Public Punishment
BEDFORD, Pa. (AP) -- In exchange for no jail time, a woman and her adult daughter have agreed to stand outside a Pennsylvania courthouse holding signs saying they stole a gift card from a 9-year-old girl on her birthday.
Fifty-six-year-old Evelyn Border and 35-year-old Tina Griekspoor stood outside the court for 4 1/2 hours Tuesday. They held signs that read: "I stole from a 9-year-old girl on her birthday! Don't steal or this could happen to you!"
Because the women agreed to hold the signs, Bedford County District Attorney Bill Higgins says he'll ask for probation instead of jail when they plead guilty to the theft. Higgins says they swiped a gift card that the girl set on a shelf while a Walmart employee helped her.
---- My daughter and I were discussing public punishment recently. With jails overloaded and people who cannot or will not pay fines for petty crimes ... maybe embarrassment is a viable option. Probably won't make a difference ... as some folks have no shame. These ladies are likely laughing and cutting out the newspaper pics of themselves. Reminds me of the Puritan days, stocks and pillory. Part of that evolutionary regression maybe?
2 comments:
There for a brief moment I had visions of a new career - in sign making (that's a spiffy professional sign). Then I realized I could not afford the application fees, contracting agreement and continued licensing fees necessary to establish oneself as a government sign-maker.
Back to the ironing board. . .
Kathy
Lol. You have an enterprising and creative mind - too bad we don't have a free enterprise system. :)
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