The American justice system is progressively getting worse by the minute. Recently a wealthy 16 year Ft. Worth boy was sentenced to probation after he killed 4 people while driving drunk. His lawyers defended him by saying he didn't know right from wrong because of his upbringing. Is anyone responsible for their actions anymore?
Remember it is the BEST defense that MONEY can buy. If one is rich, affluent, and has money, he/she can pay for the best attorney who will DO ANYTHING to see that their client receives the lightest sentence possible. Again, it is back to the societal pecking order. Those at the top of the societal pecking order (the rich, influential, and powerful) are highly revered and respected. They are the rule makers, deal makers/breakers, and the shot callers. They have the POWER. It is THEIR game and they can play it ANYWAY they want. Money always TALKS. He/she who has the money, has the GOODS and INFLUENCE.
gmwilliams--I like that! Call it INFLUENCE-A.
Remember the Twinkie defense? Remember the woman who sued McD's because her hot coffee burned her? And what about all the physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially poor? They have lots of defenders/explainers/excusers. And now the wealthy....
Pretty soon it will be only the mid-income, health-conscious, and literate folks who won't have a rat's chance in a U.S. courtroom.
As for this particular case, if the boy was indeed abused (though "counterintuitively") by his grossly underqualified and negligent parents, the parents will have to suffer (let's hope they still have that capability) the public humiliation of wasting their own and their child's lives. Nevertheless, the boy was 16. Where I come from, we believe that a child can know right from wrong at about age 7-8. Unless his school, church (probably didn't attend any), friends, society around him, and all the drunk-driving ads were as totally dumb and ineffective as his parents, he should have known better. Ignorance (even if inherited) is no defense.
I think the person/persons who are paying for his defense should go to jail in his place.
In before retief2000 claims that the rich are simply more moral and thus deserve less jail time than us sinful poor people.
It seems the judges have now become the lunatics that run the asylum.
It is a truly sad state of affairs. I don't care how much money you have or don't have, being responsible for the death of another human being should never be dismissed for any reason, money or otherwise. How sad for the families of those youngsters who were killed.
Or since he's a minor & his parents didn't teach him right from wrong, put them in jail.
Or since he's still a minor & his parents apparently never taught him right from wrong, put the parents in jail.
So much for Texas being tough on crime unless you're a rich, white guy. Oh wait! They have money! Big payday for the victims families and the injured! The lawyers would be coming out of the woodwork to get the lawsuit machine rolling!
Maybe there can be civil suits brought against the parents by the victims' families?
by Sooner28 11 years ago
I'm going to try and sum up the defense's argument, step by step. I'm doing this more to expand discussion, and if there is a more plausible interpretation of the defense's argument, I'd be open to changing my interpretation.So, the conclusion for the defense is: Ethan Couch is not...
by Kaitlyn Brower 9 years ago
Ethan Couch was sentenced to 10 years probation and treatment after drinking and causing an accident that killed four people. His lawyers said Couch suffered from "affluenza," a condition that resulted from having grown up with rich parents and not ever having had limits set for...
by ahorseback 12 years ago
Doesn't all the blame begin .......and end at home ?We like to throw daggers in our new American culture ,daggers of the blame game , We blame guns , we blame the media , we blame congress and we blame the president ! Pick an issue any issue and look to all the ...
by richtwf 14 years ago
Do you think parenting is becoming increasingly more difficult than it used to be?
by capricornrising 9 years ago
How did your parents discipline you as a child?
by Stacie N Singleton 5 years ago
I feel that some women are just scorned lovers who are out 4 revenge.
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