Sunday, August 17, 2014

No leniency for white collar offenders!

A number of people are calling for more lenient sentences for white-collar offenders after penalties for non-violent drug-offenders were eased.  Irrespective of the merits of that move, white-collar offenders are currently under-prosecuted and under-punished.  Unlike most drug offenders,   they often have the best defense attorneys money can buy and resources for investigation.  They can use this to squeeze sweet-heat deals out of many prosecutors. There is nothing wrong with defendants doing this, but we need more deterrence of white-collar, banking and Wall Street crime, not less.  Finally most white-collar offenders serve their time in "country-club" and minimum security prisons.  Most drug offenders are not given that advantage.  That policy makes sense in some cases, but weakens the deterrent effect on white-collar offenders.

1 comment:

  1. White-collar criminals damage society far more than drug offenders. Anyone who violates a trust or fiduciary duty for personal gain deserves to serve hard time. The zero tolerance I have for rapist and murderers extends to liars, cheats and thieves.

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