Please explain as if I were an elementary school age child. Why

[raccoon]

is it people like Madoff, Kenneth Lay, etc., never serve any even semi-hard jail time?

[liberal N proud]

1. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

The will screw everyone but their lawyer and they have very good lawyers

[TheCowsCameHome]

3. Bingo. That's the magic ingredient

[kwassa]

2. Because rich people are always innocent.

They are better human beings, which is why they are rich.

[Hissyspit]

4. "Steal. Big."

And have lots of powerful friends who are stealing big, too.

[SheilaT]

5. On a less cynical level,

prisons were built to incarcerate violent criminals. Rape, murder, robbery, and so on are the traditional crimes that we've put people in prison for. So-called white collar crimes are relatively new and our legal system has not caught up with this other category of non-violent crime. I can recall back in the 1970's when white collar crimes and criminals first came to public awareness and there was something of a public debate about how to handle these crimes and criminals.

The essential thing is that those who are referred to in the OP are in a way part of the system: they belong to the class of those who run the legal system, and what they did does not involve physical violence. They are white middle-aged males, and so the legal system bends over backwards in its presumption of their innocence.

[ejpoeta]

8. the moral of the story is....

if you are going to steal, don't rob houses or banks. start up a ponzi scheme and bilk millions out of lots of people and use that money to become 'high society'... then when you are under house arrest, you can be in a big fancy house, like madoff. and you can complain about how tough it is being stuck in your fancy expensive house. but you won't be in a cell, like the rest of us.

[Bjorn Against]

15. Tell that to all the people locked up for nonviolent drug offenses

[remedy1]

6. Well...

Madoff hasn't been convicted of anything yet. He is out on bail and under house arrest. The way it works in America is that one is innocent until proven guilty. If he is convicted, (as he likely will be) he will probably die in prison.

Ken Lay is dead.

Jeffrey Skilling (Enron) is serving a 24 year prison sentence.

Bernie Ebbers (WorldCom) is serving a 25 year prison sentence.

There are many others from Enron and WorldCom who were tried, convicted and made to forfeit millions of dollars.

The fact is that those who get caught usually are punished severely.

Unfortunately, in most cases the money is gone, and the investors are screwed.

[KittyWampus]

9. correction, Ken Lay is "dead" not dead.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

10. Well, he's been cremated and had his ashes scattered...

That's usually fatal...

[MiniMe]

16. A body was cremated and his ashes scattered

But were they Ken Lay's?

[Donald Ian Rankin]

17. Yes.

N.T.

[Sequoia]

21. I never thought they were.

He's hiding in another country with a new face. You know, you can change a person on the outside but the walk is still the same. I wonder if his voice was changed.

[mattvermont]

7. Bob Dylan quote

"Steal a little and they throw you in jail; steal a lot and they make you kiinng"

[ThomWV]

11. First because they write the laws and second they bribe those entrusted to enforce laws.

The bribes come in a million ways - a lunch, a jet, a trip to the Isles for a game of golf, a maxed out campaign contribution, bundled campaign contributions. Plain old outright graft; a second floor on a Senator's home, cash in bags, women, girls, or boys for sex.

[Skidmore]

12. They would serve time

if they stole a loaf of bread to feed their children, a slice of pizza to dull hunger pangs, or a candy bar. We have prisons full of people sent up on minor nonviolent charges.

I'd like to see us storming the gates and demanding enforcement of the laws for white collar crime. A good place to begin would be with the last administration. They need to serve time.

[remedy1]

13. The problem isn't enforcing the laws.

The problem is with oversight. The SEC is a joke. Most of those charged with oversight don't have the skills to understand the fraud.

The fact is that when white collar criminals are eventually caught, they usually pay severe penalties, i.e. prison time.

[mod mom]

14. The ruling class doesn't like to see folks similar to themselves face justice.

[zagging]

18. People protect their friends

Sometimes when people do naughty things, their friends don't punish them even though they should. Remember the time Billy was pulling on the cat's tail and you didn't tell daddy about it? Well, it's sort of the same thing except for the 50 billion dollars.

Now, eat your peas.

[Hepburn]

19. REPUBLICAN Friends in High Places

Ummmmmm....who do you think are and were major donors to asswipes like Bush? And...who do you think for the last 8 years appointed the US Attys?

It is called being connected and having dough.

:hi:

[tjwash]

20. Because they own this fucking place.

I miss George...