First time offender sold pain killers to friend, faces 25 years in jail

[Ideologue]

46 years old.  It's a death sentence.

Why not, while on bail, or while dragooned as a drug warrior yourself, try to kill the cop who set you up, or, well, any cop?  Indeed, why not try to kill anyone and everyone you see before they take you down?  Even assuming rational actors, what is the deterrence value here?

I bet derspeiss would go out killing.

[11B4V]

Boo hoo. Whiny crybaby knows it is verboten. Rot in jail hippie.

+1 Got what he deserved.

Are you being serious or trolling?

Trolling. Why didnt he just give his friend the pills. I mean..come on dude.

[garbon]

46 years old.  It's a death sentence.

Why not, while on bail, or while dragooned as a drug warrior yourself, try to kill the cop who set you up, or, well, any cop?  Indeed, why not try to kill anyone and everyone you see before they take you down?  Even assuming rational actors, what is the deterrence value here?

I bet derspeiss would go out killing.

I think I have to agree with Ide.

Also, I'm glad I never sell pills that I have.

[DGuller]

Trolling. Why didnt he just give his friend the pills. I mean..come on dude.

It wouldn't surprise me if the "friend" insisted on paying.  Wouldn't be the first such story I heard.  It seems like when it comes to stings, there is no such thing as entrapment.

Anyway, ignoring all that, let's assume the guy completely willfully decided to sell some pills.  Should there not be some sense of proportionality in the punishment?  Just because you know you're committing a crime doesn't mean that you lose the protection against cruel and unusual punishment.  That's the part that seems to be lost on many people here:  even the scumbags deserve justice.

[Neil]

46 years old.  It's a death sentence.

Why not, while on bail, or while dragooned as a drug warrior yourself, try to kill the cop who set you up, or, well, any cop?  Indeed, why not try to kill anyone and everyone you see before they take you down?  Even assuming rational actors, what is the deterrence value here?

I bet derspeiss would go out killing.

Presumably he'll be paroled after a decade or so, at which point he'll have hopefully picked up some tips on how to commit violent crime.  Violent crime and incarceration is probably his best retirement option, given that he'll be starting his life from scratch in his late fifties.

[Razgovory]

I hope this means that Ide and garbon don 't go out on a killing rampage.

[garbon]

Trolling. Why didnt he just give his friend the pills. I mean..come on dude.

It wouldn't surprise me if the "friend" insisted on paying.  Wouldn't be the first such story I heard.  It seems like when it comes to stings, there is no such thing as entrapment.

Anyway, ignoring all that, let's assume the guy completely willfully decided to sell some pills.  Should there not be some sense of proportionality in the punishment?  Just because you know you're committing a crime doesn't mean that you lose the protection against cruel and unusual punishment.  That's the part that seems to be lost on many people here:  even the scumbags deserve justice.

to all of that.

[CountDeMoney]

What cases like that highlight is that America hasn't been enlightened yet when it comes to judicial system.

No, what this case highlights is what happens when you remove the independence of the judiciary from criminal law and place it in the hands of the legislature.

[Neil]

Well, what do you expect when lawyers have made themselves a law unto themselves and set up a ridiculous system?  People are disenfranchised and so they vote for stupid men who offer stupid solutions, like the mandatory minimum.  Nobody trusts a judge, so it seems like a good idea to remove as much discretion from them as possible.

[CountDeMoney]

Presumably he'll be paroled after a decade or so, at which point he'll have hopefully picked up some tips on how to commit violent crime.

These mandatory minimum sentence structures in Florida follow the same track as life sentences:  you do not gain time for good behavior, or qualify for parole.  It's a mandatory sentencing structure.  25 years = 25 years.

[Ed Anger]

Boo hoo. Whiny crybaby knows it is verboten. Rot in jail hippie.

I only wish it would just be nutcases like you who would bear the fiscal burden for this garbage.  Ah well.

Your butthurt...delicious.

[crazy canuck]

Well, what do you expect when lawyers have made themselves a law unto themselves and set up a ridiculous system?  People are disenfranchised and so they vote for stupid men who offer stupid solutions, like the mandatory minimum.  Nobody trusts a judge, so it seems like a good idea to remove as much discretion from them as possible.

The other way around.  What do you expect when a bunch of legislators without a proper appreciation for the law take away the discretion of legally trained people to deal with cases appropriately?

[CountDeMoney]

The other way around.  What do you expect when a bunch of legislators without a proper appreciation for the law take away the discretion of legally trained people to deal with cases appropriately?

I dunno, man...by asking the defendant to snitch out 5 other defendants, sounds to me like the State's Attorney can't tell the difference between an Oxy overlord kingpin and an old man selling some surplus out of his Rx.  Doesn't strike me as someone legally trained to deal with cases appropriately.

[Neil]

Well, what do you expect when lawyers have made themselves a law unto themselves and set up a ridiculous system?  People are disenfranchised and so they vote for stupid men who offer stupid solutions, like the mandatory minimum.  Nobody trusts a judge, so it seems like a good idea to remove as much discretion from them as possible.

The other way around.  What do you expect when a bunch of legislators without a proper appreciation for the law take away the discretion of legally trained people to deal with cases appropriately?

That might work if all the legislators weren't filthy fucking lawyers.

[The Minsky Moment]

What cases like that highlight is that America hasn't been enlightened yet when it comes to judicial system.

No, what this case highlights is what happens when you remove the independence of the judiciary from criminal law and place it in the hands of the legislature.

Bingo.
Force the law into a state of ignorance about the facts, and idiotic results will follow.