>>>>>On the other hand, she was given a sentence which was then abrogated by a guy who wanted to make points with the rich and famous. Had it been either one of us who was given the sentence she got, what are the chances we'd have been sent home after only a couple of days?
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>>>>>Whether or not the sentence was unfair in the first place, I think the judge was entirely justified in being enraged at what happened.
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>>>>>Lots of people get unfair sentences. Some on the short side, some on the long side, but nobody I've ever heard of gets to go home after a couple of days because they're bored.
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>>>>I can't deny that. In Tennessee, the prosecutor can decide not to prosecute and the perp goes out the door. once the person is indicted, the judge can throw the case out, so there's another exit point. The jury can find a person guilty, and then the judge can overturn it and throw it out, which is another exit point. Then after a person is sentenced to prison, the state gets control of the person. The judge loses all jurisdiction. A person who gets an 8 year sentence here will typically do 1/3 of 1/3 of the time, and the state can decide the prisons are too full and just turn them out, whenever they want. I think why a person is sentenced to 8 years, they should emerge from the labor camp 8 years and 1 day later. But, I'm just a flaming liberal, so what do I know.<g>
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>>>I agree that a sentence should be a sentence. Even as a liberal, I hate the idea of a life sentence meaning 10 years (unless the perp dies 10 years after sentencing). It'a an absolute joke. Just recently here in Toronto, 2 young men were racing in the city at speeds of around 140kph (in a zone signed for 50). They killed a cab driver. They pretty much walked.
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>>And what's worse, when they get out after doing murder and then get a high-profile acting job, adored by millions, like one of the main actors in a UK soap used to be. He murdered a taxi-driver yet next he got top-billed TV shows and was feted on chat shows.
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>>Some people would say "Ah, but he's paid his debt to society" but, as we can see, got it at discount.
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>How on earth can one pay a debt that entailed someone dying? Afaic, the only way that debt can be repayed is by reincarnating the dead person, and the killer should stay locked up until that day.

No argument from me!