# Lea Fastow wants out early **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 17, 2005, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531 "2005-02-17T14:28:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/1 "2005-02-17T14:28:53Z")
[Boo friggen hoo](http://money.cnn.com/2005/02/17/news/newsmakers/fastow.reut/index.htm?cnn=yes) Stupid bitch. What’s wrong? Did you break a nail? Is a measly year in prison making you think that maybe stealing retirees life savings was a bad idea? I hope the judge stands firm. Well. I hope the judge adds to her sentence for wasting the court’s time. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/2 "2005-02-17T14:50:53Z")
She’s in jail, not prison. That’s the tradeoff for getting a relatively short sentence. Conditions in prison would probably be better, but the sentence would be longer. ---
**Author:** ![Metacom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecae2f/32.png) [@Metacom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Metacom)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/3 "2005-02-17T14:51:31Z")
I’m dissapointed that she still has enough money to pay a lawyer to write this bullshit: > [@the filed motion](#): > > “She has now spent almost seven months under fluorescent lights, not allowed outside for fresh air even for recreation, in overcrowded conditions and without the basic programs offered by a normal institution.” Umm… Dude. It’s fucking prison. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think prison should be punitive, and I’m all for improving conditions, but if this gets her anything positive, I will rightly or wrongly interpret it as yet another example of social class trumping justice. ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/4 "2005-02-17T14:54:19Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by the filed motion > “She has now spent almost seven months under fluorescent lights, not allowed outside for fresh air even for recreation, in overcrowded conditions and without the basic programs offered by a normal institution.” Wow, this sounds just like my office! ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/5 "2005-02-17T14:56:19Z")
> [@Maeglin](#): > > Wow, this sounds just like my office! Damn you! I was gonna say just that! ---
**Author:** ![Metacom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecae2f/32.png) [@Metacom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Metacom)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/6 "2005-02-17T14:56:21Z")
> [@Maeglin](#): > > Wow, this sounds just like my office! Heh. At the last office I worked in (same company I’m with now) we hung little signs in our cubicles noting that cells at Alcatraz had significantly more square footage then we were allotted. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mojo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Mojo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mojo)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/7 "2005-02-17T14:57:10Z")
Hell, those conditions sound like my current job. Fluorescent lights- YOU MONSTERS! on preview- beaten by _that_ much. on second preview- beaten on being beaten. No more previews. [sub]at Gitmo there’s plenty of fresh air, natural lighting, and you get to talk to all sorts of interesting people…[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/8 "2005-02-17T18:42:47Z")
Difference is, here, if you want three hot meals, you have to pay for them. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/9 "2005-02-17T18:59:16Z")
> [@mks57](#): > > She’s in jail, not prison. That’s the tradeoff for getting a relatively short sentence. Conditions in prison would probably be better, but the sentence would be longer. Can someone explain to me how shoplifters can get longer prison sentences than these people who were responsible for millions/billions? It’s just a rich/poor thing, isn’t it? -Joe ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/10 "2005-02-17T19:06:59Z")
> [@mks57](#): > > She’s in jail, not prison. Forgive my ignance, but what exactly is the difference? ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/11 "2005-02-17T19:21:18Z")
> [@Metacom](#): > > Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think prison should be punitive. . . Err…then what’s it for? ---
**Author:** ![Metacom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecae2f/32.png) [@Metacom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Metacom)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/12 "2005-02-17T19:32:49Z")
> [@Garfield226](#): > > Err…then what’s it for? I assume you mean “What should it be for”? I’d like to see prisons have a purely rehabilitative mission, and be humane and comfortable warehouses for those who can’t be rehabilitated. ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/13 "2005-02-17T19:41:08Z")
> [@Metacom](#): > > I assume you mean “What should it be for”? > > I’d like to see prisons have a purely rehabilitative mission, and be humane and comfortable warehouses for those who can’t be rehabilitated. So there should be no punishment for committing crimes? ---
**Author:** ![Jaade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/dfb087/32.png) [@Jaade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaade)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/14 "2005-02-17T19:43:11Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Forgive my ignance, but what exactly is the difference? I assume by jail he means the county lock-up, as opposed to an actual prison. There are actually differences between the two, starting with security and the type of prisoners held at the different types of facilities. People serving shorter sentences will generally “go to jail” whereas people with longer sentences will be sent to prison. ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/15 "2005-02-17T19:46:46Z")
> [@Merijeek](#): > > Can someone explain to me how shoplifters can get longer prison sentences than these people who were responsible for millions/billions? > > It’s just a rich/poor thing, isn’t it? > > -Joe Something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/16 "2005-02-17T19:53:27Z")
I think this dirty bitch will be rehabilitated after spending a full year in a crappy local jail. At least she won’t conspire to defraud any more of her investors. And the next dirty SOB who decides to defraud HIS investors will know for a fact that if he’s caught, he too will spend a good long time up the river to contemplate his actions. Merijeek, let’s not forget that this is a first offence, AND she made a plea bargain, AND is helping to prosecute other people involved. If you’re a shoplifter, cop a plea, and help catch the rest of the gang, I doubt you spend a year in jail. She may not be getting it as bad as she deserves, but she’s not getting off all that light. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/17 "2005-02-17T20:23:10Z")
I am reminded of the old adage - ‘Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time’. If Mrs. Fastow is unhappy with her conditions - too fucking bad for her. The easiest way for her to have avoided prison would have been to not help defraud people out of billions of dollars. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/18 "2005-02-17T20:29:01Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > I think this dirty bitch will be rehabilitated after spending a full year in a crappy local jail. At least she won’t conspire to defraud any more of her investors. And the next dirty SOB who decides to defraud HIS investors will know for a fact that if he’s caught, he too will spend a good long time up the river to contemplate his actions. Really? You wouldn’t risk a year in jail for a chance at tens of millions of dollars? Say, maybe, if it were a 50/50 shot? I would. Meanwhile, there’s people out there risking jail for tens and hundreds and thousands of dollars. If they can’t be deterred, do you think someone with many millions to gain will be deterred? > [@Cheesesteak](#): > > Merijeek, let’s not forget that this is a first offence, AND she made a plea bargain, AND is helping to prosecute other people involved. If you’re a shoplifter, cop a plea, and help catch the rest of the gang, I doubt you spend a year in jail. She may not be getting it as bad as she deserves, but she’s not getting off all that light. Not getting off all that light? Are you kidding me. She’s doing, what, something like a year split between jail and house arrest, last I heard. That’s from radio several months ago, but unless I’m off by more than an order of magnitude, yes, she did get off light. As for plea bargains…is there anyone who HASN’T gotten one yet? Sure, getting the guy on top is important, but what’s the point if everyone on the way up to him only gets a slap on the wrist? The CEOs couldn’t have done it without accomplices. Impossible. But for some reason the CFO gets a plea bargain? That’s ridiculous. Any doper lawyers out there want to tell us the difference between the sentence for committing a crime and the sentence for an accessory to the crime? -Joe ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/19 "2005-02-17T20:35:21Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Forgive my ignance, but what exactly is the difference? Jails, in this case, a Federal Detention Center, are usually for people who have been arrested, people who are awaiting trial, people who are in contempt of court, and people serving short sentences (less than a year). Prisons are usually for people who have been convicted of a crime and sentenced to more than a year. They are normally run by different agencies and treat prisoners in distinct ways. The assumption is that if you are in a prison, you are a convicted criminal, and you are going to be there for a while. A jail has a much more diverse and transient population. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531/20 "2005-02-17T20:39:39Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Forgive my ignance, but what exactly is the difference? Jails, in this case, a Federal Detention Center, are usually for people who have been arrested, people who are awaiting trial, people who are in contempt of court, and people serving short sentences (less than a year). Prisons are usually for people who have been convicted of a crime and sentenced to more than a year. They are normally run by different agencies and treat prisoners in distinct ways. The assumption is that if you are in a prison, you are a convicted criminal, and you are going to be there for a while. A jail has a much more diverse and transient population. The prison system also has a system of classifying and assigning prisoners to appropriate facilities, from minimum security to supermax, where jails are more “one size fits all” in their operation. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lea-fastow-wants-out-early/290531.md?page=2)