Column:
Equal sentences for equal crimes
Punishments for white collar crimes should reflect the magnitude of harm caused.
Published March 5, 2009
Let me tell you a little story about my hometown. Deerfield, Ill., is an innocuous suburb of Chicago. We have our claims to fame: a soon-to-be Guy Fieri-approved diner, a location featured in "The Breakfast Club" and the homes of several members of the Chicago Bulls. And now, our sleepy little 'burb also has a claim to infamy in the worst way, thanks to Abby and Russell Cole. For those not familiar with the story, the Coles, who own a company which buys and sells computer chips, might have swindled $31 million from electronics giant Best Buy.
It is really more embarrassing than anything, especially now when the rest of the country is reeling from an economic crisis, to be caught in any sort of white-collar crime scenario. While one in 10 people in California are unemployed, all that has happened to the Coles so far is that the government has repossessed their Ferrari.
I've been following another significant white-collar crime case, that involving Bernard Madoff, fairly closely because of its impact on the Jewish community, of which I am a part. Author and educator Elie Wiesel, whose foundation was preyed upon by Madoff, said in an Associated Press article that he "would like him to be in a solitary cell with a screen. And on that on that screen for at least five years of his life, every day and every night, there should be pictures of his victims, one, after the other, after the other."
And while I agree with the good folks at Gawker that a crime isn't made worse by the fact that it happened to a great person, I think Wiesel's suggested punishment is a fine idea. All too often, those who commit crimes of the financial nature don't have a sense of whom they are affecting. Madoff would know all the faces of the people impacted by his ineptness and lust for wealth, not just those who lost fortunes, but the families of those who committed suicide after learning they lost everything to his scheme, the Yeshiva University faculty members now out of jobs and the Jewish community at large, victims of Madoff's contribution to heinously negative stereotypes and associations. (Oh, and did I mention he stole from the dude who wrote "Night"?)
The problem with the way white-collar crime is treated by the justice system is this: all too often, the tactics of how something is stolen are considered more than the impact. It's probably safe to say it's easier and far more common to castigate someone for robbing a convenience store with a Glock than for cheating on their corporate tax return or building a Ponzi scheme. But with the latter, the impact is often far greater -- people lose jobs, life savings, money for their educations. Theft is still theft, no matter how it's carried out, so why should an individual who frauds a company be treated any better by the justice system or sent to nicer facilities or have a better legal team than some punk kid who robs a Burger King?
The point is that there needs to be greater steps to both tangibly and symbolically eradicate situations like the ones surrounding the Coles and Mr. Madoff, especially in these frail economic times when the American people cannot afford to be screwed over by the greed and corruption of the already elite few. So with that, I think it may be a good time for MU and the Trulaske College of Business to sever any last remaining ties to the white-collar criminal among its distinguished alumni, former Enron chief executive Kenneth Lay. I know there would be a lot of logistical problems involved in changing the name of the professorship in his name at this point (and no disrespect to Dr. Joseph Haslag, the professor who holds the seat now, for taking the job), but even just little things, like taking his name off of any plaques, getting rid of artistic depictions or photographs, things like that, would be a step in the right direction.
And one final word to the Coles -- thanks for giving Deerfield such a positive reputation.
