Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

jool,

way to register to be retarded.

he didn't say like "how dare they send a white jew to prison!"

he said it like "im this little white guy and im going to place that is like 80%+ non-white and a lot of them are huge ripped dudes with tattoos covering their bodies"

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

Ads,

Only 8 of us were left at the time of my trial. There would be anothjer trial after ours for the other 4. The other 4 were offered some crazy deal like 5-10. They went to trial were found not guilty on 15-18 charges, 2 sentenced 3-9 two to 5-10.

The owner of the firm where i was a branch mgr, was in bed with stockpromoters (guys who paid to have their stock recommended) . The da thought my office was involved as well. After 6 months of our lawyers basically proving we were not, the da finally relented, and agreed wew were not part of that,but still needed his pound of flesh and charged us with sales practice violations.Before the trial at worst they would be civil penalties, but the da invoked them as criminal

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

NC,

Fortunately I am able to eek a a living out of trading my own account very conservatively. I have been involved with a few startups trying to get them off the ground,they did not get going. I am currently involved with a solar energy company that has the potential to work out well.

Jool,

Noah is right. I was painting a picture of me being a deer in head lights, and the jury would have a hard time understanding a comples case.

My feeling of the justice system is that it is far from perfect. I beleive that most people have no uinderstanding that the DA can basically get convivtions, pleas on anything with the threat of enoguh jail time. I would have confessed to shootiung kennedy at the time i Plead

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

OP,

from the very little I know about the court system or your situation, it sounds like:

- you should have gotten a better lawyer.

- a jury full of people having no idea about the business you were involved in should have easily worked out in your favor with half competent representation.

I agree the American justice system, particularly the huge politicization of the DA's office, is very bad.

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

Noah,

I know that's not what he was saying. My point was exactly that- even when we don't mean it to, diction can carry with it implicit ideas that we may or may not subscribe to on some level. I think on a subject like this- whose machinations are so large that we might not notice them- it wouldn't hurt anyone to think about the things we off-handedly say.

xx,

totally valid response, and i definitely have my own problems with the "jury of your peers" idea. glad to hear things might be headed in the right direction with you.

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

My aunt actually knew somebody who went to jail and I was able to speak to him. He also was a jewish guy, but hardcore, in for attempted murder. He basically told me if anybody [censored], with you or even says something, dont hesitate just hit them as hard as you can in the throat. I was like WTF!?! Not knowing better that was the attitude I thought I would take.

2 days before I was to go in, my friends and I were on Park ave, where a black guy was trying to sell us a fake rolex. My friend said, they wont need that where they are going. They guy was like "where you going?". When I told him, he was like" no way I just got outta there".

I was so happy that here was person that could give meadvice as to what to expect. He asked me my name, I told him. He then replied,"Look Rick when you go in you may have some people [censored] with you saying 'what's up cracker' and things like that. All you do is look them in the eye ask them their name. Then put out your hand and introduce yourself.Hmmmm...

So when I first get to RIkers Island I was in a dorm with 50 other people in a room the size of a small tennis court. I walk in, the only white guy, and feel the eyes upon me.I put my stuff down and go to the phone.

You need PIN numbers to dial out, mine was not activated yet so I slammed the phone down out of frustration. As soon as I did that I hear, "I DONT CARE WHAT YOUR PROBLEM IS M-Fer DONT BE SLAMMING DOWN THE PHONE!!!

Uh-OH, so I quickly think what my options are:

1. Just walk away
2. Turn around and punch him in the throat
or...

So I turn around and there are 2 huge black guys. Before they can say anything I ask, "what''s your name?".He looks surprised, hesitates and says,"Light".

I stick my hand out shake his hand and say"my name is xx". He shakes and in a voice that had nothing similar to theone that yelled at me said,"I know it gets frustrating its just that these phiones sometimes blink off if you slam them".

That scenario represents what most of my time was like.

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
So this Jewish white kid (well not a kid 32 at the time)

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I don't mean to derail, as it sounds like you were the victim of an imperfect legal system, and that really does suck. I have to say, though, that language like this (combined w/ the line about unemployed harlem people) comes off a little racist. I know saying that you are white and jewish is just a fact, but the implication when you include it so explicitly is that it's more fair for black people to be going to jail.

[/ QUOTE ]

lolz

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

[ QUOTE ]
OP,

from the very little I know about the court system or your situation, it sounds like:

- you should have gotten a better lawyer.

- a jury full of people having no idea about the business you were involved in should have easily worked out in your favor with half competent representation.

I agree the American justice system, particularly the huge politicization of the DA's office, is very bad.

[/ QUOTE ]

Agreed if it was a murder charge or even a 1 0r 2 white collar charge, but the DA charged us with 18 counts, of repetative charges. So even if the jury thought" they dont seem guilty, we'll just convict them of 1 of the 17", we would still have to do 1-3. My point is that what the DA was doing with over charging was almost assuring a conviction on something.

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

xx,

that phone story is awesome.

Do you mind going into more detail about the facts of the case?

Re: Ask me about financial success to spending 2 years state prison
 

all,

Under a NY law, that was supposed to penalize the rare coin industry, it is illegal to recommend an investment to a client without telling them all of the risks involved. Most of our charges were this. Meaning that we were supposed to tell our clients all the risks involved in any stock we recommend. If we recommended microsoft we would have to tell them all about the antitrust suit in Europe etc...