Rep. Emily Kinkead: Justice, compassion and Ezra Bozeman

Lady Justice may be blind, but she is not heartless.

When I was in law school, I read a passage in my Criminal Procedure textbook that has defined my understanding of the practice of law in a criminal setting. What it said was that the role of a prosecutor is not to notch victories and win cases. It was not to convict, but to seek justice. The prosecutor represents not an individual party in a case but a sovereignty obligated to govern impartially and whose interest in a case is not victory but justice. The criminal justice system would be a travesty if a prosecutor, holding the sacred liberty of an individual in their hands, thought of nothing more than winning.

In its broadest sense, justice is the concept that individuals are to be treated in a manner that is equitable and fair. But to understand the difference between victory and justice, one must practice compassion. Because justice cannot exist without compassion. Consequences without compassion leads to joy in punishment, comfort in others’ pain and a state-sanctioned system of retribution, not a justice system.

So when I see the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office opposing the compassionate release of Ezra Bozeman, I cannot help but think that District Attorney Stephen Zappala has lost sight of what justice really looks like.

Bozeman, now 68, has lived almost three-quarters of his life behind bars, serving a life sentence for a 1975 second-degree murder conviction for a fatal shooting during a robbery. During his incarceration, he has been a model prisoner. He has been dedicated to his rehabilitation, as well as committed to the social-emotional needs of his fellow inmates. He is a tutor and artist, among other volunteering activities. He has been instrumental in keeping the End Violence Project thriving within SCI Chester, where he is housed.

Four years ago, Bozeman had a medical incident that caused him to lose significant mobility. It was misdiagnosed as a stroke and, by the time it was properly identified, he needed serious spinal surgery to fix the problem. That surgery did not fix the problem and instead left him a quadriplegic.

He cannot carry out the activities of daily living. He requires a colostomy bag and cannot feed himself. Not only can he not walk or move on his own, he cannot even press a button to call for help if he needs it. His health is declining rapidly.

As a member of the House Judiciary Committee and a practicing attorney, I know all too well that none of our state correctional facilities are equipped or qualified to provide the round-the-clock care he requires. The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections is already understaffed and struggling to recruit and retain an adequate workforce, especially medical personnel.

Bozeman is a textbook case for compassionate release under Pennsylvania law. Yet the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office is fighting tooth and nail — with your taxpayer dollars — to keep Bozeman in prison. Not only is it inhumane, it is a terrible waste of our tax dollars.

And I ask why? What aspect of justice is possibly served by this obstinance?

It is all too easy to say, “do the crime, do the time.” Treating incarcerated people like Bozeman with compassion is often dismissed as weakness and coddling. But practicing compassion in our justice system is not about those who have committed crimes. It is about who we are as people and what kind of society we wish to be. As Nelson Mandela said, “A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.”

Do we wish to be a society that finds no common humanity in the suffering of people merely because they committed a crime? Do we wish to continue to believe that addiction, mental illness and cycles of violence are only treatable through prison? Are we a society that embraces the idea that we can incarcerate our way out of our community’s toughest issues?

Or are we a society that understands that none of us are defined by the worst thing we’ve ever done? Can we be a society that finds common ground in our shared humanity? I believe that is the path forward, and the District Attorney’s Office is uniquely positioned to lead us there.

Zappala has the power to decide to no longer oppose the compassionate release of Bozeman. And that is a first, best step in remembering that there is no justice without compassion. The citizens of Allegheny County deserve no less.

State Rep. Emily Kinkead serves the 20th District, which includes Ross Township, the boroughs of Avalon, Bellevue and West View, and parts of the City of Pittsburgh.