Manafort sentence exemplifies privilege in the justice system: Readers sound off

I am really perplexed by the ruling in the Paul Manafort tax evasion case. He was only sentenced to 47 months for a scheme that involved evading millions in taxes and lying to the government. Sentences for lesser crimes, say for example theft, are sometimes harsher. Some people get a 10-year sentence for possession of marijuana. It seems like the justice system is tilted toward rich criminals. 

What does Manafort’s 47-month sentence say to people who are not wealthy in America, when wealthy people who commit crimes are held to a more lenient standard? If we are to have faith in our justice system, don’t we really need to have a more just system when it comes to sentencing? Or is this just an example of the privilege of wealth? How else are we supposed to see this extreme disparity in our justice system?

After Judge T.S. Ellis went rogue by breaking so drastically from sentencing guidelines, why aren’t the Republicans crying about an activist judge writing his own law? Maybe the jury should do the sentencing. Or perhaps at least two judges should have to agree on the sentence. Ellis’ apparent bias is another argument for judicial term limits.  

Manafort defrauded American banks and taxpayers out of millions of dollars. If a desperate, unemployed minority with no record stole hundreds of dollars worth of groceries, he would likely get a longer sentence than Manafort.

Hard to feel sorry for him. Lots of people get long sentences for lesser offenses. Name, color and money make a difference in too many cases. There should be some recourse when judges are as corrupt as the people they are sentencing.

I think this has less to do with race and more to do with wealth and class. O.J. Simpson was black and got away scot-free because he had the best defense team money could buy.

Of course they were at play. “A blameless life”! When did he think Manafort committed those crimes, a week before being arrested? No, he committed those crimes over a 30 year span, that is not a “blameless life”, he never got caught because he led a deceptive life.

— Richard Kapuaala (@rkapuaala) March 11, 2019