Friends in Low Places: With the proliferation of the Internet has come a new phenomenon: prisoner blogs and requests for pen pals. The ACLU has championed this as a development for free speech, while victims' rights groups argue that it causes distress for victims' families and permits convicts to maintain too much freedom despite their incarceration. Tim Reiterman has the story for the LA Times.

Schillaci Charged for Molesting Pen Pals' Son: Being a convict's pen pal is a bad idea on general principle; inviting a convicted sex offender to live in your home certainly is. Jon Schillaci, a registered sex offender, was allowed to live with his pen pals after his release from prison, and even gave their five-year-old son piano lessons. Not surprisingly, he sexually assaulted the boy, and has been rearrested. That's all well and good, but where is the parental responsibility?

Not 'Surveillance' Cameras if not Surveilled: C.W. Nevius's SF Chronicle column makes an interesting point. Expanding surveillance camera networks is a waste of resources unless someone actually monitors the cameras already in place. While safety and civil liberties must be balanced, refusal to monitor footage even though it's recorded seems to compromise both with few benefits.

Voters Demand Response to Violent Youth: Dealing with youth offenders is one of the most contentious decisions in the criminal justice system. Some people say that 16- and 17-year-olds should be held accountable as adults while others argue that overly harsh policies will create career offenders out of troubled youth. Robert E. Pierre's article for the WA Post examines DC's attempt to balance rehabilitation and punishment.