is a blog about design, technology and culture written by Khoi Vinh, and has been more or less continuously published since December 2000 in New York City. Khoi is currently Principal Designer at Adobe. Previously, Khoi was co-founder and CEO of Mixel (acquired in 2013), Design Director of The New York Times Online, and co-founder of the design studio Behavior, LLC. He is the author of “How They Got There: Interviews with Digital Designers About Their Careers”and “Ordering Disorder: Grid Principles for Web Design,” and was named one of Fast Company’s “fifty most influential designers in America.” Khoi lives in Crown Heights, Brooklyn with his wife and three children.
Please refer to the advertising and sponsorship page for inquiries.
+
Thats right yo … you beat the system !!! BLEEP THE SYSTEM !!!
Anywhom this is something very awkward but then again I live in Florida, what you experienced might never ever be charged for here. It’s as though cops are not dedicated for such insignificant laws that are constantly violated each day! (i.e I jaywalk myself all the time and even in front of cops).
But anywhom congrats on getting your way with the System.
— Denis
Glad to hear things worked out alright, Khoi. What do you think is at the root of underfunding of the judicial system? Do you think the people who pay the majority of taxes figure they won’t end up entangled with the system, and hence it’s not worth paying for?
Denis: I always find it deeply bizarre when Americans talk about “jaywalking”. Here (the UK), crossing the road anywhere that’s not considered a crossing point is pretty normal; the idea that you might be arrested for it is somewhat strange to us. After all, you’re taking a big enough risk as it is, that of being run over! Do you think this difference in attitude might be something to do with the prevailing car-centric culture in the ‘States?
It’s illegal because jaywalking causes accidents moreso than people crossing at crosswalks. If you’re driving down a road, you don’t expect someone to run out in front of you, and you may swerve into oncoming traffic or parked cars to avoid hitting a person.
I take care when jaywalking, because I realize people aren’t expecting me to cross there. I don’t necessarily agree with the law, and you’d have to find an awfully dickheaded cop to arrest you for it, but I do understand where it comes from.
As much as you’d like to think the police “target” minorities, the idea of that is simply ridiculous. The fact of the matter remains, that these are the people that are committing the most crimes. Like it or not, the statistics in most major cities support this.
Would you propose that the courts adopt a policy of affirmative action? That would certainly make things fair!
“the whole court house was a dilapidated mess, an embarrassment to the idea of justice”
It may have been an embarrassment to the idea of justice (whatever that may be), but I’m guessing it was also a stark reminder of the state of this thing we call justice.
“bore only faint resemblance to any courtroom you’ve seen on television.“the whole court house was a dilapidated mess, an embarrassment to the idea of justice”
It may have been an embarrassment to the idea of justice (whatever that may be), but I’m guessing it was also a stark reminder of the state of this thing we call justice.
“bore only faint resemblance to any courtroom you’ve seen on television.
I think that it’s an insightful view into how the judicial system works for the average person. It is proven that crime is much higher in under-developed areas. Unfortunately these also happen to be where most of the minorities reside.
I don’t understand the concern about what the courtrooms look like. So what if the courtroom doesn’t have 30 foot ceilings and gigantic stone pillars? Do you honestly expect a county courthouse to be designed to make some kind of poetic statement in mind? It’s the functionality that matters. Did the justice system work? Yes it did. It was apparent to the judge that you didn’t deserve to be punished for what you did, so you weren’t.
Mike Keen:
“As much as you’d like to think the police “target” minorities, the idea of that is simply ridiculous.”
Thinking that all cops in major cities treat everyone equal is ridiculous. The fact is that minorities don’t commit all crimes. Affirmative action in the courthouse is not the answer but better trained cops would help.
Would you prefer your tax money be spent on Law-and-Order style wood paneling? Take another look-see around some courthouses if you’re interested, but even murder cases are tried in rooms with composite celling panels and plastic chairs.
MattH: There’s a compromise between wood panelling (as you suggest) and what I saw in this courtroom. I’m not talking about an ostentatious level of decor, just something sensible and respectable, that tells citizens that the system is something to be respected, not something to be scorned. As it happens, composite ceiling panels and plastic chairs would have been an upgrade.
“As much as you’d like to think the police “target” minorities, the idea of that is simply ridiculous. The fact of the matter remains, that these are the people that are committing the most crimes.”
I see. It’s “ridiculous” to assume that the high proportion of minorities passing through the criminal justice system has anything to do with targeting, but it’s not ridiculous to assert that you know who’s actually committing crimes in this country. Gee, you wouldn’t pulling these “statisics” from arrest records would you? Kind of throws a fat ol’ wrench in your whole argument…
Eeep, that is scary. Were you in a Civil/Criminal court (that tries Felonies) or just a District court (civil infractions)?
Well, if it was a lower level state court, I’m not surprised. I recently had to sit in on a number of criminal cases in the Local Court (the lowest judicial court in NSW, Australia) and the environment was downright unpleasant, from a usability point of view. (I was observing the cases for my criminal law class, not acting as counsel or anything.) The contrast between these courts and the sleek, modern federal and state supreme court building, well, that’s a whole story in itself.
My statistics aren’t based on arrest records, they are based on convictions. It’s a fact that a lot of people seem to prefer to ignore. Most violent criminals come out of areas of poor inner-city areas. The people that most heavily inhabit these areas are minorities. If more white people lived in these areas, the statistics would change. I don’t see the complication of my argument. I’m simply stating a fact.