News, Michael Douglas asks NY judge for mercy toward son. (support, parent)
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NEW YORK – Michael Douglas says his family's fame and history of substance abuse helped drive his troubled son into drug addiction and crime, and the Academy Award-winning actor is asking a judge to show leniency toward him.
"I love my son, but I'm not blind to his actions. ... I don't want to see him break," the actor told the federal judge in a handwritten letter made public Monday, on the eve of Cameron Douglas' sentencing in a drug case.
Michael Douglas asks NY judge for mercy toward son - Yahoo! News (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_people_cameron_douglas - broken link)
Excuses, excuses... If it was someone without a famous family they'd have the book thrown at them. This guy had opportunities that the rest of us could never imagine and he chose to sell drugs.
I don't argue that Cameron Douglas should be treated any differently than Joe Blow off the street. I don't argue that if Cameron were truly a major drug dealer that he deserves the ten year mandatory prison sentence that the article says he is likely to receive.
It does seem though the USA is full of people who believe that long prison sentences are the solution for just about everything. In the federal system, where Cameron Douglas is being pursued there are lots of mandatory sentences for any crime involving drugs. I don't think mandatory sentences serve the public well. It would be better to give judges more discretion in imposing sentences.
What I argue is that we have too many people in America doing hard prison time for offenses that are not violent crimes. We currently incarcerate 1.6 million persons in prisons, jails, and detention facilities. This is about 1% of the total adult population in the USA. Many drug dealers are addicts who are trying to support a habit. They do this either by stealing or dealing. If the underlying problem of addiction could be treated with many of these addicts than more serious problems wouldn't result.
You don't have to be a fan of criminals to recognize that incarcerating them at a cost of $50,000 to $60,000 a year is hard on the taxpayers. Violent criminals need to be there. Society needs to look at more cost effective alternatives for drug addicts, small time drug dealers, and those whose offense is stealing property.
California is currently in the midst of a huge budget crisis. One of many contributing factors to this crisis is the the "Three Strikes Law". The Three Strikes Law imposes a mandatory life sentence on anyone committing three felonies. This would be a good law if it were limited to those who committed violent crimes. However, it literally can result in a situation where someone who steals three bicycles could end up in jail for life.
Finally, crime is a serious problem in America, but its not drowning our society. Both violent crime rates and property crime rates have fallen significantly since 1980. This problem needs to be approached with more logic and less emotion.
I cant believe these celebs and their kids and how they seem to make excuses for them and their crimes . Come on celebs your kids are the same as anyone else's why do you feel the need to make excuses for them or that they are entitled to better treatment because their last name happens to be Douglass , Taylor or Jenner or Kardashian ? I think all these celebs and their kids need a dose of reality. The fact is you are no better than anyone else !!
Cameron got off easy. He's very lucky. I do feel sorry for his mom and dad. Even though Michael Douglas is very rich and famous, he is still a father who loves his child. Anybody can get addicted to drugs, rich or not.
I cant believe these celebs and their kids and how they seem to make excuses for them and their crimes . Come on celebs your kids are the same as anyone else's why do you feel the need to make excuses for them or that they are entitled to better treatment because their last name happens to be Douglass , Taylor or Jenner or Kardashian ? I think all these celebs and their kids need a dose of reality. The fact is you are no better than anyone else !!
There are a lot of people who are not celebrities that make excuses for their kids also. The celebs just get more press for it.
I cant believe these celebs and their kids and how they seem to make excuses for them and their crimes . Come on celebs your kids are the same as anyone else's why do you feel the need to make excuses for them or that they are entitled to better treatment because their last name happens to be Douglass , Taylor or Jenner or Kardashian ? I think all these celebs and their kids need a dose of reality. The fact is you are no better than anyone else !!
And you as a parent wouldn't stand by and try to help your kid in the same circumstances? Harsh! People should stop criticizing Michael Douglas for simply acting how any concerned parent would
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