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Everyone rich enough should be able to murder one person without jail time? Is that a world you want to live in?

You should decide on compensation or jail time in a will, not your family or government.

I believe there is a difference between murder and manslaughter without intent. Negligence crime can possibly be compensated. Intentional murder should never have that option.

> The victim's family successfully argued against jail time so the doctor could continue practicing and have the money to pay a settlement.

How did this work? This seems to be a criminal case and the state is the one which brings charges so you can not settle. Also, IIRC - there are fixed punishments once you are found guilty in the US.

I wonder if part of the deal was house-arrest for the surgeon. Lots of (usually lesser) crimes these days are being punished with house arrest to save money because prisons are so expensive (and also do absolutely nothing to rehabilitate people, in fact quite the opposite). Forcing the surgeon to have house arrest (which includes being able to go to work, but not much else), and still go to work to pay for a big-ass settlement, is still punishment.