Sometimes you are happy with the results even if the details make you feel a little icky. Today we learned Gov. Haley Barbour was releasing the Scott Sisters. These sisters have served 16 years of a life sentence. They were convicted of a robbery that netted $11. I was talking to a friend of mine today and she said the amount of the robbery was not the point. The point was that neither of the women brandished a weapon. The men who were involved in the robbery actually brokered a plea deal and they were released years ago. The NAACP has been championing their case for quite some time. So naturally they greeted the news of the release with jubilation, but one of the stipulations of the release is that Gladys Scott, 36 must donate a kidney to her sister Jamie, 38. The state has said this was initially Gladys’ idea to donate the kidney and that might be true but that is not how this was positioned. The state has lamented the fact that dialysis is very expensive. So were the sisters released because there was in fact a miscarriage of justice or was it economic factors that precipitated their release? Some would say who cares they are free. We also have to ask what were the factors that motivated Barbour to act now? Is it coincidental that this act of benevolence comes on the heels of Barbour’s recent civil rights history gaffe? The old saying is don’t look a gift horse in the mouth is appropriate for this situation, because this horse has a rotten set of teeth.
Suspended Sentence for Kidney…is this fair to the Mississippi Scott Sisters?
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Clemency is not something you can gin up in a matter of minutes. There is a long, drawn out process. You have to consult with too many people to do it in an effort to cover up for a “gaffe”. (Pardons are a different matter; executives can give those at their discretion but they usually consult with others to make sure they are warranted.)
I do not know all the facts of the case. I rarely comment on something unless I’ve done my due diligence so I may change my mind later. Based on what I know right now, If the girls were jailed for robbery and they only got $11, well, they picked the wrong target. It is not the MONEY, it’s the CRIME. Why didn’t THEY broker a deal like the men? The state has wasted FAR more on their room and board than they could have netted in their potential criminal career. I wish them luck and success in their new lives, and hope they stay on the straight and narrow path.
I agree 100% with elogam. The amount of money they got from the robbery is irrelevant.
I liken it to my belief that there should be no such thing as “attempted murder.” Trying to kill someone and failing doesn’t make the crime any less serious in my book. You might have tried to shoot someone and missed, or maybe the victim had an excellent doctor, my belief is that attempted murder and murder are one and the same.