The government we deserve
A Florida district court has upheld the conviction of Richard Paey by a 2-1 margin. Mr. Paey is a wheelchair bound man, with multiple sclerosis and botched back surgeries, a paraplegic in chronic intense pain. The state of Florida sentenced him to 25 years in prison for narcotics trafficking. He was not trafficking in the sense of selling drugs, as the state of Florida conceded. He simply bought pain killers to manage his pain.
The sentence given to Mr. Paey is so manifestly unjust that even the court that upheld the sentence felt compelled to comment. Speaking for the majority of the court, Judge Douglas Wallace wrote, “Mr. Paey’s argument about his sentences does not fall on deaf ears, but it falls on the wrong ears.” The court suggested Mr. Paey get the governor to commute his sentence. Yeah, good luck with that. The court’s suggestion adds insult to injury.
Judge James Seals, dissenting, was more honest.
I suggest that it is cruel for a man with an undisputed medical need for a substantial amount of daily medication management to go to prison for twenty-five years for using self-help means to obtain and amply supply himself with the medicine he needed…I suggest that it is unusual, illogical, and unjust that Mr. Paey could conceivably go to prison for a longer stretch for peacefully but unlawfully purchasing 100 oxycodone pills from a pharmacist than had he robbed the pharmacist at knife point, stolen fifty oxycodone pills which he intended to sell to children waiting outside, and then stabbed the pharmacist…
It is illogical, absurd, cruel, and unusual for the government to put Mr. Paey in prison for twenty-five years for foolishly and desperately pursuing his self-help solution to his medical management problems, and then go to prison only to find that the prison medical staff is prescribing the same or similar medication he had sought on the outside but could not legitimately obtain. That fact alone clearly proves what his intent for purchasing the drugs was. What a tragic irony.
In strange fantasies, I sometimes imagine that some politician will someday put an end to this madness. Then I remember the gutless disgusting swine who the have foisted this witch hunt, this drug war on America. I want to blame them, the politicians, but we the people elected them. We keep them in office. We are the gutless disgusting swine.
Posted on December 7th, 2006 by pwyll
Filed under: nanny state, politics
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“Mr. Paey’s argument about his sentences does not fall on deaf ears, but it falls on the wrong ears.” Mierda del toro! Mr. Peay’s argument fall on a court without the huevos to do it’s job.
We did not elect those District Court judges who screwed up in this case. A committee of lawyer-oligarchs did. May they rot in hell.
This is not justice, not the United States; this is a kangaroo court of the first order.
Free Richard Paey!
I’m heartened to see Richard being discussed in this forum. All attempts by the local newspapers to give deference to the prosecutor’s office cannot escape the fact that this conviction and sentence is outrageous. If everyone only knew all the dirty details of poor conduct we have had to tolerate from this Florida’s prosecutors office, it wouldn’t come to any surprise that they have rewritten the facts in this case to defend their actions. I tell Rich of how he is spoken about throughout the country, he appreciates all that has been done in his behalf.
Linda Paey
“Don’t let the bastards get you down.” — Bono