DUI driver sentenced for killing cyclist (LA)

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Gort 12-mile Pinklegneep on April 23, 2014 at 2:32am

three years, eight months in prison 

well at least it's acknowledging that it's somewhat illegal to do this 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by ad on April 23, 2014 at 8:51am

As the reporter notes at the end of the video, a person convicted of vehicular manslaughter resulting from a DUI generally faces a sentence of 2 to 4 years per the CA penal code--so she actually got pretty close to the maximum sentence she could get in light of the charge.  

This type of sentence shows why pushing legislatures across the country to increase the maximum penalties allowed in relation to DUI deaths is so important.      

Peenworm "8 mile" Grubologist said:

three years, eight months in prison 

well at least it's acknowledging that it's somewhat illegal to do this 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by dan brown on April 23, 2014 at 10:30am

these issues  are the subject of a wide range of opinion(s).

Not to start any kind of controversy or anything like that (Who Me?) but I am

really against the system of Incarceration in the country. For many reasons.

I believe (IMHO) that retribution (when appropriate; in this case it cannot apply)

or lots and lots of community service are more appropriate. Just my $.02.

Please do not flame me. This country spends WAY too much $$$ on the prison

"Industry" (one of the fastest growing "Industries" in the USA) to often turn criminals

into harder/better/smarter/etc. criminals. I am old school : I like the idea of sending them

to a remote island with a pack of corn seeds and told 'good luck' : learn to get along with

thy neighbor. When I saw the movie "The Smartest Guys in the Room" (about Enron) and

Kenneth Lay was sent to jail; I thought : what a waste of my hard earned tax dollar$.

Why not have him teach economics (under supervision of course) to disadvantaged people

or community college students ?  for 10,000+ hours ? Oh well. I am done ranting. Flame away

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Crazy David 84 Furlongs on April 23, 2014 at 10:45am

Prison is the "quick" solution to the problem.  And like most "quick" solutions, it does not work.   Its essentially warehousing people that we don't want to take the time to "try to "Fix".   I recall the Eddie Murphy character in Trading Places say that the way to hurt a rich person is to take away their money.   Ken Lay didn't need to go to jail, he needed to be assigned to live, without a car, for 5 years in say Austin or Englewood with the income of a first year Chicago School teacher (for all five years) and assigned to teach in those schools.  As noted by Gilbert and Sullivan, we should "Let the Punishment Fit the Crime".   Now violent criminals, that's a slightly different situation. 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by ad on April 23, 2014 at 12:01pm

I'd be inclined to agree with an over-aggressive system of incarceration for largely victimless crimes such as drug use/possession, but this isn't a victimless crime.  

This IS a violent crime.  A woman got into a vehicle under circumstances where she knew or should have know she shouldn't drive, and she killed a person.  While rehabilitation should certainly be a goal, and I would agree a person should be entitled to move forward with their life after they have served their time, actual incarceration as a form of punishment is justifiable on grounds outside of future deterrence when such incarceration is actually designed to fit the crime committed.  It is also something the family of the victim in this situation certainly think the offender deserves in light of the harm she caused through her actions.       

Crazy David 84 Furlongs said:

Prison is the "quick" solution to the problem.  And like most "quick" solutions, it does not work.   Its essentially warehousing people that we don't want to take the time to "try to "Fix".   I recall the Eddie Murphy character in Trading Places say that the way to hurt a rich person is to take away their money.   Ken Lay didn't need to go to jail, he needed to be assigned to live, without a car, for 5 years in say Austin or Englewood with the income of a first year Chicago School teacher (for all five years) and assigned to teach in those schools.  As noted by Gilbert and Sullivan, we should "Let the Punishment Fit the Crime".   Now violent criminals, that's a slightly different situation. 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Juan 2-3 or more mi. on April 23, 2014 at 12:17pm

Capital punishment sounds like a better deterrent, besides it could help curb the ever growing population of car driving sheeple.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by ad on April 23, 2014 at 3:19pm

It appears that she was appropriately charged with the highest level offense possible, but then allowed to down-plead by the prosecutors to a charge that resulted in the 3.8 years, which is somewhat interesting considering the facts were obviously egregious enough to draw some harsh comments from the Judge to the offender in accepting the plea.  

Even the streetsblog article is a bit unclear, but they must have initially charged her with something related to gross negligence (makes sense), which appears to carry a much higher penalty range in CA than standard hit & run and/or DUI-related vol. manslaughter.  

That said, it is a pretty common tactic for prosecutors to charge the highest level offense possible (even if it will be a stretch on the facts to prove) to force this exact type of plea to the lesser charge vs. having to go through the time/expense of a trial.  

That's why I think the court advocates that go in on cases here are doing such an invaluable service.  It keeps the court and the prosecutor from losing sight at the outrage society feels when this type of crime is committed, and helps keep the prosecutors in the mind set to push for a strong remedy--which is not to say that plea deals never make sense in a case.  

AM 9.5 said:

Streetsblog reported what I think gets to the heart of this story:  was the driver appropriately charged?

 

http://la.streetsblog.org/2014/04/22/judge-to-hit-and-run-perpetrat...

• ▶ Reply