Should a person's contribution to the society play a role in sentencing?

[Martinus]

So, the Polanski thread inspired me to start this one - now, as a caveat, I don't think statutory rape is a case where this question would apply, but are you, at least in principle, willing to concede that there are certain crimes for which someone who has been contributing a lot to the society should receive a lighter penalty than your average Joe?

I think the best example would be victimless crimes. These crimes are penalized not because they cause harm to some victim (in which case there would be an element of justice and retribution that we couldn't just ignore) but because whoever makes the law decides they are harmful to the society. However, obviously, by removing a person committing such a crime from the society (via an imprisonment, a disgrace of criminal sentence or, in the most extreme case, death penalty) we may be depriving the society of contributions such person could have otherwise made, and as a result causing more harm to the society than if we let the person go.

Examples of this would be Wilde or Turing - in this day and age, replace sodomy with, say, drug possession.

[garbon]

I never thought you'd be defending Grallonesque sexual practices.

[Martinus]

I never thought you'd be defending Grallonesque sexual practices.

Thanks for a nice troll.

[garbon]

The truth will set you free.

[The Brain]

Prolific? What about prochoicic?

[Martinus]

Prolific? What about prochoicic?

What are you talking about?

[The Brain]

Prolific? What about prochoicic?

What are you talking about?

Do you deny having used that word?

[Tonitrus]

No.

[Weatherman]

No.

[Martinus]

Prolific? What about prochoicic?

What are you talking about?

Do you deny having used that word?

I refuse to comment.

[The Brain]

On topic: seems to me that the problem that different sentencing would solve is much better solved by informal means. There's a bunch of ways to keep key personnel producing.

[HVC]

The problem with that is who decides what value someone gives to society? Is a celebrity worth more the an unknown, but important scientist? then you get into fun stuff like a rich person providers more to society then a poor person and all that jazz. So no, i don't think what a person has or can provide to society whould effect their sentence.

[Martinus]

To TheBrain and HVC - all points conceded. However I didn't say that this would need to be specifically some official and procedural/legal system - this could very well be implemented informally, e.g. by judges simply taking this into account - as many of them do.

My question is less of a structural/organisational nature, and more about morality/fairness - I mean if a judge would, say, fined a genius scientist (or dropped charges altogether) for a crime that a hobo would be sent to prison for, many people would probably voice their opposition.

[The Brain]

My question is less of a structural/organisational nature, and more about morality/fairness

You lost me.

[alfred russel]

Yes, and it should be quantified. For every movie a guy makes that I really like, he should be able to get away with one felony.