[Avodah] Prison in Halakhah

[Micha Berger]

We know that Sanhedrin used jails. We know there are kippos in which
those awaiting trial or murderers who couldn't be sentenced to death
would be put.

I have often expressed here my assumption that these kippos were also used
as prisons. That beis din's obligation to protect society, like that of a
Noachide cout, couldn't be fulfilled only with the punishments prescribed
by halakhah. Something had to be done to keep dangerous people off the
streets. And a court that was trying not to sentence dinei nefashos more
than once every 7 or 70 years was not sentencing murderers or armed robbers
to death. So... how else could society have run?

What I worked out from first principles my be backed by the mishnah.
Mentioned in today's AhS Yomi (OC 531:1), MQ 3:1. Someone who was released
from jail on ch"m and therefore couldn't or was too depressed to get a
haircut before YT may cut their hair on ch"m. The Bartenura and Rambam
say this refers to a Jewish jail "chavush beyad Yisrael".

The SA 531:4 also talks about chavush beyad Yisrael.

No, this is not Jewish kidnappers, someone who was a released from shevi
over YT was the previous case in the mishnah.

Menorah haNo'ar:
    And someone who was released from the beis ha'asurin, ve'afilu
    chavush beyad Yisrael...

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 The meaning of life is to find your gift.
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   The purpose of life
Author: Widen Your Tent      is to give it away.
- https://amzn.to/2JRxnDF                   - Pablo Picasso