At my recent resentencing hearing, Judge Michael Schipper, certainly not well-known for deep or critical thinking, stated on record, that he knew there was little point to prison, and in the end does more harm to the prisoner with diminishing returns.
“The real reason for prison,” he said, “is as a deterrent; to show other people, that if they do what you did this is what will happen to them and make them think twice.”
To me, this made absolutely no sense.
How many people go out and research the charges they will receive and then do the calculations to determine the score of the guidelines… and all before committing a crime?
Or even at a minimum, looked up how much time other people got for the same thing?
Being surrounded by “criminals,” some with years of experience, I figured I would ask.
Here are a few of the responses.
Big T
Charge: Murder
Sentence: 35 years – Life
Time Remaining: 19 Years
What Happened?: Big T was in a bar fight, punched a guy in the head hard enough to cause damage to his brain. It would later cause his death. When I asked him if he had any idea what the punishment for his actions could be before the fight, he said “No, the punishment for a bar fight is usually a few nights in county; I’ve done my share of them. I didn’t want him to die; it was just a fight.”
Mike
Charge: Possession of Meth, 4th habitual
Sentence: 20 years to Life
Time Remaining: 14 years
What Happened?: Mike is addicted to meth and despite going to prison multiple times, is still addicted. I asked mike if he knew what would happen if he go caught again he said “Hell yeah I knew. The last time the judge said, if he saw me in his court room again he would give me 20 years. But it didn’t really matter to me. I’m an addict and my life revolves one thing: where am I going to get my next rock? I knew if he sent me back to prison, it’s almost easier to get drugs there.”
DX
Charge: 16 counts of murder
Sentence: Natural Life without parole
Elapsed Time: 35 years in prison
What Happened?: DX was in a gang for most of his life before prison. He was what they call a “shooter,” somebody that’s sent to take out members of rival gangs. I asked him if he knew what he was doing could get him life without parole and he said, “Life after getting caught never crossed my mind, because if I did get caught I didn’t intend to survive it. And even if I did know, if I didn’t do what I was told there would be a shooter after me.”
In Summary
In total, I asked 114 people. Only a few knew how much time they could get and they still ended up here.
If prison was really a deterrent for crime, then why are Michigan prisons so full? Why do people keep coming back knowing what they will face?
If prison is truly the only deterrent we have for crime in Michigan (it’s not), then it’s an even bigger failure than I thought (and it is).
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