Aceh Inmates Stood No Chance in Tsunami

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia -- Soon after the earthquake shook Banda Aceh prison, wardens released the inmates into the central courtyard, fearing a second, more powerful temblor might collapse the cells.

But nobody expected what came next -- a huge wave that smashed through the walls as if they were made of paper, engulfing the complex in a torrent of churning water and debris. All 280 inmates and six guards are missing and feared dead, as are 200 other prisoners in other facilities in the region.

"They didn't make the connection between an earthquake and a tsunami. Our grandparents, and their grandparents before them, have never experienced such a thing," said Teuke Darwin, head of the provincial justice ministry. "They used to think a tsunami was a Japanese television series."

By all accounts, most of the almost 100,000 people killed Dec. 26 along the coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island were unaware of the monstrous waves heading their way. Unlike the Pacific region, Southeast Asia has rarely been hit by tsunami.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-tsunami-nowhere-to-run,0,5342217.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines

because a tsunami might hit it?

there are principles that have been around for thousands of years that make a lot more sense than prison for many crimes.

and there are programs around the country trying to make them happen.

RJ programs have proven especially good for adolescents and first offenders.

Vermont has a whole Criminal Justice system that is underscored by RJ.

whalerider55

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