I am writing in response to a Jan. 14 Journal story from which I quote District Attorney Will Furse, who said, “Two years in a cage is probably enough, but I’m not sure.”

This regards the sentencing of a young man, John Finocchiaro. On Nov. 19, Furse said, “We have to give these prisoners the tools to reintegrate into society.” I would like to know where this D.A. of ours actually stands. The first quote is an unnecessarily callous remark about someone who obviously has never been helped while within the “system.” Since the head of the justice system in our area is this bigoted against the inmates, how doesn’t that reflect on officers and personnel who work in his administration? We have had some trouble in our jail in the past few months – maybe Furse should think about how he reacted to them.

I am not dealing with a popular grandstand here, but remarks like Furse made on Jan. 14 affect all of us.

I am not related to this inmate. He did work for us with the approval of his parole officer. He was released in June – not August. He was trustworthy and worked hard in 100-degree heat. He could not get a job or an apartment, as there is a “felony” box on both applications. There is no help of this kind for those released from prison.

Judith Cain

Cortez