When convicted criminals thumb their noses at the mercy shown by
the courts, the answer from the bench should be jail time
You get one shot at a second chance.
When Judge Susan Bernardini sentenced Anthony McDowell on vehicular manslaughter charges in 2005 in the death of 15-year-old Erin Kinkel, she ordered him to perform 300 hours of community service and pay more than $16,000 in restitution. She could have imposed a sentence of one year in county jail.
In the accident that is at the heart of this case, Kinkel was riding in the bed of a pickup truck that McDowell was driving. Kinkel was ejected from the truck when McDowell swerved off the road and hit a tree.
It’s nearly three years later, and McDowell has done no community service and paid only $156 of his fine.
He was arrested in Morgan Hill last week after skipping a parole violation hearing.
“He was given a chance, and he hasn’t taken advantage of that chance,” Deputy District Attorney Amir Alem said of McDowell. “He’s done absolutely nothing, and nothing has changed. I don’t see why he shouldn’t go to jail this time around.”
We don’t either.
McDowell should receive jail time for violating his parole, and he should receive jail time instead of community service on the original charges.
McDowell’s failures, though in a much more serious light, to a certain extent echo the Lori McVicar case. McVicar, who was convicted of embezzling $54,533.39 from the Rod Kelley Elementary School Parents Club in 2002, has failed to repay the club during her probation period. She’s facing jail time as a result.
What’s the point of sentencing if the criminals ignore the justice system?
Our criminal justice system gave both McDowell and McVicar chances to repay their debts to society without jail time, to show that they truly regretted their crimes and that they had learned their lessons and changed their ways. Each ignored the opportunity, thumbed their noses at the considerable mercy shown to them and added further insult and injury to their victims.
If a trip through the criminal justice system that stops short of jail time fails to convince criminals to play by society’s rules – and that includes following court orders – then we can only hope that time behind bars will succeed.
In these cases, what’s become clear is that jail time is both justified and necessary.
