It's who you kill that matters, according to new research

[steven johnson]

You may have though we were all equal in the eyes of God. OK. I'll give you that.

The purpose of law is to provide an objective set of rules for governing conduct and maintaining order in a society. Law enforcement uses agencies or police officers to employ force and other forms of coercion and means to effect public and social order.

I bet you thought it was to promote justice, didn't you?

While equality before the law is the Jeffersonain Ideal, in reality, the 'Rich Man's Law' still applies: "He who has the gold, makes the rules" and "Law grinds the poor, and rich men rule the law." (Oliver Goldsmith)

The poor do not receive equal justice, especially when the wealthy are in the same mix.

http://www.nytimes.com/1984/06/17/books/unequal-before-the-law.html?&pagewanted=all

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice

A defendant is much more likely to be sentenced to death if he or she kills a "high-status" victim, according to new research by Scott Phillips, associate professor of sociology and criminology at the University of Denver (DU).

According to his research published in Law and Society Review, (43-4:807-837), the probability of being sentenced to death is much greater if a defendant kills a white or Hispanic victim who is married with a clean criminal record and a college degree, as opposed to a black or Asian victim who is single with a prior criminal record and no college degree.

Recent discussions of the death penalty tend to focus on innocence and cost. Phillips' research says that arbitrariness has long been a concern.

Drawing on the same data, Phillips's previous research demonstrated that black defendants were more likely to be sentenced to death than white defendants in Houston. The racial disparities revealed in the prior paper become even more acute after accounting for victim social status - black defendants were more apt to be sentenced to death despite being less apt to kill high status victims.

It's who you kill that matters, according to new research

[Ozymanithrax]

1. In theory, we are all equal in the eyes of the law....

In the eyes of God, we are not equal. Each holy books has a set of prejudices promulgated by the book.

[geckosfeet]

2. If you are rich white and well bred you are more equal than those of lesser breeding

in the eyes of the law.

They say justice is blind.

No.

Those who believe that justice is blind are blind.

[indepat]

4. But the number of rich and white who are not well-bred is surely mind-boggling

and mind-numbing: the proof is in their works. :P

[Ozymanithrax]

7. And I will say that white is less a factor than green, as in money...

The original Simpson trial was a triumph of green. He had he money to hire the best lawyers. O.J. the buss driver, or O.J. the Crack addict would have had a plea barbain, at best.

[geckosfeet]

9. Must agree with you.

[Ozymanithrax]

6. The limiter in my post above was "In theory."

In reality, our system falls short of that.

[murielm99]

3. I believe that if the victim is a woman, the penalties may be

less stringent as well.

That may not have been a part of this study, but it does seem to be the case. Many women are killed by their partners. Pregnant women are often victimized. And if a prostitute is killed? Who cares? (Do I need :sarcasm:)? I guess I do, for some people.

[SlingBlade]

8. Yep ! Black men and women of any ethnicity

[iamjoy]

5. This Isn't Really New

Weren't there studies showing this twenty something years ago? I remember reading about it for a term paper I did on the death penalty