Rajat Gupta, former CEO of the consulting firm McKinsey, was sentenced today to two years in Federal prison for insider trading. http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/10/24/rajat-gupta-gets-2-years-in-prison/?
The tragedy here is not that of a good man going to prison for an arguably “victimless” crime but that yet another individual fell victim to a criminal justice system which no longer requires an individual to have a reasonable expectation or knowledge that he is even committing a crime. The number of possible Federal crimes is proliferating. Combine this with politically motivated prosecutors and pandering politicians and you have a toxic brew where the lives of unwitting individuals and the lives of their families are devastated to satisfy the political ambitions of a few.
Unlike Mr. Gupta, most people charged with a Federal offense do not have the resources to go to trial. Faced with financial ruin and the threat of being charged with additional crimes and minimum sentences if they go to trial, is it any wonder that most Federal “crimes” ( more than 90%) are settled by the “criminals” pleading guilty without the benefit of a trial ? These people and their families are the true “victims” in many of these cases. Shouldn’t the government be protecting these people rather than sacrificing them at the altar of political correctness?
