Capsule Collection

Excerpts:

“In many ways it was just another day, another class of Wesleyan University, one of the more selective colleges in the Northeast.

Unlike other Wesleyan classes, though, each of the students — all men — had numbers like 271013 or 298331 on their khaki shirts.

“I appreciate the need to educate offenders, but I’m saddened we don’t spend that kind of money or take that kind of time to rebuild the lives of crime victims,” said Michelle S. Cruz, Connecticut’s independent victim advocate.

The class has six convicted murderers, two convicted drug dealers and a kidnapper. Collectively, the class faces more than 600 years in prison.”

You can read the application essays here.

From just reading the essay of a murder sentenced to 50 years in prison, I can see that he has an articulate grasp on the English language and am astounded by his clear train of thought and profound thinking.

I can’t remember the last time I had to write anything over 300 words (and by hand, for that matter). And I wonder to myself, a man who can demonstrate such sound reasoning and who can use words to express himself in an eloquent manner, can also still harbor the animal inside of him that took another person’s life.

I KNEW IT! I normally don’t give money to panhandlers, although one time I did give a homeless man sitting outside of my dorm an unfinished chicken curry bun from a Chinatown bakery and he looked at me like I was a deity. I hurriedly scurried away and never saw him again.

pros and cons of sealing in subway riders with a man who went crazy and stabbed a homeless person:

PRO: makes sure the killer can’t escape so the police can apprehend him and bring him to justice
CONS: locks him in a subway car with other innocent people who are at risk