Thoughts on Scooter

President Bush's commutation of Scooter isn't that surprising. But his comments about why he commuted the sentence are:

[C]ritics say the punishment does not fit the crime: Mr. Libby was a first-time offender with years of exceptional public service and was handed a harsh sentence based in part on allegations never presented to the jury....

Mr. Libby was sentenced to 30 months of prison, two years of probation and a $250,000 fine. In making the sentencing decision, the district court rejected the advice of the probation office, which recommended a lesser sentence and the consideration of factors that could have led to a sentence of home confinement or probation.

I respect the jury's verdict. But I have concluded that the prison sentence given to Mr. Libby is excessive. Therefore, I am commuting the portion of Mr. Libby's sentence that required him to spend 30 months in prison....

My decision to commute his prison sentence leaves in place a harsh punishment for Mr. Libby. The reputation he gained through his years of public service and professional work in the legal community is forever damaged. His wife and young children have also suffered immensely. He will remain on probation. The significant fines imposed by the judge will remain in effect. The consequences of his felony conviction on his former life as a lawyer, public servant and private citizen will be long-lasting.

I agree with the President on these points. Defendants shouldn't be punished for conduct which they have not agreed to or which hasn't been proven to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. First time non-violent offenders in many cases should not receive jail time. There are alternatives to incarceration that work in many many cases and will work for Scooter Libby. We don't have to worry that he will be reoffending.

The problem with the President's reasoning is that the Sentencing Guidelines prescribe this result and his administration continues to push these guidelines in every case, no matter the individual circumstances. This, of course, is wrong -- not just in Scooter's case, but in a great deal of cases. I hope sentencing judges and prosecutors look at the President's comments and see that the Guidelines need not be applied mechanistically in every case.

Scooter

I know this isn't a SDFLA case, but a bunch of emails came in asking if I would post about it. So here is the story:

A federal jury has found 'Scooter' Libby guilty on 4 out of 5 counts of lying to a federal grand jury and obstruction of justice. He was found not guilty of one count of making false statements to FBI agents investigating the leak of former CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity. Libby's sentencing is scheduled for June 5, 2007.

You can read the following items at these links:

Indictment http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/plame/uslibby102805ind.html

Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald http://pview.findlaw.com/view/3543117_1?channel=LP

Defense Attorney Ted Wells, Jr. http://pview.findlaw.com/view/3279455_1?channel=LP

Trial Transcripts http://rd.findlaw.com/scripts/nl.pl?url=11712672000_nl