Not a Revolving Door, More like a Photon Accelerator

My chief sent an email this week that showed a guy who had been arrested 17 times, mostly for burglary. I glanced down at the name and bells started ringing.

My old friend, William Fletcher, was back in jail. I first encountered William when I was assigned to the detective bureau of the SCSO, back in 2002. I was going over offense reports when I saw one that said a m/w had been seen carrying a neighbor's lawn mower to his car, a red, ford, taurus, license number xxx-xxx (I can't remember the details of the car or tag). I ran the tag and found out it was a rental car and had been rented to Mr Fletcher's mother. I called the neighbors on both sides of his mom's house and found out his name, and that he had been arrested numerous times, and would probably be good for several burglaries. By the time I visited Mr Fletcher, I had compiled a pretty thick folder on him.

I knocked on the door and asked him to come outside to talk to me. Once he was outside, I led him back to my cruiser, which was parked behind a red ford, taurus bearing license number xxx-xxx and proceeded to ask him if he knew anything about the theft of a lawnmower. He said no, he didn't know anything about it. I said, "well, let me read you something" and proceeded to read the narrative about a neighbor seeing a m/w taking a lawnmower and putting it in the trunk of a red, ford, taurus bearing license number xxx-xxx. William didn't look too good. I said, "do you think might remember something now?" William said, "do you have a light?"

Long story - short. William confessed to 100 burglaries and since I was moving out of the bureau to go to Information Systems, he started working with another detective who used him to bust some fencing operations and pawn shops. William knew the system and he was working it to his benefit. He has been arrested several more times since I arrested him, yet he always seems to skate on by the punishment. Even now, after 18 arrests, he only needs 1,500.00 to get out of jail because somebody has set his bond at 15,000.00. That's right, 10% gets you out, and if he gets out, guess what he will be doing? Yep, stealing your stuff and doing dope.

Here's the honest-to-God truth. We don't really need tougher laws, we need tougher judges and magistrates. The law says they can consider past history in setting bond, yet they continue to unleash these terrorists on us. The sad thing is this isn't the most egregious case. Look back on my previous posts and check out the guy who had been arrested 38 times and was given as $25,000.00 bond by Germantown. He made bond within hours of being jailed, and is due in Criminal Court in May for cooking his own meth. To these magistrates and judges I say may your handiwork result in your own destruction!