Double Standard Justice

[Crofter]

Should elected officials and people in sworn positions of trust get a more severe penalty for abusing or converting their position to their own advantage. It seems to me there should be greater expectations and responsibility above what is required just being a citizen. What if we were to bring back public flogging?

Frank

[glens]

How could they not have a more severe penalty?  Can another person abuse the (current) post in the same manner?  If not, how could the other person obtain any penalty for it?

Glen

[Crofter]

You got me confused Glen, I dont know what you are asking.

Frank

[glens]

Joe is elected to the county whatever bureau.  Joe proceeds to use his position to assist his buddy Tom in receiving contracts to perform tasks for the county to the exclusion of other more capable/cost-effective contractors.

Joe should be punished for abusing his position.  How could anyone else abuse Joe's position, much less be punished for it?

Maybe I'm not understanding your question.

Glen

[rb_in_va]

I think what Glen is saying is that the crime a person in office might commit is different than one that a common citizen might commit. A private person does not wield the influence that the elected official does. In my opinion, some politicians that get caught with their hand in the cookie jar do not get punished as harshly as ordinary citizens do (although the crimes are likely not identical). For them to get punished at all would be an improvement as far as I'm concerned.

[Crofter]

Oh I see you are quibbling about semantics. I will simplify. If for instance Glen stops and steals Rocky Squirrels chain saw, he will be subject to a certain penalty if convicted. If a police officer who is sworn to uphold the law and is obviously aware of what is right and wrong does a similar kind of thing, should he not suffer a much, much greater penalty. Other examples could be priests, doctors, etc.

Frank

[Husky372]

like rb said it would just be nice if they where actually punished.

[glens]

Quibbling, perhaps.  If your question had read:

Should elected officials and people in sworn positions of trust get a more severe penalty for abusing or converting their position to their own advantage than a "civilian" would for similar types of wrong activity?

I would have understood what you were wanting to discuss.

In answer to that question:

Yes.

Glen

[lucky]

Most elected offiacials have greater authority and with that comes a greater responsibility. Maybe they should be given a stiffer punishment.

I will add this. Here in California killing an officer of the law carries a greater penalty than killing a common guy. Don't get me wrong we need law enforcement officers but is a policeman's life worth more than mine? Seems to me like a step in the direction of facism.

Good topic, guys. Take it easy. John

[Crofter]

But when the wind is right, he knows a hawk from a handsaw!

It might be argued that a public figure suffers more shame and penalty fom a misdeed so should get the same penalty as Joe Citizen. Some feel if we put an unusually high penalty on misbehaviour, the good candidates will not show up for the positions.

Frank

[MasterBlaster]

So Martha outta get a stiffer sentence, also?


I always liked ole Martha in a Hillary Clinton kinda way...

[oakwilt]

In other words...should Ken Lay serve hard time along with the kid who jacked the Hummer and stole a automated teller machine?

I'd like to compare the damages to society and weigh punishment on those merits.



Now, how about that Halliburton Corp.?

[Crofter]

Oakwilt. It is hard to put a price on some things. The problem of punishment and one size fits all is that a 10 thousand or 50 thousand fine is a devastating burden to one person and a joke to another. Seems to me there should be some way of factoring in the persons level of responsibilty and thus treachery, and finding a way to make the punishment suitable.

Frank

[oakwilt]

The problem with gigantic offenses that factor-in friendships and favors, the President can and does pardon. It's who you know and how well your counsel performs.

Either way incarceration is punitive, not corrective. Restitution is often sought against petty property offenses, if possible, but when the stakes are billions and brought about by violations in federal laws it becomes a poltical party affair, as far from criminal prosecution as a White House gala is to a 14-yr-old crack whore.

I followed Henry Kissenger's trail for a couple decades and right or wrong, he has been sentenced (in absentia) in eight countries for treason, complicity in murder, and war crimes. His response - is to stay safe in America. On the other hand an accountant with four years job experience embezzles $150,000 and heads to Rio finds 18 U.S. Federal agents spending 3.7 million and two years collaring his butt and sending him home to Leavenworth for 27 years.

Does bloodshed warrant the importance of punishment? Again, that depends on who did the shooting and who got shot. From that point in jurisprudence, it falls on the expertice of the legal representation. Deals are made and budgets are reviewed before any mandated punishment actions are taken. War on drugs a good history of crime and it's side effects or effectiveness of money spent. Many thousands of prosecutions of federal crimes against people have been deferred due to the loftiness of importance that a kid growing 2lbs of pot go serve hard time for fifteen years.

War crimes? They only fall under the jurisdiction of a sanctioned world body currently voted off-limits to prosecute our actions in the war against terror - so often we now can be as bad as the ones who we say are so bad - in the name of "justice", so I guess it's all relative to who's offended and who did the offense.

Glad I'm not black, Middle-eastern, gay, or too hungry. I am a human though and even that, it seems, is a threat nowadays. I confess I peed in the booze bottles at a Monsanto recruiting conference but that was before the allowed statute of my limitations. Ken Lay has made life somewhat hard for many tens of thousands, and he got away with it.

No offense intended.

[NeTree]

Public officials- while yes, are just as human as anyone- SHOULD be held to a higher standard. That's the responsibility they bear when they choose to run for the office.


Ponder this phrase:

We have the best legal system in the world that money can buy.