Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation • Hacker News Board

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#61

Post by pixl97 » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 3:53 PM UTC

ifdefdebug wrote: post #31

How does such an attorney and judge feel after such a trial? Do they feel satisfied, fulfilled? Taking away 5 years of someone's life over a little mistake that didn't hurt anyone? I don't get it: why does a free people like the Americans allow for that kind of sinister figures to be their prosecutors and judges?

>How does such an attorney and judge feel after such a trial?

They feel ecstatic. They won. The good guys won again, yay! You have a 10oz pot brownie (with a very small amount of mj in it), that's distribution amounts, 30 years in jail for you. Yay! The good guys won again.

* I see I have downvoters... Maybe you don't believe me? I've been working around both the prosecution and defense for around 20 years now, have many family members that work for law enforcement and judges. This is exactly how many of them think.

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#62

Post by phonon » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 3:55 PM UTC

scarecrowbob wrote: post #26

coding123 wrote: post #3

Can't you just hear those white Texans: "We'll show her". I don't think any comment on that site sums it up more than that one.

Well, as a white guy in Texas , "not all white Texans" isn't the most helpful response. Regardless of the last name of the judge in this case, your comment more or less meets with my experiences. This conviction is a pretty fucking vile turn of events, and it is fundamentally tied to the racist fears about voter fraud that are, themselves, sublated attempts to prevent "illegitimate" populations from voting: "It's ver…

An aside, can you explain your usage of the word "sublated"?

Is that referring to "Aufheben"?[1]

[1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aufheben

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#63

Post by megous » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 3:55 PM UTC

ifdefdebug wrote: post #31

How does such an attorney and judge feel after such a trial? Do they feel satisfied, fulfilled? Taking away 5 years of someone's life over a little mistake that didn't hurt anyone? I don't get it: why does a free people like the Americans allow for that kind of sinister figures to be their prosecutors and judges?

Not only that, her children would lose a mother for a few more years.

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#64

Post by TheOtherHobbes » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 3:56 PM UTC

daveFNbuck wrote: post #57

jartelt wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would prefer 0 days in prison because I don't think voting while a felon should be a crime. But, if we still want to call this situation voter fraud, how about we sentence them to community service? This person is not a danger to society, so I see no reason to put them in prison. More prion just messes up their life further and costs everybody a lot of precious tax dollars.

While I agree that what this woman did shouldn't be voter fraud, community service isn't sufficient deterrent for actual voter fraud. People put in lots of volunteer hours to help get their preferred candidate elected, so they'd probably be willing to risk community service too. Voter fraud is very dangerous to society, as society depends on our trust in institutions.

It's not nearly as dangerous as privatised corporate justice, or jailing people for five years for essentially trivial offences.

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#65

Post by cgriswald » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 3:58 PM UTC

blackbagboys wrote: post #27

sexoffender wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Their hope is that maybe they'll be able to change the future for the better by making an example of someone, even if they have to be excessive, cruel, or unjust toward that person. They're justifying the means by the hoped end.

A more prosaic and more likely explanation is that states controlled by the Republican party seek to suppress black voting by any means possible because it's a threat to their hold on power.

I find that explanation unlikely.

First, the vast majority of states have some type of voting restrictions on felons, with Maine and Vermont being the only exceptions.

Second, some states historically and modernly controlled by the Republican party (e.g. Montana) return the right to vote after release.

Third, among states with harsher restrictions (ending after parole or probation) that are historically OR modernly Republican controlled (ignoring the first point-that many such states are Democrat controlled), the demographics are, in many cases, such that all other races combined could not muster even the perception of a threat to the white, Republican voting bloc.

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#66

Post by jernfrost » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 4:03 PM UTC

Man the US just disgust me. Land of the free my ass. The amount of inhumane policies is just staggering. The most brutal and unjust “justice” system in the free world.

That American put up with this system is the biggest puzzle. It seems like the only freedom Americans care about is to carry a gun. Any other freedom they are cool with flushing down the toilet.

Sorry for the angry rant, I know there are lots of good and decent people in the US, but how on earth can you stand by year after year and be so chill about the inhumanity of the system?

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#67

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 4:04 PM UTC

chasing wrote: post #48

ifdefdebug wrote: post #31

How does such an attorney and judge feel after such a trial? Do they feel satisfied, fulfilled? Taking away 5 years of someone's life over a little mistake that didn't hurt anyone? I don't get it: why does a free people like the Americans allow for that kind of sinister figures to be their prosecutors and judges?

Do you notice the color of the woman's skin? There you go.

[deleted]

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#68

Post by creaghpatr » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 4:05 PM UTC

sampo wrote: post #24

zeveb wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I find five years a bit surprising, but what do you think the proper penalty would be for a felon committing voter fraud should be? Edit: I'm utterly amazed that this comment has been downvoted to silence. Disenfranchising felons — i.e., those who have committed extremely serious crimes — is while somewhat controversial a long-standing practice. The woman in question committed voter fraud by voting without being lega…

If you come from a country (like most European countries) where people are allowed to vote both on probation, and also in prison, then the whole act of voting wouldn't even be a fraud in your home country. But different countries have different practices on what is a crime.

You would also be required to present photo ID in order to vote.

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#69

Post by cornholio » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 4:05 PM UTC

chrisseaton wrote: post #30

bambax wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 5 years seems too long though Are you being sarcastic? 5 years for voting while on probation is "too long"?? How about: 1. Not preventing people who are in prison from voting 2. Not even having a "probation" time after people have been released from prison; they did their time, they are free again

> Not even having a "probation" time after people have been released from prison; they did their time, they are free again I think you're mistaken about what probation is. Probation is part of your time. You're sentenced for a given period of time, and at some point you may be released to serve the rest of that time in the community, on probation. Their sentence isn't over, and they aren't 'free' while they are on pr…

> Probation is part of your time.

Yes, but it's a part that is substantially different from imprisonment: you are given a chance to prove yourself (Latin probo, probatio, French prover) to society. It should be as close to the life of a virtuos citizen as possible - and exerting a right to vote, far from being a personal gain, is exactly the type of pro-social behavior we should encourage.

I can understand why she should be reprimanded for violating her probation, but it's revolting that voting during probation could be considered a violation. Something is seriously wrong in a society that does that.

Re: Texas woman sentenced to 5 years in prison for voting while on probation

#70

Post by trhway » Fri, Mar 30, 2018, 4:05 PM UTC

chasing wrote: post #48

ifdefdebug wrote: post #31

How does such an attorney and judge feel after such a trial? Do they feel satisfied, fulfilled? Taking away 5 years of someone's life over a little mistake that didn't hurt anyone? I don't get it: why does a free people like the Americans allow for that kind of sinister figures to be their prosecutors and judges?

Do you notice the color of the woman's skin? There you go.

voting while black. Or poor. Rephrasing that old saying - steal a vote and you get 5 years in prison, steal an election and you get to be the President.