Away, you three inch fool!

While perusing some news sites online, I came across this little gem from the Associated Press (available here from the Washington Post). A judge found a convicted sex offender lacked sufficient height at 5'1" to go to jail and sentenced him instead to a period of house arrest with electronic surveillance. If you ask me, this decision is a little short sighted. While I am sure the judge was well intentioned, this ruling has a major shortcoming that simply cannot be overlooked. It sends a dangerous precedent that vertically challenged individuals (I hope I used the right politically correct term...I know some people can be quite short tempered about things like this) can duck under the law. It will encourage the growth of crime from such individuals as they are emboldened by the leniency they face to commit acts that a taller individual would stop short of committing.

Let me remind you that this is no small offence. It's not like the guy is getting this as a tiny slap on the wrist in lieu of a short term jail sentence. This is a convicted sex offender who was apparently involved with small children (although I must confess that I am a little ignorant of the exact circumstances as the article is quite short gives only skimpy details). And while I understand that space to house prisoners is in short supply in our overcrowded penal system, I am simply not convinced that house arrest will keep him on a short enough leash. The severity of his crime could easily dwarf the crimes of many individuals currently serving time in prison. But yet while they are in jail complaining about the meals , he sits comfortably at home watching SportsCenter highlights of Miguel Tejada (SS for the Baltimore Orioles) and dining on filet mignon with a strawberry shortcake dessert.

In short, it is a clear violation of equal protection under the law.