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On a cold, raining morning in St. Louis, MO - March 28, 2003 - in the cathedral-like Federal courtroom (certainly designed to inspire awe, fear and judgment), Judge Jean Hamilton read the inequitable pronouncement: Kirsten is to "serve" 74 months (six years, two months) in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons. Since there is no federal parole anymore, the best she might get is 15% off her sentence for "good time." After that, she will be on probation for five years. So that amounts to eleven years-plus of supervision.
The prison sentence could have been 60 months, had it not been for two misdemeanor charges she had from when she was age 19 and 20.
Did you know that misdemeanors can be used against you in the same manor as felonies? What, then, is the difference between a misdemeanor and felony? The Federal system can and will use everything it can, whether it be minor infractions or not, to put you in prison for a long time. We can see this injustice in the California (and other) legal system also, with the "three strikes and you're out" laws.
So, for the next eleven years-plus of her life, Kirsten will pay for selling $4000 worth of LSD in a sting operation. The drugs never got to the public. No one harmed, no children corrupted, no "evil" spread.
Just for comparison sake, do you know what sentence the "ringleader" got? Forty-two months. That's because he could give up the names of his associates. Snitching is the name of the game in the drug bust bargaining biz.
Lemme see: At the cost of incarceration of $25,000-plus per year, her error in judgment will cost the US taxpayers $150,000-plus. So, instead of using that money for programs to teach people how to find more socially acceptable employment, they get warehoused. Don't do anything useful for society like community service, just be warehoused for the next six years of your life. Yeah. Let's get the drug dealers off the streets and into some productive enterprise! Like wasting the taxpayers money.
As her husband proclaimed exiting the courtroom, "Shame on you!" And as a taxpayer (at a 50% rate), I say "Shame on US!" That can be read "US" as in us taxpayers, and "US" as in U.S. Take your pick.
Seems to me that we need to stop paying for the government's wars. This particular war has gone on way too long, and until the public understands how it's affecting them in their pocketbook, nothing will be done to change this system. It's barbarian at best - just plain stupid at worst. And remember Einstein's definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result.
As a final statement, I want to say I'm very proud of my daughter. Am I proud of her choices ten years ago? No. But I'm extremely proud of the person she's become. I know she'll survive this ordeal, but I really question whether the Ideals of the United States of America will survive. When the government sees people as possessions instead of resources, it's only a matter of time before the fabric of it's soul begins to degenerate. I believe we're watching that happen right now.
As I said on the previous page, God save us all!
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