Word: valis
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...hearing yesterday, Vali D. Chandrasekaran '03 was put on six months of pre-trial probation, ending the legal wrangling surrounding his Jan. 2 alleged break-in to the English Language Center...
...certainly does not warrant jail time. He is no hardened criminal and represents no further menace to society." I was sad to see the Crimson invoke the same tired "tough on crime" rhetoric that often surrounds debates about mandatory minimum sentences, three-strikes laws and the like. I agree: Vali is not a hardened criminal. He is not a menace to society...
...drug use before she made the unfortunate decision to mail a package for a friend in exchange for $44. The package's contents were unknown to her, but happened to contain 200 grams of crack cocaine. She was caught, threw herself on the mercy of the court much like Vali did, and is now serving 10 years in federal prison on a "possession with intent to distribute" conviction. Drake is also black and poor, and has probably never seen Harvard...
...Crimson makes the fine point that "no action occurs in a vacuum." Vali, the editors argue, is to be excused and shown leniency because he was performing "nothing more than a typical college prank." How much more leniency are we to expect, then, when the offending actions are taken out of the direst economic necessity? When the actions stem from long-standing, verifiable physical addiction? Was Vali unaware of the law he was breaking? Was he not in control over what he was doing...
Again, this is not to argue that Vali should be punished. Rather, I urge that we not see things solely from our own privileged, safe position in society. I would hope that Vali, after this "youthful indiscretion," will consider working with the newly founded Harvard Students for Prison Reform in an effort to make our system of justice more just and less punitive--encouraging increased judicial discretion, especially in cases of non-violent offenses, and working toward alternatives to incarceration that address the roots of crimes committed. Further, I would hope that Harvard students and other privileged Americans everywhere will...