We are always hearing about how bad it is when someone has to go to jail when they are in fact innocent. I'm going to say something that might seem a little shocking at first. We need to send innocent people to jail.
What this ultimately comes down to is one of my defining beliefs, true knowledge does not exist. It is impossible to be 100% certain of anything. This means that there is always going to be at least a theoretical chance that someone sent to prison is innocent.
If you demanded 100% certainty of guilt, you would effectively legalize all crime. If you demand any less, mistaken verdicts can be guaranteed. To put it another way, there is absolutely no way to effectively hold criminals accountable for their actions unless you are willing to accept a few innocent people joining them.
I would definitely say that we should err on the side of too many people declared innocent. I support the idea that we should be innocent until there is enough proof of guilt. Personally, I like the phrase, "beyond a reasonable doubt." If you have to come up with a seemingly unrealistic explanation to defend the innocence, that should result in a guilty verdict.
I'm not saying that I want to imprison people who do no wrong. This is just an unfortunate consequence of any protection from criminal behavior. If we want law and order, we need to accept this consequence.
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