What We Call Crime

 WHAT WE CALL CRIME

What we call crime changes regularly or I should say added to.  Our current emphases have been with us for a while:  money, sex, drugs.  Many forms of obtaining money, engaging in sexual activities, or the ingestion of substances that make you feel different from how you normally feel are deemed criminal.  

I know these things because I represent the people who are determined to be  criminals: those engaging in activities that the people in charge deem to be "not acceptable".  A civilized society has always determined that there are some activities that are simply not to be allowed.  I like to refer to Old England, the medieval England, where there were few crimes, but those were pretty self-explanatory and clearly proper.  

Where personal property was hard to find and impossible to replace, stealing it was a serious matter.  Then there were the standard crimes of rape, assault and battery, murder and a few others thought necessary to live in peace and harmony with one another.  One really couldn't find complaint in these crimes - any decent society would have the same.

But here, in the States we have thousands of crimes and we are deemed to know them.  Not knowing them is not a defense.  Tough luck if you do something that is considered criminal.   And since there are thousands of crimes and police everywhere, criminal defense is a profession with opportunity.  I am very fortunate in my choice of professions - that of criminal defense attorney.  Always busy.

The people we elect to represent us, our legislators -  this seems to apply to all legislatures - make new crimes every year, but then they wonder why crime is increasing (in their mind it is always increasing) and it is for a very simple reason.  If there are more crimes, there are more criminals.  One would think that enough is enough already, but no - there is never enough crime.  When one looks for justification in all these new crimes, one has to wonder what is the purpose.  The drug crimes deserve special attention though.  Why is the ingestion of a particular substance illegal and worth many years in prison including substances that are required to be prescribed?

The reason is that "drugs" ruin lives; and consequently, if you are determined to ruin your life, our legislatures have decided it  will be ruined by prison, not illegal substances.  You'll have to admit nothing ruins a life quicker than incarceration.  This is uncontrovertible - - jail is detrimental.  At least if you were getting high, you were enjoying yourself - having a decent experience hopefully.  There is not much that is enjoyable in jail.  

Having considerable association with people who use methamphetamine or other substances determined to be either illegal or illegally obtained, I believe I have a relatively objective view of this situation.  I have known and currently know hundreds of people who are presumably committing daily criminal acts by ingesting things the possession of which is deemed criminal.  They all seem pretty normal to me and not particularly ruined.

Richard E H Phelps II

Mingo