# Burn a homeless man alive - go directly to jai... naah just get probation! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 25, 2004, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455 "2004-03-25T23:18:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2004, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/1 "2004-03-25T23:18:06Z")
The “feel good” story of the day! [Attacker who set homeless man on fire gets probation](http://www.tennessean.com/local/archives/04/03/48765825.shtml?Element_ID=48765825) ---
**Author:** ![ZebraShaSha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/eada6e/32.png) [@ZebraShaSha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZebraShaSha)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2004, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/2 "2004-03-25T23:25:06Z")
I find that increasingly so, swallowing what people do to other human burns all the way down. ---
**Author:** ![buttonjockey308](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@buttonjockey308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buttonjockey308)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2004, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/3 "2004-03-25T23:28:45Z")
What the… How do you… Why can’t the… 10,9,8,7… OK, I’m taking up a collection for the bullet for this Erwin fellow, who’s in? ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2004, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/4 "2004-03-25T23:31:55Z")
Wow. Just to play the Devil’s advocate, the prosecutors must have thought they would have a really hard time proving the case and decided probation was better than acquittal. From the sound of it, the defense had an argument that the guy just threw a match at the victim and didn’t know that he was set aflame; assholish to be sure, but maybe not assaultive under state law there, or too tenous to trust taking to a jury. I’ll bet they would have tried for prison time here, though. ---
**Author:** ![Briny\_Deep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/briny_deep/32/17188_2.png) [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2004, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/5 "2004-03-25T23:41:11Z")
Well, the important thing is, nobody was using drugs. We’ve got to hold space in the jails for the REAL criminals, you know! ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2004, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/6 "2004-03-25T23:56:33Z")
So…this guy sets another guy on _fire_ and has to pay some bills and get a little verbal abuse (presumably) from the victim’s family…and Martha Stewart is going to jail? Can’t we cane this guy or something? ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/7 "2004-03-26T00:16:18Z")
> [@masonite](#): > > Well, the important thing is, nobody was using drugs. We’ve got to hold space in the jails for the REAL criminals, you know! Yeah, it would be shame if to put this guy away they had a free a _really_ dangerous man like Tommy Chong to make room. I don’t know how I’d sleep at night knowing Chong was out there somewhere, selling people glassware. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/8 "2004-03-26T02:06:43Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > Yeah, it would be shame if to put this guy away they had a free a _really_ dangerous man like Tommy Chong to make room. I don’t know how I’d sleep at night knowing Chong was out there somewhere, selling people glassware. Hey! Don’t kid about shit like that! My second cousin was killed by an alembic! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/9 "2004-03-26T02:51:33Z")
Fucking A. This is like the goddamn Twinkie defense writ large. “I was drunk, so you can’t send me to _jail_” ---
**Author:** ![j\_kat\_251](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/71c47a/32.png) [@j\_kat\_251](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j_kat_251)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/10 "2004-03-26T03:59:49Z")
If you’re all so angry why don’t you, instead of useless whining, go out and do something? Like set Erwin on fire maybe. It’s already pretty clear you won’t be punished much. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/11 "2004-03-26T04:00:44Z")
> [@j\_kat\_251](#): > > If you’re all so angry why don’t you, instead of useless whining, go out and do something? Like set Erwin on fire maybe. It’s already pretty clear you won’t be punished much. He isn’t homeless. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/12 "2004-03-26T07:15:05Z")
You want him to go directly to jai … alai camp? I fail to see how sending him to jai alai camp is going to rehabilitate him, although I suppose it couldn’t be a bad thing if a _pelota_ hit him on the head at 100 mph. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/13 "2004-03-26T07:25:43Z")
From the cite in the OP: > [@](#): > > Prosecutors said they had wanted to make a stronger case but were limited by the evidence. There was little evidence therefore he could not face the maximum penalty. Simple. Do you want a justice system that works by the rules, or do you want lynch mobs to be responsible for meting out ‘justice’. Well? ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2004, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/burn-a-homeless-man-alive-go-directly-to-jai-naah-just-get-probation/236455/14 "2004-03-26T07:33:37Z")
Lynch mob. No, wait… Yeah, lynch mob.