Opinion Exchange

A 42-page report from the federal Department of Justice criticizing the conditions at the Westchester County jail has readers debating the contents of the report, the merits of the claims and wondering why it seems like Westchester County is under a federal microscope lately.
Many readers thought that prisoners should expect a certain amount of hardship, since they are in prison. Read the story and then add your views.

One reader wrote:

This is just another example of what is wrong with this country. Why don’t the polititions worry more about how the law-abiding people are being treated then the convicts. I am so sick of hearing about the rights of people who do not deserve any.

Another said:

It’s a jail for Pete’s sake. You do the crime you do the time.

A third added:

What the feds fail to state is that they reviewed hundreds of incidents and only found a handful. I am not condoning abuse, but come walk these halls and see how easy it is. Imagine having to tell a grown man facing life that he needs to clean his room. It’s very easy to comment on things from the outside; step into the world of a corrections officer and see how many run scared!

Some readers defended the civil rights of prisoners, saying they are humans, too. One wrote:

Corrections department officials are law enforcement. Hence, their job is to enforce the law, not some laws. You don’t have to like it. They don’t have to like it. They must comply, though. After all they are supposed to be better than the criminals that broke the law, right?

As for the federal oversight, one reader had this to say:

Can’t the county run anything in compliance with the law? And how come the Westchester County District Attorney and the New York Attorney General never seem to notice?

Another wrote:

I always laugh at the federal government. They somehow think they can do everything better than everyone else. They have plenty of problems of their own without pointing fingers. They should clean their own house first.