Mandy
Today the Ragister ran an Iowa View by an Iowan, stunning and the scientific community is united in that fact.
The mother of Mandy Martinson wants your heart to bleed for her daughter who was convicted by a jury of her peers for -- conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine and conspiracy to distribute marijuana; possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of a mixture containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine; and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
She also had those convictions affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals,Eighth Circuit.
Her mother claims her daughter was leading a full, productive life before her drug problems escalated, taking everything from her in a matter of months.
What?!?!
From where I sit, those who lead full, productive lives don't do drugs, let alone have drug problems escalate.
Mama blames all of her daughter's problems on boyfriends and states -- While her charges were pending, she realized she needed help. She obtained drug treatment and sobered up, resumed her career as a dental hygienist, and reconciled with our family.
If I may quote Mama, too little and too late.
Mama also said -- Mandy has maintained her sobriety throughout the eight years she has spent in prison. She knows that she broke the law and deserved to be punished.
Celebrating sobriety because of prison, isn't that something.
It doesn't sound like Mandy fully feels she deserved to be punished as she filed motions for judgment of acquittal on the Government's alleged failure to establish sufficient evidence to sustain a conviction
and believed that the district court should have granted her a new trial on the basis of insufficient evidence to sustain her convictions despite her failure to move for a new trial before the district court.
It appears that Mandy Martinson is lucky to be serving only 15 years, as she could have had 25.
The district court sentenced Martinson to a 120-month mandatory-minimum sentence for her conspiracy conviction, a concurrent 120-month sentence for her possession-with-intent-to-distribute conviction, and a consecutive 60-month mandatory-minimum sentence for her firearm conviction. Martinson's resulting 180-month sentence was the statutory minimum available to the district court.
I will agree that it's too bad that Martinson is doing three years more than the dealer, who was able to cut a deal.
posted by King of SNARK at 11:00 AM
4 Comments:
I don't believe she was wanting you or anyone to "bleed for her daughter". I think she was simply using her daughter's story as an example of why the Justice Safety Valve Act is a step in the right direction. She is also stating that Iowa leaders need to take a long hard look at all mandatory minimum sentences so that what has happened to her daughter doesn't happen to children of others. So before you make a "holier than thou" statement such as you have here, maybe you should really read something, get off your "throne" of thinking your better than others and really pay attention to what someone has written.
1:10 PM
If Mandy's mother wasn't trying to get "your heart to bleed for her daughter", she wouldn't be playing on people's emotions by stating -- "She fears that she will not be released in time to find a life partner, conceive children and have a family of her own."
Those are things Mandy should have thought of before she allowed the scourge of illegal drugs to prosper in her community.
How many people did she help rob of that dream by her actions, or inaction?
The entire facts of the case were not presented as well, because they would not show Mandy in the best possible light in the court of public opinion.
Mandatory sentences came into play because the public was tired of criminals being let off the hook, for their crimes, by judges who feel they are accountable to no one.
If by not using illegal drugs, committing a crime, or ever being arrested makes me "holier than thou" -- so be it.
Thanks for reading
1:30 PM
If you do your research, you will find that the point of mandatory minimum sentences was to get drug kingpins NOT low level non-violent offenders. That is where the law went wrong. Judge Bennett said it best in his article http://www.thenation.com/article/170815/how-mandatory-minimums-forced-me-send-more-1000-nonviolent-drug-offenders-federal-pri#axzz2fGeuA19F
So what if she stated that "she fears that she will not be released in time to find a life partner, conceive children and have a family of her own", that is her opinion, what she feels. She's not asking anyone to feel the same. I'm pretty sure the way the media spins the story has to do with the way it "tries to get your heart to bleed". You can read the entire facts of her case online if you were to google her name. All her appeal briefs are public record. I know every fact of her case personally. I also know that FAMM does not do articles on just anyone. They need your PSI and all facts of the case before they do so. They wouldn't have done a feature for her, if there was any sort of indication that she deserved or was fairly given the sentence she received.
Also, just to clarify....not doing illegal drugs, committing a crime or ever being arrested does not make you "holier than thou". Your lack of compassion and not believing that people deserve second chances and that all people have rights and deserve to be treated fairly, makes you seem "holier than thou".
This is a matter of justice. And in this case a 15-yr sentence for her role in this crime is not justice at all!
1:00 PM
Here's your research, from Brandeis University --
Throughout the United States, those convicted of certain crimes must be sentenced to at least the number of years in prison dictated by federal guidelines and/or state laws. Referred to as mandatory minimum sentences, they apply to a wide range of crimes, ranging from murder and drug possession to child pornography and insider trading.
Indeterminate sentencing began to lose favor during the 1970s because it allowed judges and parole boards to become too lenient in their handling of convicted criminals at the expense of public safety.
The media didn't spin the story, this was an OP/ED written by Mandy's Mom.
I am a very compassionate person and have no problem with Mandy getting a second chance, after she's served her time.
Justice is the process or result of using laws to judge and punish crimes and criminals.
Therefore, Justice has been served, as Mandy was found guilty by a jury of her peers and that conviction was affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals,Eighth Circuit.
Once again, Thanks for reading.
2:56 PM
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