Lady Justice has long been an icon of the American criminal justice system. Her headband shows that justice must apply equally to everyone, regardless of appearance, race, age or gender. Her sword encourages the execution of justice while the scales she holds represent the idea that both parties (plaintiff and defendant) are clearly heard before a decision is made. However, Lady Justice often fails to do her job. To better achieve Lady Justice's goals, people should begin focusing more on the ideas of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who envisioned that all Americans should be offered the prospect of justice. However, fifty years after his speeches and letters, King's vision has yet to become a reality. Too many people continue to find themselves abandoned and misled by America's criminal justice system. Criminal offenders find their sentences don't fit their crime, while law-abiding citizens see their taxpayer dollars wasted on an inefficient prison system. The segregation and injustice in America's prisons must end. In order to further the goals of Lady Justice and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., fewer criminal offenders must be imprisoned while more must be placed in programs that will help put them on the right path. Many prisoners are in prison for minors. and harmless crimes that are often committed in times of struggle and despair. Unlike a few decades ago, the data in Table 1 show that the criminal justice system has increasingly begun to deal with incarcerated suspects who have committed minor offenses, as opposed to major crimes and more serious. More than 85 percent of state and federal prisoners were incarcerated for violent and property offenses in...... middle of paper ......he_worlds_prison.htmlJames, DJ and Glaze, LE (September 2006). Mental health problems in prison (Rep.). Retrieved November 26, 2013, from the Bureau of Justice Statistics website: http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/mhppji.pdfKing, ML, Jr. (nd). Letter from a Birmingham prison [Letter written on April 16, 1963 to my dear ecclesiastical colleagues]. Accessed November 26, 2013 from http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.htmlProCon. (February 21, 2013). Incarcerated criminal population by type of crime committed, 1974-2010. Criminal vote. Accessed November 26, 2013, from felonvoting.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=004339&print=trueTorrey, E., MD, Kennard, AD, MPA, Eslinger, D., Lamb, R., MD and Pavle, J (2010, May). There are more mentally ill people in prisons than in hospitals: a state survey. Retrieved November 26, 2013.