Brandon Young

It comes a surprise (albeit, kind of) that our nations judicial system is as flawed as it is. The United States does have a few good things in place in regards, like ‘Innocent until proven Guilty’, jury selections (which I feel is good in theory but still mired by a selection process that will help in the defendants case despite actual guilt), and everyone has a right to an attorney even if personal finances don’t allow it. 

Despite having our judicial system in place that is more right (in theory) than wrong, it is appalling to see how so many people can take advantage of it, move around it, and suffer no real harsh penalties.

I am on the fence when it comes to rehabilitation. Reason being is through past experiences with people who have attempted rehab end up going off and getting in more trouble, and horrifically enough end up performing the same crimes as before. I haven’t done much research in this arena, and quite frankly I’d rather not. It will only upset me even more to actually see the curtain pulled back to reveal the the slime balls behind the Wizard.

From 2006 to 2008 I ran an apartment complex. It wasn’t the nicest of places. Located in the ghetto of Roy (I’m not joking), the cheap buildings were perfect domiciles for the less deserving. I prided myself that I held no prejudices to potential tenants. I accepted all applications and gave them all high consideration based on the information they willing provided. Many times, I would be more than willing to help a struggling convict out. There were times in which after being turned down time and time again from other complexes, the applicant would confide in me the reasons for their denial. They had decent enough jobs and pulled in enough income to comfortable pay rent and other expenses. They looked like nice enough people. Then came their admission that they are a felon for this, that, or the other.

I looked past those things. People are always in need of second chances. People are always needing a helping hand to get their feet back on the ground. Obviously, felony charges involving any type of sexual misconduct, especially those with children were rejected. Prejudice? We can debate later.

I overheard a startling statement from a felon once, in which this fellow had been recently released from prison after a several month stay, only to get arrested after a few hours of freedom. His reasons? He wanted to have a warm meal. I am unsure on his reasons for both incarcerations, but it seems that a reason to get themselves arrested in order to get a warm meal (another reason probably being free) reveals some problems in rehab. This could open a can of worms from people suggesting that we’re wasting too much money with this flawed system as it is to throw more money at it as a way to fix it. Quite frankly, I don’t have the answers. That isn’t my job. I have a hard time trying to figure out my own problems rather than trying to fix the problems of others.

The fact is, is that our system needs fixing. There are people in this world who made one or two mistakes in their lives and must live with those consequences for a minimum of 7 years. People with a felony attached to their records are unable to find jobs, a suitable place to live, and are frowned upon by their peers.

Why is it so hard for those people? They make one or two mistakes. They got nailed, and are now suffering. There is a direct contrast to these “people” trying to fix their lives in comparison to the “others”. Who are the others?

Without mentioning names, I have been in contact with a handful of people who, quite frankly, deserve to be nailed to the wall. Second chances mean nothing to these folks as many of them are on chance number twelve, fifteen, twenty, thirty.

A man decides to open a business in Florida and his services are less than satisfactory. His employees become disgruntled after the owners failure to properly compensate for hard work. Their own personal equipment was stolen. The customer complaints start coming in, exposing not only the fraud behind the business and unpaid debts to employees, but rather more unexpected claims of sexual battery and assault. The business owner, instead of doing time for his crimes (or even going to trial to be proven guilty), flees Florida and ends up in the peaceful beehive state of Utah.

He sets up shop again under a different business name while offering most of the same services. Regardless of being exposed in Florida but failure to being convicted, his name and business entity are out in the open. Citizens can easily find this information with the advancements of modern technology and the internet.

The business in Utah becomes profitable, but all too soon the complaints of disgruntled employees are made known. Thus, the business owner, while staying in Utah, forms yet another company name and offering the same services as before. Along with this new business, the owner is able to form a trade school and prides himself on syphoning students bank accounts while under the guise that the money was being used to pay for tuition. Fees were not making it to the financial institutions that loaned the students money in the first place and instead went directly into the owner’s pocket. He once again begins stealing equipment and stealing their hard work to gain a profit. The owner’s lies however were becoming paper thin and he was once again exposed for the fraud that he was. All of a sudden many people begin coming forward for not only scamming approximately 250 plus people, but complaints of sexual battery, assault, molestation, rape, and forcible sex with a minor are made public. He is arrested, slapped on the wrist, and released.

Yet this continues. Under a different business name, the owner begins doing the same things as before and is, AHEM, rumored to be running a prostitution ring in a high profile, five star hotel in downtown Salt Lake.

Clearly he has no intentions of changing his evil and meticulous schemes of fraud and sex. Rehabilitation is clearly out of the question. So why is it that that the owner merely got a slap on the wrist? Could it be that this individual is an upstanding, major financier and member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints? Or is it because he is the founder and leader of the Utah Republican Black Assembly, recognized as an auxiliary of the GOP, is a major contributor to the GOP and its candidates, and is backed and supported by Utah’s senators and Heads of State?

No matter the reason, one thing is for certain: It’s wrong.

As a member of the GOP, a party known for its family values and moral rectitude, he still manages to find the support and money while apartment complexes and places of employment are rejecting people who’ve made mistakes and are trying to rehabilitate themselves.

It doesn’t stop there either. While trying not to attack conservatives and Republicans as liberals and Democrats have been caught up in similar scandals, but yet another Provo resident claiming to instill family values and using the words of an LDS prophet against its members is caught in not only a fraudulent scam involving him stealing $2.1 million from “investors”, serves jail time, receives numerous felony charges on his record after pleading guilty, but is also exposed for sexual misconduct, assault, and battery on a minor, and the development and distribution of pornography. Currently, this guy has 17 felony cases against him in which he pleaded guilty.

He isn’t currently serving any time. In fact, he’s making a good living on doing the same things as before.

I turned down potential tenants at the apartment complex for crimes putting oneself on the sex offenders list because I feel that pornography and any of it’s affiliated crimes are incurable and cannot be rehabilitated. The above stories of true people and events shows that they have a track record and cannot be stopped. Those are the types of people that belong in jail and the keys suddenly and mysteriously disappearing. They associate themselves with organizations that pride themselves on families, values, and morality while actively supporting the discrimination of those seeking equality for all. It sickens me.

The judicial system I feel works. It’s fair. The punishment of convicts needs a serious overhaul. Obviously punishment and rehabilitation are failing and ultimately hurting us as a society and as a community. Maybe as a way to fix this and make our crimes known to the mass public is the ability for anyone to scan a license plate with a cell phone, giving us all the information we need about who to trust, but that sounds like a scam too.