witnesses not being protected as well as they should

[blondie58]

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_7028293

I found this article really disturbing. This is just Colorado, but I wouldn't be surprised if this isn't a problem nationwide. What a deterrent to others who might be faced with the same decision- testify- or possibly be killed or threatened?

Courtesy of the Denver Post

[NYC]

1. This is a serious deterrent to testifying.

...In Colorado, at least 16 witnesses and associates have been murdered since the state created a fund to protect the lives of witnesses. In most cases, threats preceded the murders. Some witnesses repeatedly reported those threats to police and prosecutors.

A Denver Post computer analysis found that since 1998, Colorado prosecutors have filed more than 2,000 felony cases of crimes against witnesses - crimes ranging from harassment and witness tampering to arson and murder. Witnesses have been kidnapped, raped and shot.

Yet in a typical year, judicial districts throughout the state spend less to protect the lives of witnesses than Denver spends to plant flowers...

[flashl]

2. Should be widely known problem. n/t