Many times, the inadequacy of the US legal system has been exposed by individuals who have been incarcerated unfairly. The Kemba Smith’s case is a prominent example of many other cases that have had individuals imprisoned without adequate reflection and consideration. Kemba was born and raised near Richmond in a community that was middle-class and protective. When she was only in her second year at Richmond University, she met Peter Hall, who became her boyfriend and was eight years older than she was (Boyes-Watson, 2014). Unknown to Smith, Hall was a drug dealer and was even the leader of a drug gang that was being hunted by the security authorities (Smith, 2013). It is reported that Smith made several attempts to escape but was abused physically and emotionally by Hall. Eventually when Hall was found murdered, Smith was held accountable for the illegal drug peddling in the US. As a result, she was sentenced to twenty four and a half years in a federal prison. At the time of the charge, Smith was pregnant. It is also surprising that Smith pleaded guilty to the charges, knowing very well that she was not responsible for the drug trade. The charge not only caused outrage in the US but different critics in the world found fault in the US justice system.
In Kemba’s case, the prosecutor’s charges were mainly about Kemba’s actions of trying to obstruct justice while Kemba’s lawyer advised her to plead guilty to the charges, which she did. According to the charges presented to court, and according to the constitution, drug peddlers ought to be given harsh sentences. The objective is to make them reform, as well as, make other peddlers to stop the practice (Boyes-Watson, 2014). Therefore, the charges that were presented by the prosecutor deserved the punishment that was given. Perhaps it was the reason why the lawyer prompted Smith to plead guilty to the charges. However, the individual did not deserve such a harsh punishment. The lawyer did not attempt investigating the case conclusively and even raising crucial concerns during the hearing. It was not appropriate to subject Kemba to such harsh punitive measures despite having no past criminal records.
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If I were given an opportunity to rule Kemba’s case, I would have done it differently. First, I would have required that both the prosecutor and the lawyers come up with empirical evidence to prove their arguments. It is unusual for a lawyer to advise his or her client to plead guilty to charges when it is his or her responsibility to ensure that the client receives fair trial. Since there was evidence that Kemba had stayed with Peter Hall and even helped him avoid the trap of authorities, definitely there was need for corrective measures (Boyes-Watson, 2014). Nevertheless, I would have recommended the use of restorative justice than the punitive one. The reason is that Kemba had no past criminal records, which indicated that she was harmful to members of the public. Even during her relation with Hall, there was no indication that she had involved herself in any violent crime. She only took a partial role which often was caused by compulsion. She was being used by other people to accomplish their agenda.
Restorative justice would mean that I recommend that Kemba be taken to facilities that counsel individuals who have been involved in bad practices in the past. That would mean that she also receives a shorter sentence but under the care and guidance of professionals. Subjecting people such as Kemba does not solve the war on drugs because the real drug traffickers are let scot-free while partial participants are punished for other people’s mistakes. It would have been important if all the participants in the case had investigated Kemba’s background, her experiences at school, as well as, her behavior at home. For instance, it is reported that Kemba was raised in a protective community. Her parents’ efforts to follow her case also demonstrated that they were surprised because they did not find any bad conduct in their daughter. Perhaps both the prosecutor and the lawyers would have spent some time questioning people who were close to Kemba about her conduct. It was not also usual for female graduates to engage in illegal activities at the time (Smith, 2013). Some of the people that would have provided valuable information about Kemba’s conduct were her classmates, friends, and the school administration. There is also a possibility that Kemba would have confided in one of her friends about the situation that she was in.
Most people’s behavior is demonstrated at school. The school administration usually punishes students who do not portray good conduct in school. Also, most school administrations keep records of the conduct of their students, which are always available even after their graduation. Kemba did not have any bad record in all the learning institutions she went through. Both the prosecutor and Kemba’s lawyer did not bother asking for her past conduct from both her friends, family members, and learning institutions. All the participants in the case seemingly were only interested in the weight of the case to the extent that they were oblivious of several factors. Although legal experts variously emphasize that the US legal system ensures that all individuals are subjected to fair trial, the court proceedings and the outcome of the case was in contradiction with the popular assertion. Kemba was also a new mother, a factor that all the legal players ignored. The legal experts were more interested in imposing a long sentence on Kemba so that they teach other people a lesson.
According to Drucker (2013), all the individuals involved in the case needed to investigate the type of relationship that Kemba had with Hall. It is because the activities that Kemba undertook were not out of her will. Instead, she was coerced and threatened. As mentioned before, she was always subjected to both physical and emotional abuse by Hall if she protested against following Hall’s orders. She could also not report to the authorities because there is a high likelihood that her actions were being monitored closely. If Hall found out that she was trying to report or expose his drug cartel, he would have killed her. The drug cartel could have also pursued some of her family members and caused grievous harm. Just to speculate, there is a high probability that Kemba did not approve of her relationship with Hall. She was only staying with Hall because she lacked options. The consequences of disengagement seemed to be worse than staying. Considering that Hall was among the top 15 individuals who were being pursued by the FBI, it meant that the group was dangerous and was capable of doing anything.
If I were a parent to a college student involved in a drug dealing crowd, I would exercise a lot of caution when dealing with the matter. The most important factor would be the safety of my child, then the law. I would not allow the child to report the matter directly to the law enforcement agencies; I would rather do it myself. It is best when my child is used as a lead contact in capturing the drug dealers. That means that the child is captured together with the drug peddlers. This way, the authorities will understand the plight of my child while ensuring that the child is not harmed by the drug peddlers. It is not possible to persuade the child to abandon a dangerous drug cartel such as the one Hall was in charge without receiving undesirable consequences. The best way is to help the law enforcement authorities to capture members of the gang without causing casualties. After that, the child can be receive counsel from professionals to deter future engagement. It will also be difficult for the drug peddlers to suspect that they were set up.
To conclude, drug trafficking is a crime that involves a large network of individuals. Since the real drug traffickers are often on hunting lists by authorities, they try as much as possible to conceal their activities by using different strategies. For instance, Kemba was only a victim of the trade and did not benefit in any way from the trade. Hall used her to conceal his identity. For example, she rented houses or purchased vehicles using her name but were essentially used by Hall and his drug gang. They therefore only used her for cover. Kemba represents many people who have found themselves victims of illegal activities while the real dangerous criminals escape. Kemba’s case reveals that the war on drugs may not be won because real criminals are hardly captured and punished (Reuter, 2013). The drug victims who are arrested and subjected to harsh sentences may even be hardened and instead of reforming, they could engage in illegal activities to revenge. It is therefore vital that the legal field uses different strategies while punishing people, especially those that do not have a bad criminal record or a questionable background. In fact, the law ought to focus more on restoring individuals to their original behavior other than subjecting them to harsh punitive measures.
References
Boyes-Watson, C. (2014). Crime and justice: Learning through cases . Rowman & Littlefield.
Drucker, E. M. (2013). A Plague of Prisons: The Epidemiology of Mass Incarceration in America . New York: New Press, The.
Reuter, P. (2013). Why has US drug policy changed so little over 30 years?. Crime and Justice , 42 (1), 75-140.
Smith, K. (2013). Poster Child, The Kemba Smith Story . Sarasota: First Edition Design Inc.
