10:12 a.m.
Monday, September 6, 2021 10:12 am
|
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Albert Einstein
As we celebrate Labor Day, let's recognize there is at least one segment of the Strafford County system of justice that is not working: sadly, it's the judges who over and over again have let criminals back on the street to victimize our citizens and our businesses, putting our safety in harm's way over and over again.
But we don't know why they do it over and over again.
Just like intent in a suspect's mind is an overarching factor in deciding whether they are guilty or not, we don't know what's going on in a judge's mind when they decide to let those arrested out on no bail over and over and over again or give them suspended sentence.
The recent poster child illuminating this lax protection of our safety and property - area transient Stephanie L. MacDonald - pleaded guilty on July 30 to 50 charges dating back to 2015 and got a suspended sentence. Her criminal activity over the six past years included but not limited to drug possession and trafficking, thefts and assaults.
Her story blossomed from local to statewide news on Aug. 2 - three days after the plea deal - when she hopped out of a ride service car en route to an inpatient treatment facility, strode into a Hooksett Market Basket, allegedly (because the complaint is merely an accusation) stole a bottle of wine and struck an employee who confronted her in the parking lot with the bottle.
So now Strafford County Superior Court's problem is the problem of Merrimack County.
So let's follow the money. Who is really paying the price here?
Not Market Basket, nor should they. Corporations like Market Basket or Walmart or Hannaford don't exist for the pleasure of shoplifters to come in and steal stuff without paying. They have stockholders and commitments to maintain their business in a viable manner.
So anytime someone steals something from their shelves, they don't pay for it. You do, in higher prices to make up for the revenue loss.
And every time a judge kicks the can - or case - down the road again, you pay for it. It's your tax dollars that pay their salaries and time spent adjudicating the same case over and over again.
In fact, Strafford County Attorney Tom Velardi told The Rochester Voice last month that even though it included no additional jail time, the July 30 plea deal still took roughly a year and a half of negotiations with defense counsel and the court.
Your tax dollars hard at work!
And the defense lawyers in these types of crimes, overwhelmingly staffed by public defenders, yup, you guessed it. They're paid for by you, too.
With New Hampshire bail reform we took cash out of the equation because it was "unfair" that a working stiff could afford to pay bail, but those who had no job and mostly just stole for a living got free representation.
So they get the free lawyer, and you pay for yours.
And guess who pays for the free lawyers? You.
Strafford County Attorney Tom Velardi, reacting to the MacDonald case and her arrest in Hooksett, said recently, "Not everyone needs to get treatment. Some have to be separated from the community. People that run these businesses (like Market Basket) should not have have to bear the brunt of these people that are committing crimes and putting them in danger. This isn't just a five-dollar crime, this is a threat to the community. Why would we allow the public to be at such risk?"
Yes, we say. Why?
Why would these judges continue to put us at risk. Maybe if they lived on Lafayette Street instead of LaLa Land, they'd have a different take.
- HT