“He was good. He was good. He was misunderstood. Dear Officer Krupke. Krup you!”
This type of defense “he was a good person” reminds me of how the grandfather of Nick Brady [killed by Byron Smith near Little falls, MN], said in response to the guilty verdict for Smith, “Nick was a good kid who just made a bad mistake. Everyone makes bad mistakes sometime in their lifetime. Heck, I made a bad mistake when I was young too.”
Now, I can excuse a grandfather having a hard time accepting the death of his grandson, but to call a series of repeated burglaries and stealing money, prescription drugs, and guns from people’s homes a ‘bad mistake’, is the understatement of the year.
This sort of minimalist way of excusing repeated bad/criminal behavior reminds me of those folks who think everyone goes to heaven when they die.