Sister's kidney donation condition of Miss. parole

[cory777]

Source: Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. – For 16 years, sisters Jamie and Gladys Scott have shared a life behind bars for their part in an $11 armed robbery. To share freedom, they must also share a kidney.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour suspended the sisters' life sentences on Wednesday, but 36-year-old Gladys Scott's release is contingent on her giving a kidney to Jamie, her 38-year-old sister, who requires daily dialysis.

The sisters were convicted in 1994 of leading two men into an ambush in central Mississippi the year before. Three teenagers hit each man in the head with a shotgun and took their wallets — making off with only $11, court records said.

Jamie and Gladys Scott were each convicted of two counts of armed robbery and sentenced to two life sentences.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_sisters_pardon_kidney

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Activist News http://activistnews.blogspot.com

[Book Lover]

1. Whoa!

That is so fucked up!

[molly77]

32. This is chilling.

According to the boiling frog theory...next US prisoners can donate organs for a reduction in their prison sentences.Illegal organ trafficking is now right up there with slave and sex trade biz. With connections to our shadow govt.

I watched a video with Cynthia McKinney asking Rums field about US contracts with DynCorp..a corporation which is into the slave and sex trade. Only time Rums field was at a loss for words.

[TwilightGardener]

2. That's weird. Give your sister a kidney or stay locked up? WTF??

[ProgressiveProfessor]

10. I think the sister has volunteered to do that

and that a condition of this commutation is that she follow through on that commitment.

IIRC there have been some sleazeballs who have promised to do that in the past and once paroled ran

[alp227]

12. READ the article - one sister requires daily dialysis

so it'd be much much more ridiculous if the sister were perfectly healthy.

And as for this life sentence for robbing $11, it was an armed robbery, so I wonder what the extent of the victim's injuries or distress were to justify such a sentence.

[Bragi]

40. I wonder more about the race of the sisters...

Just a wild guess, but I'm going to guess they aren't white skinned.

[alp227]

45. they're black that's why the NAACP was involved

besides, unequal justice by race IS a big problem in america. I mean why are blacks more likely to get tough sentences for drug use even though studies show that blacks and whites use drugs at nearly equal rates?

[LuvNewcastle]

3. One of the women has failing kidneys

and her treatment is costing the state a lot of money, so the state of MS thinks of a way to release her from jail and release them from responsibility for her medical bills. I'm sure the federal government, through Medicaid, will foot the bill for her transplant. Haley Barbour, a Republican candidate for President, has taken some licks in the past couple of weeks for racially insensitive remarks and now he is releasing two black women from prison. I'm sure it's just a coincidence. Win-win-win, isn't Haley amazing?

[Harry Monroe]

4. Haley isn't amazing, he's a douchebag

And sadly, I live in this state. He's my governor, unfortunately. I'm so embarrassed and will be even more so if he decides to run in '12. He's a slimy racist!

[LuvNewcastle]

6. Looks like I should have used the sarcasm button.

I live in MS too. Haley is amazing -- amazingly evil. My point was that none of this would have happened if Barbour hadn't needed some positive media coverage. Not only does Haley get to look compassionate, he gets to look compassionate to some black people. You can bet he factored these things in before he made the decision.

[molly77]

33. Fascist

[Kolesar]

31. Medicaid is administered by the state(s) and partially funded by the states

Good catch!

[Skip Intro]

5. Does a governor have the ability to do that? Some creative sentence? I'm not saying these women

don't deserve to be where they are, but can some official, whatever the title, just create something out of thin air and make it the consequence? A judge is one thing, but a governor?

[Xithras]

9. It's not a sentence. It's a conditional pardon.

Governors have always had the ability to issue pardons for state convictions. Presidents can do the same for federal crimes. They can attach any strings they like. The prisoner always has the right to decline the offer and serve out the sentence handed down by the judge.

Only a judge can issue a sentence, and only a judge can alter it. The governors power is limited to setting it aside completely, but he can make that right contingent on some activity.

It's also been in the news recently that Billy the Kid was famously offered a full pardon for his murder conviction in exchange for testifying at another trial. The governor later reneged on the deal, and the current NM governor is now debating whether to posthumously honor that pardon and clear his name. Same thing. Tried by jury, sentenced by judge, pardoned by the governor.

[Skip Intro]

13. I'll commute your sentence if you can get to level 42 on Super Mario Brothers.

Really?

[jobycom]

15. Read the story. They were eligible for parole in 2014. The Parole Board

studied the case and made the recommendations, so it wasn't the governor's conditions.

The story says that the healthy sister volunteered to donate a kidney before parole was offered, and Barbour asked the Parole Board to consider it, taking into consideration that health care for the sick sister was expensive for the state, that the women had been model prisoners and were expected to be paroled in three years, and that recovery time for the surgery would account for part of that time, anyway. The rest they considered a meritorous act.

The condition on the pardon wasn't to force the sister to donate a kidney, it was to reward her with early release for volunteering to do so, as well as to expedite the donation by freeing both women, so they wouldn't have the added complexities of prison hospitals and guards and paperwork. It saves the state money and trouble and it makes it easier on the sisters. Probably saves legal fees, too, since there was already a movement to pardon them because the sentence was considered too severe by some.

[TheDebbieDee]

7. I'm flabbergasted that these women got a life sentence

even though they didn't murder anyone!

[joshcryer]

8. They were black.

Not very flabergasting at all. :(

[Skip Intro]

14. Oh please. Is that why they got that sentence? Is there any type of proof?

Or is it just some armchair reaction?

Personally, I'd like anyone responsible for an armed robbery to do many, many years behind bars, black, white, or purple.

[Cali_Democrat]

17. Read this....

http://socyberty.com/issues/black-prison-sentences/

[Skip Intro]

18. Come on, I can post a link that says the exact opposite of whatever yours says.

Doesn't prove anything

[Cali_Democrat]

43. Go for it

Post a link that shows how white people get longer prison sentences for equivlent crimes.

I'm curious to see if such a link exists....

In fact, here's another link that that shows evidence of a double standard for federal crimes....

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_n23_v88/ai_17639241/

Your turn....

[proud2BlibKansan]

36. The guys who actually did the robbery got LESS time

and only stole $11.

This is as racist a sentence as I've seen.

[TheDebbieDee]

54. Open your eyes, Intro...........

John Edwards was right. There ARE two justice systems in this country.

[joshcryer]

56. Black-white divide in prison sentencing

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20041125/ai_n11490959/

Yes, this is not a controversial position. It's a fact that black people get harsher sentences than white people.

[joshcryer]

57. Here's another source: Race and Ethnicity - Sentencing And Minorities

http://law.jrank.org/pages/12130/Race-Ethnicity-Sentencing-minorities.html

[joshcryer]

58. How about this one:

http://drugwarfacts.org/cms/?q=node/64

[joshcryer]

59. Here's a really fascinating study showing 23:1 sentencing ratio:

http://www.crimeandjustice.org/councilinfo.cfm?pID=52

[joshcryer]

60. And it's not getting better: Racial disparities in sentencing rise after guidelines loosened

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/03/12/90316/racial-disparities-in-sentencing.html

So yes, there's "proof."

[Cali_Democrat]

16. Bingo.

Imagine if they were two blond white girls. Would they be serving a life sentence for a $11 armed robbery?

Of course not.

[Skip Intro]

19. See, man, THAT sounds racist to me.

And it is equally racist to assume such a dichotomy exists in every instance.

It doesn't matter how much money was obtained. It matters that people were threatened with guns and pistol-whipped during a robbery. Two women with guns attacked other people and terrorized them. Forced them to give up all their money. Fuck them. Go to jail. And stay there. Again, whatever color they are.

[bitchkitty]

20. Maybe not in every instance.

But the women are black, and the crime was in Mississippi. It doesn't take a genius to figure out why they got a life sentence for an $11 robbery.

They were also teenagers, and you have no idea of the circumstances under which they were raised.

Have a heart. It's free!

[Skip Intro]

21. I do have a heart, and it doesn't matter the state, the color of the perps, or the amt of $ stolen.

The crime is what matters.

[trud]

24. I agree with you there.

Plenty of people grow up in terrible conditions, but they don't go out and terrorize innocent people.

[SkyDaddy7]

25. Forget race do you think a life sentence is fair for a teenager?

I think they should have done major time for armed robbery but life? It was too harsh for teenagers who "could be" rehabilitated if they had a chance.

Having said that, you are aware of the history in Mississippi, correct? If so, I do not think you would be so naive to think Mississippi is the shinning light of equality when it comes to equality in the criminal justice arena, correct?

[Skip Intro]

27. If they acted as adults and were tried as adults, sure. Society should say so.

If you do this, this is what will happen to you. No bail. No slap on the wrist. No taking into account your childhood. This action results in this reaction. Period. I'll tell you, if someone came at me with a gun thinking they had some power over me, it would not end well for that person. No one made them do what they did.

The whole, "it happened in Mississippi," thing is irrelevant. So is race.

[SkyDaddy7]

30. I sure am glad responsible courts do not act as you wish.

Because the sentencing phase does take into account many things & you described a few. I agree they should have been dealt with harshly like anyone who commits a crime with a gun but the world is not as easy as you make it out to be. And to outright say race was not a factor is absurd at best! Maybe it was not or maybe it was neither of us know...But what is CRYSTAL CLEAR is Mississippi's track record on race.

[Skip Intro]

37. I don't know what to say. Crime should equal time.

The harsher the crime, the harsher the time.

I don't want to chop anyone's hands off, but armed robber isn't stealing candy from a kid.

I don't care about Mississippi's track record. That is not what is before us.

This is a nation of laws, or it used to be, didn't it?

This crime equals this consequence.

I'm sorry, I'm not going to become emotionally involved with the fate of two convicted gun-wielding robbers. I'm sure the victims would like a little sympathy too.

Bottom line - you use a gun to rob innocent people, you go away, for a long time. You don't have my sympathy, your victims do.

[Dappleganger]

49. If you don't care about Mississippi's track record on racism in the court system...

you don't care about the facts, period. I am getting the strong sense that arguing with you is a huge waste of time.

[Name removed]

53. Deleted message

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[Cali_Democrat]

46. People like you are the reason why the US has such a high incarceration rate

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/23/world/americas/23iht-23prison.12253738.html

The US makes up 5% of the world's population, yet we hold 25% of all prisoners in the world. One quarter of all prisoners in the world are rotting in US jails.

This is because of draconian government measures and people like you who believe in jail rather that rehabilitation.

[Dappleganger]

48. "Society should say so"

Society does not give equal justice under the law in the state of Mississippi.

[bitchkitty]

41. A hard heart.

You remind me of my younger sister. She has no tolerance for imperfection in anyone except herself.

[xor]

23. Is a life sentence the norm for such a crime?

That seems a bit high. I'm not saying they should have gotten off, or even got it easy... But that seems like something that would be five years or so..

[proud2BlibKansan]

39. IIRC the sisters weren't in on the pistol whipping

It's been a few years since I read about this case and I'm on my phone or I'd look it up. But I believe the girls waited outside while the boys did the pistol whipping. And the boys got less time in prison.

Just a messed up case in many respects.

[Dappleganger]

47. Obviously you have little knowledge about Mississippi.

If you can't see the racism in the sentencing you're as blind as a bat.

[Devil_Fish]

55. I have to agree. The question shouldn't be why black women get a life sentence. It should be why do

white women get off with parole and time served.

[molly77]

34. In the south , black people get long sentences for

stealing virtually nothing. Clinton's three strikes and you are out. Voila..You got your prison labor and you can get rid of the pesky problem of black people. But take your pick of those above the law

1) Rich

2) White

3) Republican

[Dappleganger]

50. Exactly.

[Dappleganger]

51. Exactly.

[McCamy Taylor]

11. I'm flabbergasted Miss. is going to pay for a transplant.

Some states are denying poor folks transplants. Won't the Tea Baggers complain that this is "Obamacare"? Won't it interfere with their ability to get Medicare funded eyelid lifts?

[joshcryer]

61. I was wondering about this, if anything this is the only good to come of this travesty.

[rasputin1952]

22. $11...life sentences?

Barbour should get 40 life sentences just for being a pathetic slob that has ruined hundreds of lives.

$11, thank god the two men didn't have $50 apiece.

[xor]

26. To be fair, the life sentence probably came from the assault part of it...

but still, being as how no one died, it's still way too harsh (I think)

[Skip Intro]

28. How much stolen money at gunpoint would equal a harsh sentence?

$100? $1000?

Isn't the amount of money irrelevant?

[rasputin1952]

42. Thta's but a mer part of it...

no one died, it was an assault.

[Vinca]

29. Hmmm. Wonder if I could barter a kidney for a hip replacement.

Good ole Haley figured out a way to slither out of those dialysis bills.

[madrchsod]

35. life sentence for armed robbery?

that`s around 5 year here in illinois.

[greiner3]

38. Let me see, the women are black......

Yep!

[treestar]

44. Where would he get the legal authority for that?

I am sick of the idea judges can order whatever they want. They are bound by the law. How can Mississippi law allow such a condition?

[Dappleganger]

52. It's the sovereign right

as a racist state. I'll bet the AG is related to the guvnah somehow.

[Name removed]

62. Deleted message

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