listening to the news

Two days ago I listened to a piece of news that deeply saddened me. It is about Sally Clark, a woman who was sent to jail for murdering her two children. This alone would be horrendous enough, but what is even more appalling is that she was innocent. So, in 2003 the court of appeal finally set her free. But nothing was ever going to be the same again. Not only had she lost both children under mysterious circumstances, but she also was scarred for life during her stay in prison.

Alas, the miscarriage of justice she suffered finally made her commit suicide a few days ago. She left behind her husband, who was always on her side, and her third child.

My first thought after listening to this was how it must have been for her to be accused of killing her own flesh and blood. I doubt any person could live through such grave emotional stress. Then, after some more ruminating, I was outraged by the miscarriage of justice. Thanks to this item of news I became painfully aware that sometimes it is worse to sentence an innocent person than to free a guilty one.

If you want to listen to this, access:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/video_and_audio/default.stm