Posted on 09/04/2016 1:51:51 AM PDT by BlessedBeGod
A Montgomery County man accused of assaulting a public servant and threatening to kill police officers could have walked free Monday. However, after refusing a plea bargain, he was convicted and hit with a 40-year sentence.
Jurors in the 9th District Court of Judge Phil Grant convicted Raymond Lindsey Jr., 46, last week of Assault on a Public Servant and Retaliation. His attorney said he already had been in jail 19 months and would have been released with "time served..."
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
He’ll still get credit for the time served, so it’s only 38 and change.
When they can dangle such a massive prison sentence in front of someone and then say, "or just plead guilty and you can go home" I have to wonder how many possibly innocent people accepted this "offer you can't refuse" and now have criminal records.
This sounds like something that they would do in China or some other authoritarian country.
Not saying this guy is innocent but it's easy to say you would never plead guilty to crime you didn't commit until you are looking at 40 years in prison vice just going home.
The length of sentence is due to previous convictions as well as this one.
His choice to turn down the deal was a poor one, but so were his choices to continue to commit crimes. Read the article. There’s no doubt to his guilt.
Trial by Jury, a Hallowed American Right, Is Vanishing
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3463745/posts
It's not about his guilt. It's not about this guy at all.
It's about the concept of "40 years or go home. Just say what we want to hear." that I find troubling.
What if they made the same deal to you, except you knew damn well you were innocent? Would you take their offer or take your chances with a jury?
Hypotheticals can always be troubling.
That’s why I pointed out the reality.
Not innocent? He assaulted the cop!
Now the hypothetical you speak of..yes, perhaps. But I’d rather be home to plot the retribution of those who faulted/framed me then rotting in stir....or perhaps planning a defense to exonerate myself.
You would “cut off your nose to spite your face”
This is like a kangaroo court.
He never should have been offered the plea deal to begin with.
“Uh, Your Honor...can I get a do-over?”
Agreed
Maybe he just likes living in jail. 3 hots and a cot beats living in a refrigerator box in an alley.
I find it troubling that if the guy is obviously guilty of crimes that rate a 40 year sentence, that the DA offered letting him off with 19 months. How does that make sense either? The whole plea bargain game is a crock.
They must make great chili at the Montgomery Co. jail.
It doesn't make sense.
From the article , you get the assumption he was convicted and then given an option to plea.
He was first given the option to plea to a lesser charge, then he went to trial. He place his bets badly.
But in any event, if you read the article, he will appeal.
“They must make great chili at the Montgomery Co. jail.”
Better than the oatmeal at the Cook County slammer, I’m sure.
“He is very religious and said no man should judge another man,” said Smith, who said Lindsey said he understood the charges and punishment he faced. “That’s another reason I filed a psychological evaluation is because of his thought process. ... He’d use religion to justify actions. The problem was the decisions weren’t going to help him in reality.”
“I said the minimum is 25 to life. You’re going to have all of these witnesses come and testify against you and you are not going to have anyone testify for yourself. “He said, ‘
It is what it is.’”
“It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is. If the—if he—if ‘is’ means is and never has been, that is not—that is one thing. If it means there is none, that was a completely true statement....Now, if someone had asked me on that day, are you having any kind of sexual relations with Ms. Lewinsky, that is, asked me a question in the present tense, I would have said no. And it would have been completely true
Beyond that, he is misquoting the Bible. Might be time for some refresher courses. But it is interesting to note the legal response to religion.
And if you take a plea deal you forfeit your right to appeal.
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