  But, again, put yourself in the position that you are the one incarcerated (for whatever crime) and a loved one passes away.  Would you want our justice system banning you or forbidding you from attending the funeral? Would you want the judicial system to have the power to decide if they think you should be allowed to be with your family during a time of sadness and mourning?  A judge who only knows what sits before him in the documents contained in a file folder, or in boxes, from a trial presented by those wanting to paint you in the worst light while those in your camp try to quash the tainted opinions and pose the realities (or at least dispel the fallacies presented) about you and your character.   I can bet that if this were any one of us, we would be fighting like mad to attend the funeral and would hope that just because a jury found us guilty of a crime, the court would still view us as humans who have feelings and connections with loved ones.  Not all murderers are heartless. Just like all those that are heartless are not murderers.  

It's the black and white law that we want our judicial system to uphold and we want the system to hold the same standards across the board, I mean, isn't that what the whole purpose of our judicial system is for and what we, as Americans, fight for?  The decision on if it is a GOOD IDEA for Jodi to attend is a PERSONAL decision and one that should be left up to her own judgment.  The court should not be allowed to rule on that.  Once the courts and judges begin ruling on emotions, then the whole basis for our judicial system and the laws, and precedents we have established over time are thrown out the window and it becomes a free for all.  

SHOULD JODI ATTEND THE FUNERAL?  Probably not a good idea.  SHOULD JODI BE ALLOWED TO ATTEND THE FUNERAL BY LAW? That is a different question.  

I'm from Illinois and we had a situation arise with our former governor George Ryan.  He was incarcerated when he was in his late 70's for his white collar, political scheming type crimes (I know, the Illinois and Chicago government's corrupt? Who would have known? lol)  and was serving his sentence while his high school sweetheart, and the woman he had married and spent the last 50+ years with, was dying of lung cancer and was given a prognosis of only a few days to live.  Motions were filed in court trying to grant him permission to be with her during her last days and hours.  The court denied several motions, but in the end, he WAS granted a few hours to spend with her on her dying days.  Now, granted, in this situation, his wife was by his side 100%  for the entirety of their marriage, so that does set it apart from this situation with Jodi, but, the family wanted him there, his wife wanted him there.  He was granted leave.  (Here is an article about George Ryan's attempts to be with his wife) Also, the information I have read about Jodi's case states that IF granted, Jodi would only be allowed IF HER PRISONER ACCOUNT CONTAINED THE NECESSARY FUNDS TO PAY FOR THE EXPENSES.  Tax dollars are not being used for these situations.  If she can provide the documents and the finances, then she can go.

Like I have said before, it all comes back down to the black and white law.  Should a prisoner be allowed to attend a funeral of a loved one," and in this case, the court will only entertain the idea if they can provide the required documentation and provide the funding.  So,  let's be real here, do we really think Jodi has the money or the resources to pay for this?  Doubtful!!!  But, what we are talking about are laws that we want to remain consistent because in the unfortunate or unlikely event we might be in the situation of being incarcerated, we would want to have the same considerations.

What about this scenario?   How many people are released each year due to the work of people from The Innocence Project?  There are lots of innocent people in jail.  I AM NOT SAYING JODI IS INNOCENT! THAT IS NOT WHAT I AM SAYING AT ALL.  What I am saying, is that if the law did not allow prisoners to attend funerals etc., then even these innocent prisoners would not be able to attend those, and then a few years later, when DNA evidence or other things prove they were in fact innocent and should not have been incarcerated, what happens to the exonoree who had been denied the right to mourn a loved one? I could almost imagine, or bet, there would be an uproar about that.  

We have a judicial system for a reason, to maintain order, uniformity, safety, etc.  We can't just pick and choose which laws to enforce and which laws to not enforce because of our own emotions surrounding the case at bar.  We have to allow the system to work as we have designed it to, and that is to uphold our Constitution and the way it has been interpreted based on the various cases which have set the precedents.  The only thing we can do, is hope that when it comes down to it, the prisoner makes the correct judgment call when deciding if it is in the best interest of all of those involved to attend the ceremony. This type of decision should NOT BE a decision made by a Judge out of a court of law.  A court system is not designed to make decisions based on emotions, but makes their judgments based on the decisions of the judges from cases before them.  

Do I think Jodi should attend the funeral?  Personally, I do not think it is a good idea, but, this is a decision that should be left up to Jodi, that is, if she is able to provide the items the court requires to even consider her motion.  It has been mentioned that Travis was not able to attend his grandmother's funeral because she passed away after his death, so why should Jodi be able to attend her grandfather's?  Well, this funeral is not in any way connected to Travis Alexander or his family.  It is not his grandfather, it is not a relative of HIS family.  This is Jodi's family.  Jodi's family should be the ones fighting either for or against her right to attend. This has nothing to do with justice for Travis any longer.  Like I said before, she is being punished right now for her crime.  She will spend the rest of her life in jail, or she will be executed.  THAT is the justice for Travis.  What happens in her own family, is between them, and should remain an issue between them, not the court system.