I think we have to swing way back from where we are now to get to the place where we actually punish gun toting criminals.
Here’s what’s happening right now in St Louis.
Give me your honest assessment of this “criminal justice” policy as explained by St. Louis Police Chief Dan Isom:
[INDENT]"One thing we have to be aware of to give context to this whole problem is that we are looking at an urban problem. It’s much less a suburban or rural problem. It really affects young minorities— Hispanic and black males. I think that the suspects devalue life, the victims devalue life, and the system also devalues life. When you look at the shooting victims and suspects in these neighborhoods, you see 20 or 30 felony arrests, with eight convictions.
Often the convictions don’t result in any jail time at all; they’re getting probation on top of probation. This has caused a lot of us in cities to move toward federal prosecution, because we know on the state level it’s a hit-and-miss prospect: they’re arrested, they’re convicted, and they come out multiple times.
In Missouri, there’s a type of probation people can receive, and it has made it very difficult for us to establish a person as a convicted felon. I’ve heard other chiefs talking about the fact that a weapons charge in their state is only a misdemeanor offense. But in St. Louis, a weapons violation can turn out to be no offense at all. An individual will get arrested for a weapons charge, which is a felony, and often they plead to that case and get an SIS—a suspended imposition of sentence. It means that if you serve out your probation, which everybody does, that conviction is erased.
So if you’re arrested again with another weapon, you don’t have a conviction on your record, so you’re not a felon in possession of a weapon. If you continue to get multiple SISs, you never become a convicted felon. These offenders will often show up for other crimes, and if they never have a conviction, then you’re never able to put stiffer charges on them."[/INDENT]
Really, I don’t think that’s a problem at all; actually punishing criminals who use guns is way overrated . . .
I really think we should just concentrate on gun control for White, non-urban people.
It is so much easier and stupid people will actually believe politicians are “doing something”.
And we won’t be losing loyal democrat voters to felon disablement!
Win all the way around, disarm White tea party birther clingers and keep the Homeboys happy!
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