What to do with prison clerical errors?

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Sunburn74

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Oct 5, 2009
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Kind of a weird couple of cases and honestly I don't have a dog in the fight other than curiousity.

So there are these 2 cases:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/05/05/judge-frees-robber-who-skipped-prison/8722645/

http://news.msn.com/crime-justice/man-back-in-prison-for-90-years-after-court-error

In the former, a man robs a burger king as a 23 year old (no one harmed). He was released on bail and was supposed to serve time (13 years apparently). However, due to a clerical error actually spends no time in jail. The error is now caught but since the man is an upstanding citizen and happily married man with children, the judge waives the sentence.

The second case is as follows. A man robs a couple of video stores as a 20 year old (no one harmed). He is arrested and sentenced to 8 consecutive sentences totaling 90 years (seemed a little excessive to me on first look). However, due to a clerical error (the clerk thought the sentence was 8 simultaneous sentences not consecutive), he spends only 8 years in prison and is released on parole. He becomes an upstanding citizen, marries and has kids and stays out of trouble for 8 years. However, it is alleged that he was aware of the clerical error and did not call attention to it; if anything he retracted an appeal that was filed which would have called attention to it (remember this is just an allegation by the prosecution; he actually may not have known about it). Regardless, the error is caught and the man is now arrested and sent to prison to serve the remaining 82 years of his sentence.

So as a society, what are supposed to do with these clerical errors? The former man served no time, and is allowed to walk free. The latter man SERVED time and is not allowed to walk free. I'm not really sure I see the common guiding thread here.

And as a philosophical question, if you're in the position where you're released on a clerical error as above, do you have an obligation to report it? At first glance, it seems to violate our basic principle of a man has no obligation for self-incrimination as long as he is not committing a crime in the process.

Anyway, thoughts appreciated.
 
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alzan

Diamond Member
May 21, 2003
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It does seem like a double standard or unequal application of the law.

There will always be errors in our legal system and we can only do our best to see they don't happen.

I'm more troubled by the second example than the first. To say that someone who has clearly turned their life around that they must return to jail to serve the remaining sentence is asinine. Prisoners often have their sentences reduced for good behavior; showing good behavior after a mistaken release should definitely count towards time served.

IMO the legal system in the second example should simply take it's lumps and move on; the man served time and should be out of prison. I also agree the original sentence was quite excessive.

Agree on the philosophical point as it applies to these circumstances.
 

HumblePie

Lifer
Oct 30, 2000
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Hi. Excuse me. I'm actually supposed to be getting out of prison today, sir.

You're in the wrong line, dumb ass. Over there.

I'm sorry. I am being a big dumb ass. Sorry.

Cause, I was, you know... I was definitely in prison, okay. I got sat on my face and everything.
 

JBT

Lifer
Nov 28, 2001
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I'd say leave them both alone. In case #2 Ninety years for a few video store robberies seems excessive.. In both cases sending them back to jail harms more people (children + Wives, employees, tax payers) than it helps by punishing these people.
 

Cozarkian

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Feb 2, 2012
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At a minimum, I think you should get credit for the time you were out without committing crimes as a result of the clerical error. So, for example, in the second case, he should get 8 years credit for time served, which means he should only have 74 years left, not 82.

After the above, there probably isn't any easy catch-all method, a case-by-case review is likely necessary. 98 years does seem excessive in the latter case (I didn't read the article though) and if he truly does appear to be a contributing member of society, a supervised release with periodic check-ins by a parole officer is probably a better solution than a return to prison.
 

thraashman

Lifer
Apr 10, 2000
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It comes down to what is prison supposed to be about? Punishment, rehabilitation, making the streets safer? If it's about anything other than punishment, making these men go to prison is a travesty. And I can't imagine anyone thinking that this 90+ year sentence is anything but absurd.
 

Sunburn74

Diamond Member
Oct 5, 2009
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I'm also particularly interested in the philosophical point of whether if you're out on a potential clerical error, you have an obligation to report it. That seems to be a driving factor why the prosecution is gunning so hard for this guy, it seems to go against what seems to be basic american philosophical tenants (that a man doesn't have to do or say anything that might be personally damaging to him as long as he is not committing a crime in doing so). The error was an error, but it was a legal error and the man was legally released. I don't see how he violated some law by not putting out ads in the newspaper about it.
 

fleshconsumed

Diamond Member
Feb 21, 2002
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I'll say what I said in the past. I'm not condoning what those guys did. Armed robbery/assault is a serious crime as it can turn deadly in a fraction of a second. However, in both of these cases the men turned their life around. Sending them back to prison would do more harm than good. I'm glad that the guy in the first story was eventually released. Same should be done in the other case too.
 

SMOGZINN

Lifer
Jun 17, 2005
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I'll say what I said in the past. I'm not condoning what those guys did. Armed robbery/assault is a serious crime as it can turn deadly in a fraction of a second. However, in both of these cases the men turned their life around. Sending them back to prison would do more harm than good. I'm glad that the guy in the first story was eventually released. Same should be done in the other case too.

This is exactly how I feel about it too. It is not like criminals are going to commit crimes in the hopes that the courts make a clerical mistake if they are caught.
 

nageov3t

Lifer
Feb 18, 2004
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At a minimum, I think you should get credit for the time you were out without committing crimes as a result of the clerical error. So, for example, in the second case, he should get 8 years credit for time served, which means he should only have 74 years left, not 82.

I would agree with that.

I'd say put it before a judge and let him decide based on the merits of any individual case whether or not it warrants reincarnating the person or not.
 

Zorba

Lifer
Oct 22, 1999
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I'll say what I said in the past. I'm not condoning what those guys did. Armed robbery/assault is a serious crime as it can turn deadly in a fraction of a second. However, in both of these cases the men turned their life around. Sending them back to prison would do more harm than good. I'm glad that the guy in the first story was eventually released. Same should be done in the other case too.

I agree with this.

90 years for robberies seems very excessive, too. Which is a huge problem with our justice system. I don't know how to fix the extreme unfairness in sentencing, but it something that should be looked into. Maybe put all sentences for a similar crime on a bell curve, just like when companies do employee reviews.
 

brycejones

Lifer
Oct 18, 2005
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If you put clerks in prison when they make these mistakes I bet they would stop quickly. ;)

I think these cases do more to highlight how our current sentencing system is more focused on punishment. I'm assuming they guy who was sentenced to 90 years was seen by the judge as completely nonredeemable. Turns out that judgement was wrong. How many other people do we keep locked up for decades who could have the same successful outcome outside of prison?
 
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