The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review is the latest newspaper to blast the judge in the corruption case of former Democratic state Sen. Vince Fumo, who will serve just 4 years and 7 months despite being found guilty of 137 counts.
From an editorial in today's edition:
The Fumo outrage: Justice as a joke
U.S. District Judge Ronald L. Buckwalter has proven that justice is not only blind but suspiciously deferential as well.
The judge, sitting in Philadelphia, on Tuesday sent a powerful message to the continuing corrupt criminal enterprise that is Pennsylvania state government: Don't sweat it. You've got a friend in the local federal court system.
Judge Buckwalter sentenced former all-powerful state Sen. Vince Fumo, a Philadelphia Democrat, to a mere 55 months in federal prison for his conviction on 137 counts of public corruption. That's about 1.7 weeks in jail for each instance of molesting the public trust.
Buckwalter said he balanced Fumo's crimes against his life's work in the Pennsylvania Senate. Please. He's a crook, Judge. Vince Fumo is a criminal who beat different raps twice before and showed contrition not for his crimes but for being caught. Even at sentencing Fumo said he saw nothing wrong with his criminal behavior when he was engaged in it.
Fumo, 66, could have been sentenced to up to 27 years in prison. Federal prosecutors sought a term of more than 15 years. Buckwalter agreed to defense entreaties to reduce the maximum likely sentence he could impose to 11 to 14 years.
Then, and chiding the media for being "mean-spirited," Buckwalter sentenced this common criminal, a political thug from the old school, to four years and seven months. If sweet ol' Vince behaves himself, he'll walk before he turns 70.
This isn't justice; this is an embarrassing joke. And Pennsylvania, the State of Corruption, will remain just that.
No comments:
Post a Comment