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Comment by jack-r-abbit | Hacker News Reader

I said the felony was an overreaction. Your statement really confuses me. Are you saying there is only two outcomes: 1) she suffers 0 punishment or 2) she is a felon

Surely there is something in the middle.

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No there isn't unfortunately. Courts do not work that way. They either let you go or you suffer fixed punishment not necessarily related to severity of your crime. That's what killed Socrates.

Fixed punishment is tied to the level of crime you are convicted of. There are many levels of "crime" that this could fall into. I don't think it has to be felony or nothing.

These days of zero-tolerance (that is, most days on the planet except mid-twentieth century) it is too easy to just go with the flow and convict of whatever is brought to the eyes of justice. You need luck, good lawyer or both to get fair treatment, especially if the public thinks you're guilty of "something".

Well, the answer to zero tolerance is not "ALL tolerance". If those are my only choices and I am absolutely forced to pick one of those two sides, then I'm going to go with the side that doesn't foster an environment of "do as you please... we'll tolerate anything". That is a pretty slippery slope to get on. We have to have some amount of rules and punishment.

Well then, you are wrong and you are going to rot in hell for that sin as I told.

well that escalated quickly. sheesh.

that's why you don't bring it before the court system...a severe scolding and a couple weeks of detention would have probably been sufficient

>That's what killed Socrates.

I was always assumed it was the hemlock, personally.

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