Sentencing Disconnect

I know that the sentencing of Bernie Madoff was largely symbolic as is the expected sentence for William Jefferson; however I believe that it is indicative of a complete lack of perspective in our criminal justice system, particularly when it comes to sentencing financial crimes and violent crimes. There seems to be some sort of disconnect between what is required and common sense.

Shouldn't such a sentence be reserved for the most heinous of crimes? Madoff bilked a lot of people out of billions of dollars. As terrible as that is, in the grand scheme of things, it's insignificant in contrast to rape, murder, child abuse, animal abuse, etc. Madoff and Jefferson violated the trust put in them by their investors and constituents. To my knowledge, they did not rape or murder anyone. I can sympathize with the dismay associated with losing all of your money. But that cannot compare to the agony and permanent scarring felt by the victims of a violent crime. Violent crime affects the victim, their family, the perpetrator's family, and the community. In a murder, of course, the victim's family is left to deal with the loss of a loved one. They also have to deal with the guilty feeling of not doing enough to protect the victim. The murderer's family is left to deal with their own guilt. And the community is left to deal with the financial implications of prosecuting and incarcerating the murderer.

The Associated Press reported today on the case of 27 year-old Harry Klages II, already in jail while awaiting trail for attempted murder, who pleaded guilty to the 2008 assault of Andrew Lesperance. Klages "mutilated Lesperance's eyes, genitals, and sliced open his abdomen." He claimed that it was retaliation for "sexual misconduct" on the part of Lesperance. Lesperance has undergone several surgeries to repair the damage and is in the process of relearning how to perform simple tasks we take for granted. Anyone care to learn how to use a knife and fork again? Lesperance has also been left blind in one eye. Klages has been sentenced to 38 years in prison for this assault. Here's the shocking part, at the time of the assault, Klages was on probation for stabbing a man at a bar and for attacking a man with a hammer (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090810/ap_on_re_us/us_mutilation_attack). Why wasn't he already in jail? If you stab someone and attack another with a hammer you are a danger to society.

Let me give you one more example, on Friday the 3^rd District Court in Salt Lake City sentenced a 17 year-old mother to 15 years to life for snapping her 2 year-old son's spine (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,538484,00.html?sPage=fnc/us/crime). 15 years to life, which means that depending on her behavior in prison she could be out before she is 30. This person was convicted of first degree murder, also known as premeditated murder, and she has the potential to live a full life after she serves her sentence even though she denied her own son the chance to live a full life. She will be young enough to have another child even. What are the chances she will repeat her own history?

Bernie Madoff will most likely die in jail for stealing billions of dollars, but Klages and the 17 year old mother will still have a chance at freedom despite the fact that they truly destroyed people's lives. Where is the sense in that? What purpose does it serve to sentence a thief to 150 years? Is he supposed to be an example to other white collar criminals? What sort of example do the other sentences set?

To be fair there are plenty of times when the punishment does fit the crime, but where is the consistency? If we really want to do something about crime in this country, we need to make sure that the punishment does fit the crime. I know there are a lot of people who believe that we need to take a rehabilitative approach rather than a punitive approach to crime. I can see that for minor crimes; petty theft, burglary, or drug possession, but there is no rehabilitating someone who would mutilate another's genitals or snap their own child's spine.