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Comment by akira2501 | Hacker News Reader

> But, I'm not about to toss out the legal system because a criminal had a shitty time in court. Fuck this guy.

I don't think anyone is suggesting anything other than reform of how we prosecute laws in this country, there is an obvious imbalance at play here and cases like this highlight the problem.

Second.. sure, fuck that guy; but what about his family? His children? The community? Just because you put one person in jail does not mean that suffering and loss ends there.

What is the function of the justice system? To fulfill our base needs for revenge? Or is it a tool to improve society? If it's the latter, then "fuck that guy" is not a useful response.

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Oh, the children! What about the children?

What does it matter? He robbed a bank! Someone died! He chose to break his contract with society. If I did that, I would expect zero considerations be made for my two kids. It is my responsibility to never put them in such a position.

The children who are going to grow up without a father, yea, I'm thinking about them.

Who's going to raise them? A single mother, if they're lucky. Think she's going to have an easy time re-marrying with an ex-con husband? How about getting a good job in the era of background checks? Think she was highly educated to begin with?

Taxpayers at large are going to foot most of bill for this domestic disaster. Further, these children are now more likely to end up in jail themselves. Now society gets to pay another $30,000 a year per child to house, feed and care for another inmate.

This isn't strictly touchy-feely stuff here, there's a hard cost to society when you jail people without any thoughts towards true justice. It's stupid, ineffective and perverse.

You are criticizing a negative feedback loop while simultaneously endorsing policies that would create equally detrimental feedback loops.

What is true justice?

Whatever justice is, it cannot be the vengeful, racist, wealth-centered system we have now. Nor can it possibly be found in the the mind of anyone prone to uttering the phrase "fuck this guy".

Whatever justice is, it cannot be forfeiting our own empathy and humanity.

I agree with you to an extent. Where was the robber's empathy and humanity when he decided to commit a violent crime?

I'm sticking with "fuck this guy".

If you really want to bear a cross, I can think of a few better candidates for your poster boy of injustice.

> Where was the robber's empathy and humanity when he decided to commit a violent crime?

Where was ours when we drove him to that crime?

> I can think of a few better candidates for your poster boy of injustice.

Unlike some people, I don't feel it is morally appropriate to pick and choose who gets justice.

I am responsible for my actions. I own my mistakes rather than blame society. Lots of people come from nothing and don't resort to crime. Your view is one of the worst types of liberal elitism and I honestly am repulsed by it.

Your view is one of the worst types of conservative inhumanity and I honestly am repulsed by it.

Where is the empathy of a well off white boy who runs over people with his car while drunk and gets away with merely a scolding - beceause his parents are rich and connected enough to get him a good lawyer.

One straw man argument after another... We're talking about a bank robber. We're talking about crimes committed during the robbery (preventing his accomplice from getting medical care, which resulted in his accomplice's death) being added to his list charges.

And I don't disagree with you! I hate injustice like you're referring to as well. But injustice is not some exchangeable capital. We can't correct one by neglecting to punish another.

Having a man locked up for 100 years for robbing two stores without actually hurting anyone is hardly justice. And the case of the bank robber is also hardly justice.

And it seems that this type of systemic overcompensation is exactly what is going on in your justice system.

I wish that persecutors would use same zeal to persecute all the crimes. Including police crime and white collar crime. Then, perhaps it would dawn on you that such random and strict distribution of justice is no justice at all.

I think you've confused this thread with the OP's article. My comment was in reference to a bank robber who was charged with the murder and kidnapping of his accomplice when he ran away from police with his friend (who was shot). His friend died and he was charged with robbery (the original crime) as well as the subsequent crimes, as is policy in American juris prudence.

This might get 14 to 20 years in India even if we consider him as murderer. I am not sure what makes people think that lifetime prison helping. Atleast in India i would expect the guy to comeback after 14 years as clean person most probably more useful to society if he had taken the punishement seriously. What is the use of putting some one for the rest of the life in jail? if the jail was not for correction but to revenge then you may execute him right away and may be save prison cost.

Yea, but it's not really about pity for "the poor children." It's about making sure those children do not grow up to commit more crimes against you or me. It's selfish preservation on our part.

Suppose he didn't go to prison for kidnapping and murder. He's still going to prison for bank robbery and those imaginary kids are going to grow up without a daddy regardless.

Your argument is moot.

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