Let’s talk about the Judicial system…

Sure, the An for An Eye system is barbaric and has been eradicated for a reason–cruel and unusual punishment as outlined in the Constitution. OK, I know, it’s horrific to allow a mob to enact justice against a perpetrator. Sure, violence begets violence. I get it. But, as a mother, I would want a to KNOW that the person who killed my child FELT the fear and the pain. I guess, to me at least, there are certain cases where an EYE for an EYE could be used… especially when a child is murdered. But, then you get into the legalities of… what if his mother killed him? His father? His mother’s boyfriend? His father’s girlfriend? One of his grandparents? Both? Another relative? A neighbor? A teacher? A babysitter or daycare provider? A friend? Another child? There are a lot of factors that makes the EFAE a difficult thing to enact. And, we all know how mob violence makes things worse… because it brings out the bad in people, who probably would not have behaved in that manner if the mob did not exist. You know, like a bad thing growing into a REALLY bad thing. I don’t expect the EFAE punishment to ever be brought back, but as a mother… I would want to PHYSICALLY destroy the person who hurt my loved one, but I don’t think I could live with myself if I did. It’s a catch 22 with horrific consequences.
Speaking of consequences. I have to comment on celebrities and the judicial system. I tried to withhold the urge to speak out, but…well, YOU KNOW ME. I can’t hold my tongue… not even with tongs.

I have an issue with how certain celebrities are being placated when they should be punished.

Like, Nicole Richie serving 82 minutes of a 4-day sentence (which, TECHNICALLY should have been MORE jail time since it wasn’t her first offense) or Paris Hilton serving less than her scheduled time. What about Lindsay Lohen serving a DAY?? She is a habitual offender!

What sort of message are we sending to the people other than IF you’re famous and wealthy that you probably will not serve more than an hour… of a 1 year sentence.

But, then again, you have murderers (oh, excuse me, ACCUSED and SUSPECTED but not FOUND GUILTY of murder) such as Robert Blake and OJ Simpson… and currently Phil Specter (the nutjob who is accused of fatally shooting an actress in his house).

(sorry, my parents called in the middle of my entry and had me look up tickets for AZ… by the way, Lei, we’ll be visiting again in December. *grins*)

OKAY THEN…

I remember sitting on the couch in my first apartment, holding my newborn son (#2) as I watched the white Bronco slowly driving on the freeway, attracting more attention than Brittney swimming in her undies. I stared at the television, trying to will it to stop… or give it a flat tire, or something… because it was TOO odd that a man, known for leaping over luggage in Hertz commercials (I was a little kid when he played FB, by the way) would kill his wife. WHY would he do THAT for??

I sat through (sometimes reluctantly) weeks of court proceedings. After all of that, OJ was declared INNOCENT (though, HOW innocent he is is up for much debate).

A few years later, we went through the same thing with Robert Blake. And, yet again, our televisions poisoned our minds with court mockeries and in the end, he was also found innocent.

Several years later, we are overwhelmed with headlines and newscasts describing our starlets and their brushes with the law. What I don’t understand is why people aren’t ANGRIER that these young ladies do things that we know that ordinary people can’t do without suffering repercussions that sometimes seems extensive.

LIKE…

I was driving to school one day when I was an undergrad. I was COASTING down the hill leading to the campus area. I didn’t realize the speed limit was 35 mph. I KNOW that I was doing 41. The police officer who pulled me over 8 blocks later (I waited for him and when he approached my car, he yelled at me for trying to get away. I was sitting in the driver’s seat with my license, reg, and insurance card in had and my car was turned OFF. I ended up with 4 pts and $95 ticket. I had no prior tickets, no warrants for my arrest, no previous points. I mentioned this to him, that I had a good driving record and would be more aware of the speed limit in that location. He took one look at my rear window, noticing my college sticker, and thrust the ticket in my face. I was moritified and a bit pissed off. I wasn’t some teenager racing around with other kids in my car. I was a mother of 2, going to class, and glided a little too quickly. And, not to mention, I knew he was going to pull me over and I waited for him. It took him 10 minutes to catch up to me. I figured that if I didn’t stop, that he would probably try to nail me with evading police. The police dept. in that town were not exactly student-friendly. I was just more money for their coffers. I reluctantly paid the ticket because my advisor and professor (history and poli sci) suggested I not fight it. It seemed, in their summation, that if a student fought a ticket, they ended up with MORE points and had to pay MORE money. They were, for all intents-and-purposes, trying to catch the town harassing students. I figured that this would be a prime opportunity to right the wrongs, but… it was not to be).

OR the time that my brother, who was 18 at the time, was test-driving a car that he was thinking about buying from a guy in our church. As soon as my brother pulled out of the driveway, the guy (who later was found guilty of raping a girl from our church) called the PoPo to report that his car was STOLEN. My brother had a hell of a time proving that he didn’t. He ended up getting a HUGE fine, points, and several other things… but no jail time… fortunately for him.

I don’t know any more. I get SO goddamn frustrated about things some times…