How much punishment is enough? More than thirty years ago a jury convicted Junior Allen, a day laborer, of second-degree burglary “for stealing a $140 television set from a home in Johnston County. Judge James Pou Bailey sent Allen to prison for life.” He’s still serving that sentence, after a disciplinary record in prison that officials describe as about average for a maximum security inmate. Earlier this month, for the 26th year in a row, a parole board denied him parole. (“Justice Served? Man Serving Life Sentence For Stealing TV”, WRAL.com, Nov. 25; “Man Serving Life Sentence For Theft Of TV Seeks Freedom”, Nov. 28; “Junior Allen Denied Parole For 26th Straight Year”, Feb. 6) See TalkLeft, Feb. 16; Rooftop Report, Feb. 16.
Man serving life sentence for theft of TV in 1970
How much punishment is enough? More than thirty years ago a jury convicted Junior Allen, a day laborer, of second-degree burglary “for stealing a $140 television set from a home in Johnston County. Judge James Pou Bailey sent Allen to prison for life.” He’s still serving that sentence, after a disciplinary record in prison that […]
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