Thursday, June 7, 2007
Paris Hilton - Released from jail 42 days early
Paris Hilton was realesed from jail after serving 3 days of her 45 day sentence. She was arrested for driving under the influence in September of 2006, at that time she was given three years probation and her license was suspended. In January she was pulled over and cited for driving on a suspended license. In February she was pulled over again because she was speeding at night without her headlights on and was again driving on a suspended license. This time her probation was revoked and she was sentenced to 45 days in jail as was outlined in her probation. She reported to jail Sunday June 3 after coming from the MTV Awards. She was released on June 6 and the reason is not entirely clear. I was watching larry King live where it was being discussed and debated and there were a couple of reasons given: overcrowded jails, health concerns, mental concerns. The reasons being mentioned most were medical and mental. It was being said that she was becoming depressed and that she refused to eat. Have you seen her lately? She looks like she hardly eats even when not in jail. As for the depression, I think most people in jail are depressed. Jail is not meant to be a social party, it is meant to be a deterrent and serve as punishmnet in hopes of deterring future criminal activity. Then someone mentioned that she had committed a non-violent crime and had not hurt anyone - further stating that she should not have been in jail in the first place. Drunk driving is one of the leading killers in our nation. According to the website http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/drving.htm 16,885 people died in traffic accidents involving drunk drivers and this number represents 39% of all traffic accident related deaths. Driving your car into another car or into an innocent pedestrian is a violent and traumatic act. The purpose for laws is to prevent people from committing crimes against themselves or other people. Additionally, laws are designed to prevent accidents and fatalities. Although Paris did not kill anyone at the time she was pulled over and arrested, it was an accident waiting to happen. The only way some people learn is to have something traumatic happen to them. Serving time in jail is less traumatic than killing someone as a result of drinking and driving. I hope the judge orders her back to jail - I think 45 days is more than reasonable if it impacts future decisions and perhaps saves someone's life.
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3 comments:
I'm curious, Sharky: how common is this kind of quick release? Does it have to do with her money and notoriety, or does it have to do with jail overcrowding, or what might I be missing here?
That is the confusing part - today, on the Larry King Live show on CNN they were citing different reasons for her early release. I heard "early release", I heard "medical condition", I heard "concern for mental status", and I heard something to the effect of the Los Angeles County Sheriff was concerned over the attention her presence was causing - both inside and outside of the jail. Someone even said that it was a racial thing and used Al Sharpton's name - stating that he was looking into this as a form of racial favoritism. I also heard (I was not watching the show directly, I was studying for finals with the show on in the background as my girlfriend watched it) mention that there were several attorneys speaking of filing cases against Los Angeles County on behalf of their jailed clients who had similar circumstances and had to serve the full sentence. What is interesting is that after posting this in the blog I have seen headlines on MSN's homepage stating that the judge who sentenced her to the 45 days ordered her to appear in court tomorrow and had stated that he wanted her to serve the full sentence. Apparently Sheriff Lee Baca ordered her to be released and it was contrary it what was specifically spelled out in the sentencing by the judge. The document they presented on the website had "no electronic monitoring" handwritten on the sentencing paper. According to MSN the city attorney wants Sheriff Lee Baca held for contempt of court. To be honest I do not know why she was released, overcrowded jails, money, the best lawyers money can buy, bribe, kickback, popularity, peer pressure, medical or mental. Could be a reason not thought of. I would be willing to state that many people in jail suffer from medical and mental issues. I think the current judicial system is ineffective. The purpose for our system is to prevent crime and then punish those that violate in an attempt to curtail future criminal activity. The system was a godsend when it was created and served it's purpose - but the world has evolved and the system is still the same system. There is too much leeway and room for corruption and even with all of the checks and balances innocent people still go to prison or are executed.
Interesting. Whatever's happening, there's no shortage of paltry notions and euphemisms in the reporting and commentary. I wonder how this may become relevant to the celebrity-paparazzi debate.
When and where did the judicial system ever work without, or -- let's be realistic -- relatively without prejudice and corruption of this kind. I haven't made a systematic study of it, but I suspect there was never a golden age for this kind of thing. Lynching was commonplace in the South from the end of the Civil War into the 1960's. The Klan was well placed in California at least into the 1930's.
Have you ever read Michel Foucault on incarceration? Or Angela Davis?
Foucault, Michel. To Discipline and to Punish: The Birth of the Prison. NYC: Vintage, 1995.
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