Oh take your sensationalism and shove it.

Damn near every country is like this to a large extent (and a great many are worse). If you do not have the resources to hire your own lawyer and the state accuses you of a crime you are usually screwed.

If you had said the prison system is pretty bad for a 1st world country or that the US incarcerates people for far too many crimes or that there are simply too many things that are illegal I'd agree with you but the legal system in the US is pretty par for the course.