worldof20something

It’s the latest story on the news.  NFL football star Plaxico Burress accidentally shot himself in the foot at a club and now faces 3-15 years in the slammer for having a weapon in public.

 Three to fifteen years in jail.  Think about it.  That’s a long time, a really long time!  Even “just” the minimum of three years is a really long time.

And for what?

As far as anyone knows, Plaxico did not intend to harm anyone.  The gun wasn’t out and it wasn’t pointed at anyone.  But even though there was a lack of criminal intent, Plaxico still faces three or more years in prison.

 Doesn’t this make you think?  What is the point of sending people to jail?  I thought it was to protect society from dangerous people.  Is Plaxico dangerous?  Besides to his own foot, I’d have to say no.  But they still have to lock him away for three years or more???

Now I must tell you, I don’t approve of people bringing loaded guns with them to public places.  And Plaxico probably should have used his better judgment on this one.  But punishing him with three years of jail time just seems… unnecessary.

I thought in America you’re supposed to be considered innocent until proven guilty.  Well it seems like they’re jumping the gun with Plaxico.  Putting someone in jail for having a gun definitely sounds to me like considering them guilty before innocent.

You may just think I am biased and do not want Plaxico to go to jail.  While it is true that I don’t want Plaxico to go to jail, I also want this to apply to other people who are being locked up for dumb reasons.  It just took the publicity of NFL star Plaxico Burress to let me see what is going on in this country’s whack criminal justice system.

In European countries like England, they try to punish more crimes with fines rather than jail time, reserving jail sentences for dangerous criminals.  They even adjust the fines so that they are proportional to the crime committed and the offender’s income.  A fine seems like a much better way to punish someone who didn’t cause harm to anyone than jail time.