Post by Lorna Beaton on Feb 14, 2021 18:48:16 GMT
State the problem as clearly as you can.
Doris, (19) was sentenced to 10-20 years in prison for selling drugs. Doris only served 8 months of her sentence before escaping. After living a positive family life outside prison for 34 years she was extradited to serve her original prison term. Her family and friends have appealed for clemency. The problem is should this clemency be granted?
The evidence that we have been presented with via these two newspaper excerpts is very limited. We would need more evidence before arriving at a fair and reasonable solution as to whether or not her family and friends appeal for clemency should be granted.
The values and point of view of Doris Drugdealer.
Lots of contradictions.
Values:
Doris cares about her children and the impact her arrest will have on her son and 2 daughters. However, Doris was willing to implicate her grandfather for her to gain freedom, demonstrating selfishness.
Doris values her freedom given she committed another crime to gain freedom. But Doris has a lack of respect for the law and her freedom by committing another crime.
Values money and the security of money so much so Doris will commit illegal and ethically wrong acts. Doris justified committing a crime because she was strapped for cash. Doris also never told her husband about her past as it may have affected her financial security.
Lacking in integrity moralizing about drug use, ethics and accountability but lying to everyone including her husband of 24 years and children thereafter.
Points of view:
Victim of her socio-economic status, age and the hippy culture she was involved with.
Doris had a roof over her head, a car and a job but believed she needed more.
Lies to her husband and children about her criminality justified.
Doing volunteering work promoting ethics and accountability.
Motivation for her crime because she was strapped for cash justified.
No evidence here she has considered the lives she may have ruined selling the drugs.
Spent 34 years worried about being caught.
Lived a careful life as a model citizen.
Taught children to be responsible citizens and avoid drugs.
Justified to commit a crime if strapped for cash.
Not accepted or taken responsibility for her punishment.
No full consideration for husband/children and feelings about her criminality.
The values and point of view of her husband, children, and neighbours.
Doris husband felt she had integrity and compassion. Her husband also felt she had committed her life to her children.
We do not know any of the opinions of the children. The information that is presented regarding the children is from the husband and Doris. We do not know if they are supportive of the appeal but will undoubtable be affected by their mother going to prison and their mother living a lie.
One neighbour suggested Doris going to prison would not be useful to society so they are demonstrating support for her. However, the neighbor may not be considering the wider implications on society and the family.
Family and friends submitted clemency appeal we do not know which family and friends. We have no further information on Doris grandfather and any other family members she may have.
The legal and societal issues.
Legal issues
She sold drugs and sentenced for that crime
Escaped prison
not sentenced for that crime
Escaped prison implicating her grandfather
Represented a government organization without disclosure
Evaded the police for 34 years
Had not completed her sentence
Strain on legal system
Could have been other related crimes that have taken place but never been brought to court.
Societal issue:
What lives have been negatively impacted by Doris? Drug users and sellers, users and sellers’ families, friends and communities. More specifically, affecting health, education attainment, socio-economic status, mortality rates, birth rates, government welfare, strain on prison service
Doris husband and children now living the impact of the original crime and subsequent lies, dishonesty and deception. Specific impact on immediate family health and wellbeing.
Doriss grandfather willing to implicate himself in a serious crime.
Neighbours and friends may not appreciate the bigger picture impact on society and the family.
After thinking critically about the situation, what is your point of view?
The evidence that we have been presented with via these two newspaper excerpts is very limited. We would need more evidence before arriving at a fair and reasonable solution as to whether or not her family and friends appeal for clemency should be granted.
Should the governor grant her clemency?
Based solely on the very limited information given and not gaining any further evidence to questions posed Doris should be incarcerated for a reduced term of her original sentence. The prison should be close to her family so they do no suffer unnecessarily should they want to support and visit their mother.
Why or why not?
My main rationale is that she has not demonstrated that she has ever accepted her punishment. Nor has she been to trial for escaping and evading prison for 34 years. I think Doris may have rationalized that she has done her time as she punished herself for 34 years with worry. She may also believe she has made amends through her volunteering and being a dedicated mother. She found herself in a financially secure position with a supportive husband. Should this support not have been there would she have gone onto commit more crime? What would have happened if she had been honest with her family?
What questions did you ask yourself to arrive at your answer?
Lots of questions, many without answers…
Lots of contradictions in the limited amount of information presented. However, the positive values are presented by people that did not know her 19 year old self. What other views of friends and family have not been represented. Perhaps she manipulates her husband and family?
Has she accepted her punishment? No, she escaped.
Did she take responsibility for her crime? No, she minimized her actions and failed to disclose her crimes. Continued to evade prison.
Could Doris have went onto commit more crime if she had not found herself with a financially stable husband? What if Doris and her family became financially unstable would she commit crime again?
How many others in society would have done their time? Why should she be treated differently? She ‘marveled in her freedom’ disrespectful of those that are doing their time.
How many lives did she negatively impact that she does not appear to be acknowledging?
Has she perhaps done enough time by worrying for 34 years and given she doe not appear to have further negatively impacted society?
Is it worth negatively impacting her husband and children via her incarceration? What are her children’s thoughts? Was her husband part of the appeal? What is the full breath of his thoughts now?
Was her grandfather implicated in the crime? If she is still alive what are his thoughts now? Should she have appealed her sentence in 1974, or did she? What about her other direct family no mention of them?
Do low wages result in criminal behaviour of this nature? Was this reason for crime more prevalent 1974?
The fact Doris was a young woman in 1974 did this make her more vulnerable to exploitation? Could she have been given pot by drug dealers then given the ‘opportunity’ to sell heroin to pay back debts?
How did Doris start smoking pot? Who were the influences in her life? Did she have anyone reliable in her life?
What was understood about heroin usage in 1974?
What was an acceptable sentence for selling heroin in 1974? Has this since changed?
Do you have any biases that inform your thinking? (See bias chart linked).
On first skim read I would have probably taken the opinion society, her family and her would be better off if she was not incarcerated. Bias probably being based on not holding a great belief in prison being the best place from rehabilitation.
Perhaps anchoring bias or status quo bias could have been used here to make my final decision as I tried to stick to legal facts and what society may believe was right.
Doris, (19) was sentenced to 10-20 years in prison for selling drugs. Doris only served 8 months of her sentence before escaping. After living a positive family life outside prison for 34 years she was extradited to serve her original prison term. Her family and friends have appealed for clemency. The problem is should this clemency be granted?
The evidence that we have been presented with via these two newspaper excerpts is very limited. We would need more evidence before arriving at a fair and reasonable solution as to whether or not her family and friends appeal for clemency should be granted.
The values and point of view of Doris Drugdealer.
Lots of contradictions.
Values:
Doris cares about her children and the impact her arrest will have on her son and 2 daughters. However, Doris was willing to implicate her grandfather for her to gain freedom, demonstrating selfishness.
Doris values her freedom given she committed another crime to gain freedom. But Doris has a lack of respect for the law and her freedom by committing another crime.
Values money and the security of money so much so Doris will commit illegal and ethically wrong acts. Doris justified committing a crime because she was strapped for cash. Doris also never told her husband about her past as it may have affected her financial security.
Lacking in integrity moralizing about drug use, ethics and accountability but lying to everyone including her husband of 24 years and children thereafter.
Points of view:
Victim of her socio-economic status, age and the hippy culture she was involved with.
Doris had a roof over her head, a car and a job but believed she needed more.
Lies to her husband and children about her criminality justified.
Doing volunteering work promoting ethics and accountability.
Motivation for her crime because she was strapped for cash justified.
No evidence here she has considered the lives she may have ruined selling the drugs.
Spent 34 years worried about being caught.
Lived a careful life as a model citizen.
Taught children to be responsible citizens and avoid drugs.
Justified to commit a crime if strapped for cash.
Not accepted or taken responsibility for her punishment.
No full consideration for husband/children and feelings about her criminality.
The values and point of view of her husband, children, and neighbours.
Doris husband felt she had integrity and compassion. Her husband also felt she had committed her life to her children.
We do not know any of the opinions of the children. The information that is presented regarding the children is from the husband and Doris. We do not know if they are supportive of the appeal but will undoubtable be affected by their mother going to prison and their mother living a lie.
One neighbour suggested Doris going to prison would not be useful to society so they are demonstrating support for her. However, the neighbor may not be considering the wider implications on society and the family.
Family and friends submitted clemency appeal we do not know which family and friends. We have no further information on Doris grandfather and any other family members she may have.
The legal and societal issues.
Legal issues
She sold drugs and sentenced for that crime
Escaped prison
not sentenced for that crime
Escaped prison implicating her grandfather
Represented a government organization without disclosure
Evaded the police for 34 years
Had not completed her sentence
Strain on legal system
Could have been other related crimes that have taken place but never been brought to court.
Societal issue:
What lives have been negatively impacted by Doris? Drug users and sellers, users and sellers’ families, friends and communities. More specifically, affecting health, education attainment, socio-economic status, mortality rates, birth rates, government welfare, strain on prison service
Doris husband and children now living the impact of the original crime and subsequent lies, dishonesty and deception. Specific impact on immediate family health and wellbeing.
Doriss grandfather willing to implicate himself in a serious crime.
Neighbours and friends may not appreciate the bigger picture impact on society and the family.
After thinking critically about the situation, what is your point of view?
The evidence that we have been presented with via these two newspaper excerpts is very limited. We would need more evidence before arriving at a fair and reasonable solution as to whether or not her family and friends appeal for clemency should be granted.
Should the governor grant her clemency?
Based solely on the very limited information given and not gaining any further evidence to questions posed Doris should be incarcerated for a reduced term of her original sentence. The prison should be close to her family so they do no suffer unnecessarily should they want to support and visit their mother.
Why or why not?
My main rationale is that she has not demonstrated that she has ever accepted her punishment. Nor has she been to trial for escaping and evading prison for 34 years. I think Doris may have rationalized that she has done her time as she punished herself for 34 years with worry. She may also believe she has made amends through her volunteering and being a dedicated mother. She found herself in a financially secure position with a supportive husband. Should this support not have been there would she have gone onto commit more crime? What would have happened if she had been honest with her family?
What questions did you ask yourself to arrive at your answer?
Lots of questions, many without answers…
Lots of contradictions in the limited amount of information presented. However, the positive values are presented by people that did not know her 19 year old self. What other views of friends and family have not been represented. Perhaps she manipulates her husband and family?
Has she accepted her punishment? No, she escaped.
Did she take responsibility for her crime? No, she minimized her actions and failed to disclose her crimes. Continued to evade prison.
Could Doris have went onto commit more crime if she had not found herself with a financially stable husband? What if Doris and her family became financially unstable would she commit crime again?
How many others in society would have done their time? Why should she be treated differently? She ‘marveled in her freedom’ disrespectful of those that are doing their time.
How many lives did she negatively impact that she does not appear to be acknowledging?
Has she perhaps done enough time by worrying for 34 years and given she doe not appear to have further negatively impacted society?
Is it worth negatively impacting her husband and children via her incarceration? What are her children’s thoughts? Was her husband part of the appeal? What is the full breath of his thoughts now?
Was her grandfather implicated in the crime? If she is still alive what are his thoughts now? Should she have appealed her sentence in 1974, or did she? What about her other direct family no mention of them?
Do low wages result in criminal behaviour of this nature? Was this reason for crime more prevalent 1974?
The fact Doris was a young woman in 1974 did this make her more vulnerable to exploitation? Could she have been given pot by drug dealers then given the ‘opportunity’ to sell heroin to pay back debts?
How did Doris start smoking pot? Who were the influences in her life? Did she have anyone reliable in her life?
What was understood about heroin usage in 1974?
What was an acceptable sentence for selling heroin in 1974? Has this since changed?
Do you have any biases that inform your thinking? (See bias chart linked).
On first skim read I would have probably taken the opinion society, her family and her would be better off if she was not incarcerated. Bias probably being based on not holding a great belief in prison being the best place from rehabilitation.
Perhaps anchoring bias or status quo bias could have been used here to make my final decision as I tried to stick to legal facts and what society may believe was right.
