what do you think
um i don't know uh regarding um should the judge do the sentencing or not i think the judge should have some in influence but i don't think the judge should i think that's too much
power in the control of one person
i agree i really agree with that
it uh it just doesn't seem to make sense that if the trial is by a jury of your peers that the sentencing should be somewhat along that i you know i guess the judge should give the parameters
right
right right
and then the jury should work kind of within there and if they feel exceptional one way or the other do you know what i mean
right right yes i do i i have been thinking about this you're about the tenth person they tried to call for this so i've had lots of time to think but yes i do because um
oh is that right
otherwise why have a jury that's the point right yeah
right
it seems to granted you're found guilty or innocent by a a group of peers of your peers but then the punishment you know can be very very severe depending on the the judge's personal uh predilection to that
right right i think that you get a much fairer deal with a jury than you do with a judge and that's that's been my experience and and i really think that i think that judges are very prejudice
right
yeah
i i would i
to just their own idea and they wanna get it over with
right i mean they're human they're gonna have their their pet peeves and they're gonna have the things that they really care about or don't care about
uh-huh
right
um so let a group of people have you know try to try to make make you know use that uh make that decision
yeah i would feel much more confident if that were me so
unfortunately though it does string out the uh process but you know
well it does but i think it's because people are trying to be conscientious where a judge it's their job and
you they just wanna speed it along and get it done and i don't think they stop and think about that individual as much as a group of people would
yeah
right see i i also think there's a problem with the plea bargaining system in our in our country in that you can uh plead to even though you're guilty as sin
yeah
yes yes
yes
excuse me you plead to a lesser crime
yes yes
i think that that in of itself is a sin
i think that we're having a lot of problems um
with just everything and the whole the whole system is bugging me it really is our jails are over crowded with people like Leona Helmsley who's seventy two years old and with a blank check in front of her
yeah
yeah
i don't think should go to jail i think the punishment should fit the crime i think that the jail should be filled with real criminals that are dangerous and i don't think they should get out on parole in three years
right
i think they should stay there they did it they stay
yeah i well i
and people with traffic tickets and that there's another way to handle that i think
yeah
um although i'll tell you the there is something about that woman uh her crime was is what they quote call a white collar crime as opposed to a blue collar crime such as crime stealing
so
uh well but she stole
well yes but if you look at it in relation to the amount i mean it's one million dollars which to you and i sound exorbitant
it's a lot of money
but compared to the six hundred million that they paid in five years that's like one dollar when we owe six hundred
that they the six the six hundred million that they what now
so
they paid taxes six hundred million in taxes over that five year period
oh i see what you're saying
yeah so if you look at it they don't say that very much in the newspaper
yeah
well no but they also diverted uh millions uh to their own personal assets that were hotel monies
well possibly you know i don't know but if they're willing to correct it
i i don't i don't see that she belongs in jail the same as somebody who goes out and kills and walks away i mean i there are worse things that people are getting off with you know that kind of thing
oh
see yeah yeah i have to i agree with that there are worse things that people have been getting off with but i don't think that that we then should have Leona get off i think that they should be hit even harder see i'm an advocate of the death penalty myself
yeah
now i don't know of a lot of people that are well there are and there aren't and i just happen to feel that if somebody does the crime
well
yeah
i mean if they murder somebody they take someone's life
get them out of society
i just don't feel like i have to pay my tax dollars to have them in jail i yeah i just it's a tough line
yeah
i know i agree with you agree and
but i don't think the way we're executing the the capital punishment is is a deterrent although i think capital punishment is a deterrent
i do too
if it's done right and that means that this is the way it is no ifs no ands no buts a certain
yeah
it has to be a consistent thing
right a certain number of appeals and then that's it don't stretch it out for years get it over with and get it done
yeah
um-hum
