I Can't Believe..
 

I read in the newspaper that a judge in Florida sentenced a convicted drug dealer to two years probation and ordered him into drug rehab. Why? Because she said as a thin, white male he would be the target of sexual assaults and that would be cruel and unusual punishment!

I don't care! If he did the crime, he should serve the time. So, if he were a thin, black male would she have made the same concessions? I couldn't believe what I was reading!

the court system is so hypocritical. maybe this convicted drug dealer came from an influential family and perhaps that's why the judge did what she did, who knows.

Well, isn't it possible to separate certain people from the regular prison population? They do it for rapists, pedaphiles, etc. It just doesn't seem fair or right. I'm sorry that the young man was killed, but that doesn't excuse the fact that certain people are being treated differently in the judicial system.

AKAtude: I've been hearing about that same case. I believe that, that particular judge is being dismissed because he/she is known for being too "easy on" criminals. I thought the exact same thing when I heard about the case...if it were a small, frail, black man I guess she would have sent him to jail with no qualms.
I was reading about another case in South Florida about this guy who was a Hatian immigrant. He was new to the country, taking night classes in English. He went to an Eckerd drug store to pick up a few items and after he paid for them and walked out of the store, the little security buzzer went off. Of course, being new to the country he did not know that he was supposed to come back into the store. So, the store manager and a cashier chased him and brought him back into the store, where they made him strip down to his underwear...in front of other customers mind you, only to find that he had not stolen anything. After returning home, the man was so distressed about what had happend that he became sick and started to vomit continuously....He filed suit, and the jury awarded him $100,000. But check this, the judge overturned the jury's decision and only awarded the man $100. One Hundred Dollars!! That is ridiculous.
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I'm not conceited, just convinced.

[This message has been edited by mizzkes (edited January 10, 2001).]

Good topic!

I have NO FAITH in the American judicial system. I think it's f$#@ up from the cops to the judges; so I can't even touch it. They incarcerate innocent people to smear their names, kill 'em, or just to get rid of 'em. I aint that ideal enough to spend my time discussing it.

****tickledpink shaking her head at the drug dealer & Haitian stories***

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"Things that make you go hmmmmm..."

-Arsenio Hall

[This message has been edited by tickledpink (edited January 11, 2001).]

I read a case in my Criminal Punishment class in which there was a young man-16yrs, white, no previous record, 1st time offender, not from a good background, charged as an adult- who was convicted of dealing drugs and was given the maximum sentence in a high capacity prison. The judge didn't take any of the facts stated above into consideration. He was killed on the 4th day during his first week there from a sexual attack. This happened in PA.

Before taking this class, I was quite one-sided to criminal issues, "If you did the crime, you do the time". However, I learned that this thinking doesn't fit with every situation and breaking the law isn't so cut and dry.

I don't know if this case has some underlying racial discrimination issues, but I think that this is an issue in which judges need to take into consideration what will happen to those "criminals" who break the law. Whether that person be black/white.

No. Maximum security and even smaller prisons don't discriminate and section off criminals by crime. Their reasoning, "for what, they are all criminals" and one doesn't get "preferential treament for a "less serious crime".

Actually, thats not entirely true. In some prisons, for prisoner and officer safety, they do seperate prisoners into certain groups. Like, if a prison is overrun by members of a certain gang, they have been known to place members of rival gangs in seperate wings and sections. The same with white and black supremacist groups. And we all know that child molestors are prisoners favorite targets, and in some prisons, these offenders can spend most of their sentence in "the hole" in order to protect them from an inevitable death at the hands of the other prisoners.

Regardless of why they are in prison, the sate still have a duty to protect them during their time of incarceration. And, if an inmate dies due to the negligence of the penal system, familes can and do sue.

I still can't get over the $100 instead of the $100,000 that was given to this man.

My post came off seeming to indicate all, but I should have been more specific. My post was referring primairly to the prison system throught the state of PA, this same practice goes on in other states. This topic was heavily discussed and researched in class I took.

Unfortunately, the real world prison situation is not like the prison situation seen on tv. Criminals are not sectioned off by crime and everyone is one big happy family even if they are molesters, drug dealers, serial killers, etc.. Moreover, prison crimes including deaths-happen very frequently. It's just not brought to light and there are major conspiracies going on. The public doesn't want to know and the media doesn't mention it because of the public's lack of interest- the majority of them figure, "they were criminals anyway, so what if they die".

The criminal class that I took brought up some important issues that the majority of society doesn't realize. I didn't have any knowledge about the prison system before this class, but through out it and after it, I understand that some serious reform is needed.

Stories like this are truly ashame. I was never a fan of the judicial system but you try to have hope that it eventually works. But when you hear of stories like this it is hard to keep that hope alive.

Greeting Sisterfriends,

I too am disgusted with the judicial system especially in my home town. Check this out. A white store owner gets 60 months probration and drug rehab for selling drugs. His store is directly across the street from the county jail and courthouse. It also is a block from the police department. The police claim they have been investigating him for the last 10 years. A black man gets life in prison for the same crime. The store owner was his supplier and they seized his cars, house, and almost everything he owns. This man has a wife and two children that did not have anywhere to stay. She and her children are currently staying with his niece. The sad part about it is that the white store owner is still in business. Is this a sad situation or what? I am so glad that I do not live there anymore, but my family still does. I do not think I could tolerate that BS.