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No, lock him up.
I'm all for mercy & lienency for first time offenders for most things, and we need more mercy in the criminal justice system for all. However, an insurrection just feels like of those things you have to fully punish.
Rising Star
No. Not conflicted at all. Do you know how many black and brown CHILDREN are in jail because the legal system does not view them as human, throws the full book of the law at them, all the time for far less. It’s the same with the drug epidemic... crack, throw them in jail they are criminals, opioids... it’s a health crisis get help. White criminals are treated with compassion, excuses are made. I am not conflicted. He assaulted an officer, at least he is still alive. Just ask George Floyd.
Chief
He is accused of assaulting a cop. Do you think if he were black he’d be getting international press about potentially being released after being accused of assaulting a cop? Hell no. Pretty clear he’s in the bargaining stage of grief, he certainly hasn’t accepted responsibility for his actions.
They should charge his parents too.
Enthusiast
Hope he rots in jail and a big, angry lifer takes him as his wife
No.
No, I am not conflicted.
OP, if we pardon all the petty drug offenders and pay some restitution, then I can get behind convicting this guy and giving him a suspended sentence.
Deal?
Young men who assaulted federal officers, and they didn’t get to go home to mommy after getting their asses kicked in a lockup. I mostly come out wanting him to serve a very long sentence but that feels immoral on these facts.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9333885/Capitol-rioter-18-begs-released-parents.html
Rising Star
Not conflicted at all. He should be in a cell.
Rising Star
This is precisely how bias and privilege works. White 18 years old = momma’s boy.
Black 18 years old = man.
These are the same people who violently object to giving education loan relief on the basis that as teenagers, they were accountable for the choices they made and debts they incurred. I see no difference here.
This problem doesn’t get better by letting people walk away with no accountability for their actions.
So one of my earlier points is the disparate treatment of black and brown people. I’ve seen the issue from all sides. I have represented black and brown people serving time for assaulting officers. I also caught a break because of who I am. As a 19 year old, white, college student I was involved in certain commercial activities for which lots of young black and brown people are serving long sentences. I wasn’t arrested. Instead I was called to a dean’s office to meet with a couple of police detectives. They had photos and knew exactly what I was doing. They told me to stop that day, and that if I didn’t the would bury me. I stopped. I later graduated from college and law school. I’m a law abiding citizen who das done a lot of good, including raising two young adults who are also rule followers. Had I been black or brown and not in college, I would have spent my 20’s in prison - maybe more.
What I hoped to spur here was a broader discussion of how we treat offenders, how we use prisons generally, and when it makes practical and moral sense to effectively destroy the life of a dumb kid with a partially formed brain. Some cases are — for me at least — pretty easy. The Affluenza kid killed four people. Brock Turner sexually assaulted an incapacitated person. In those cases I see privilege as an aggravating circumstance and would have sentenced them harshly.
The Capitol rioter is, at least to me, an interesting study. Living at home. Not particularly privileged as far as I can tell. Lots of bad social media rants. Fringe role in a notorious crime. No prior criminal history. Clearly extremely immature and dumb. Got way over his head. Pretend for a second that we had a just system. What would a just system do to this young man?
Rising Star
Thanks!