“Several years ago I read a piece in The New York Times by Adam Liptak about Ryan Holle. Ryan, who had no prior record, is serving a life sentence with no chance of parole in Florida. He was convicted of pre-meditated murder, even though no one, including the prosecutor, disputes that Ryan was asleep in his bed at home at the time of the crime. This could only happen in America, because we are the only country that retains the Felony Murder Rule. What the Felony Murder Rule essentially says is if anyone has anything to do with a felony in which a murder takes place, such as a robbery, that person is as guilty as the person who has committed the murder. Every other country including England, India and Canada has gotten rid of it because of its unintended consequences. In America, Michigan, Kentucky and Hawaii no longer have the law.”* The Young Turks hosts Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian break it down.
*Read more here from Charles Grodin / The Nation:
http://www.thenation.com/article/178984/why-florida-man-facing-life-prison-lending-out-his-car-and-going-sleep#
Comments
Income inequality, Tort Reform, Spying on it citizens, Oligarchs rule the government, these are just a few things that make our country a crappy place. It always amazes me that people are anti-russian? I always ask why? My reply to them is we are Russia, we have a BS democracy and we are ruled by Oligarchs!
The prosecutor did not press for life in prison. The judge said his hands were tied. What happened to jury nullification or governor pardon?