Reply #54: They chose her for 'good' reason.

[msanthrope]

I say 'good' because prosecutions like this make me want to puke....

1) She's poor/low income. Which means she's (probably) got an overworked public defender. Which means she might not have gotten a very good defense. I'd be interested in knowing if her lawyer asked for a change of venue. Why? See #2.

2) She's not of the socio-economic class, nor the tax base of the jury pool--this probably made it easier to convict her--a) she's 'other' and b) she's 'stealing' from the tax base the jury pool is probably paying into. This would have made it personal for the jury, which should have been the basis of a change of venue motion. (see #1)

3) She altered court documents. This is an absolute fucking no-no. No. Very specific statutes against that.

4) She's a public example. A great one--she was trying to better herself and get a teaching degree, and now, she won't....it's a 'lesson.'

Ah, godamn it. The judge could have given her a misdemeanor sentence...and allowed her to get her teaching degree.