Pubdate: Fri, 14 Jun 2002
Source: Bolivar Commercial, The (MS)
Copyright: 2002 The Bolivar Commercial, a division of Cleveland Newspapers, Inc
Contact:  http://www.bolivarcom.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1775
Author: Jason Patterson, Bolivar Commercial

JUDGES OFFER ADVICE ON AVOIDING TROUBLE

Three veterans of Mississippi's legal system shared their experiences and 
what they learned from them with American Legion Boys State Thursday.

Mississippi Supreme Court Justices James Graves and George Carlson shared 
the stage with Mississippi Court of Appeals Judge Leslie Southwick.

Graves and Carlson both said that during their previous experience as 
circuit court judges, the one thing most criminals had in common was that 
they dropped out of school.

"As a circuit court judge there were days when I would send 20-30 people to 
prison by noon," said Graves. "If you drop out of school, you might as well 
just call the prison and ask them to reserve you a space."

Graves said that other than staying in school, obeying the rules and 
avoiding the wrong crowd are essential to staying out of trouble.

"People, who get in the habit of not obeying rules at a young age, grow up 
to break laws," said Graves. "Anybody who claims to be your friend and 
encourages you to smoke a joint, which is illegal, is not your friend."

Carlson said that the best advice he received when he joined the 
Mississippi Supreme Court can be applied to all aspects of life. He said 
that his peers told him to vote with his conscience when deciding tough cases.

"You have to apply the facts of the case to the law, but in the end you 
have to do what you think is right," said Carlson.

Southwick encouraged the young men to have a vision and not let their fears 
prevent them from achieving their goals.

"Things usually are not as hard as you think," said Southwick. "Be 
demanding and don't let the task requirements overwhelm you."

The three also discussed their views on zero tolerance policies with the 
Boys State delegates. One member of the audience said that zero tolerance 
policies in high schools worried him because sometimes people who are doing 
nothing wrong get in trouble.

"I can tell you as a judge that my inclination is always in a situation to 
exercise discretion," said Graves. "A guy in possession of three joints may 
need to go to jail for a year, but another guy may only need one night in 
jail to keep him from ever possessing marijuana again."

Carlson and Southwick agreed that every case is different.

"I've always been in favor of individual treatment," said Carlson.

"One of the most fundamental questions involving the courts is can you 
trust them to make a decision or do you need an exact set of rules, so I 
agree with both of them," said Southwick.
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MAP posted-by: Beth