There's justice, and then there's....

[Slytovhand]

Max of 150 years for fraud, perjury and theft

Now, what gets me is...

ok, he's 70 years old - almost any jail term will be to the end of his life...

And sure, the media has to beat up the 'possible 150 year sentence' angle.

But, how is it that just for taking people's money (and lying to the Investments people) can get you 150 years, yet serial killers and rapists rarely get over 30???

Sure, it was a LOT of money, but still...

Does something seem really wrong about that? Or is it just me?

[DesignFox]

Serial killers and serial rapists usually get life sentences I thought... and unless you are in a pansy state (like mine) they can be put to death.

I don't think in this case 150 years is any sort of justice. This dumbshit is 70 years old. He's lived his life. What the fuck difference does it make if he goes to jail for a few years before he dies?

Fuck jail. Take the asshole's fortune and put it to good use. You got your money illegally? Fuck you. We're taking it back.

[protege]

Fuck jail. Take the asshole's fortune and put it to good use. You got your money illegally? Fuck you. We're taking it back.

Problem is, that they're still trying to find all of it. From what I understand, what's left isn't nearly enough to repay all the people who had invested with him. What I'd like to see happen, is that the bastard rots in jail, and his fortune is used to at least *help* his victims. Either way, the bastard is 70 years old, and probably won't be around much longer--he'll either die in jail, or someone might take him out if he doesn't serve time.

[Pedersen]

Serial killers tend to get sentenced to a lot more than 30 years. At least, here in the US.

This guy, though? To quote the article:

"Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 criminal charges,"

That, though, is just the list of charges. I haven't been able to find a mention of how many counts of each charge. It's entirely possible that each count only carries a 1 year prison sentence, but he's facing 150 counts.

Add in that the judge will (usually) have the discretion to be able to order the sentences to be served concurrently or consecutively, and the man could be looking at a minimum of 1 year, all the way to a maximum of 150.

Comparing total time served type crimes without comparing the number of actual crimes committed isn't a very fair comparison, no matter how you look at it.

[Dreamstalker]

Problem is, that they're still trying to find all of it.

I was told that was because he transferred a lot of it into his wife's name. Can't they still go after the accounts (regardless of what name they are under) if there is proof this is what happened?

[Slytovhand]

Dreamstalker, should be considered "accessory to the fact", and "profiting from ...", "receiving.." etc etc

She'd have to really prove she knew nothing to not go down for it... which I imagine would be pretty hard to do.

[Rapscallion]

I like what you're saying, but the burden of proof has to be on the state.

Rapscallion

[AdminAssistant]

And, well, Bernie Madoff has become the face of this economic crisis. He's a sort of scapegoat. I won't be shedding any tears over the fact that he'll die in prison.

[Slytovhand]

I like what you're saying, but the burden of proof has to be on the state.

Rapscallion

Oh, I get that.

I just figure it's going to be damn hard to say "Nope, your honour, I knew absolutely nothing about these transactions on my bank account". Well, at least beyond a 'reasonable doubt' to a jury.. who here is likely to believe it??

[smileyeagle1021]

But, how is it that just for taking people's money (and lying to the Investments people) can get you 150 years, yet serial killers and rapists rarely get over 30???

I'll disagree and say 150 years isn't enough. Yes, the crime affects each individual less than rape or murder, but in this case his crimes have affected so many people.

And, I'll also argue it's fitting that he will die in prison, because of his actions that caused people to trust him with their retirement there are now people who will needlessly be dieing in the prison of poverty.

Then again, I've been the victim of theft now 4 times (had the lock cut off a bike, my car broken into, had a roommate steal from me, and a home invasion), I've been affected enough by it that I now think the only appropriate action to combat theft is to shoot any thief on sight... bout time at least one of those fuckers gets whats due to all of them.

[protege]

When you consider just how many lives this asshole has ruined, it's no wonder why people want to see him fry. Instead, I heard something on TV last night that might be more in line. How about we release the bastard, after we've sold off all of his expensive shit...and then force him to live beneath the poverty level? That is, he'd be living in a cardboard box and scrounging dumpsters for meals. Any cash that he managed to scrape together, would be seized, and given to his victims. Why not, since that's what he's done to some of his victims... Gotta love that Huckabee show

[tropicsgoddess]

Serial killers and serial rapists usually get life sentences I thought... and unless you are in a pansy state (like mine) they can be put to death.

I don't think in this case 150 years is any sort of justice. This dumbshit is 70 years old. He's lived his life. What the fuck difference does it make if he goes to jail for a few years before he dies?

Fuck jail. Take the asshole's fortune and put it to good use. You got your money illegally? Fuck you. We're taking it back.

The feds already froze his assets and are gonna seize them and use it to reimburse his victims. The wife has some cash (about $62 million) and a house in her name,but she's trying to convince the courts to let her keep it,even though they suspect that her assets were the fruits of ill-gotten gains and that she was an accessory to the crime. If the feds get their way, she won't get squat. The fraud didn't begin until the 1990's for one and besides that point, yes he will spend the rest of his years in prison (hopefully not in Camp Cupcake or a Club Fed type of prison). I'm happy that he's not gonna get off easy, especially at how he defrauded his many victims out of their money.