Weger parole good for Weger; better for society

The Illinois Prisoner Review Board did the right thing last November granting parole to convicted triple murderer Charles Weger, who left prison February 21 after a 3 month delay. Incarcerated for 59 years, 3 months and 5 days following his arrest for the killing of 3 Chicago housewives hiking in Starved Rock State Park. Weger, 80, was poised to eclipse the Illinois incarceration mark of another convicted triple murderer, William Heirens, who served 65 years, 8 months and 11 days before his 2012 death in prison. In an irony, both men escaped the death penalty because of doubts of their guilt. And rightly so. Neither was convicted on irrefutable evidence. A year after Weger’s conviction a juror told the Sun-Times she regretted her vote to convict. Heirens conviction was utterly tainted by a made up ‘true confession’ by a Chicago Tribune reporter and extended police torture of the 17 year old patsy designated to clear out 3 heinous and separate Chicago murders, the truth be damned.

Weger, in ill health, can at least can breathe outdoor air a free man till his impending demise.  His release can benefit society by shining a spotlight on Illinois’ outmoded, bloated sentencing restrictions which vastly over incarcerate prisoners. Illinois prisons cage 40,000 in a system designed for 27,000. We’re just one of 9 states with over a thousand serving 50 year plus sentences. Over 4,500 are serving 20 year plus sentences. One in 7 prisoners will die in prison.

While Illinois wisely abolished capital punishment in 2011, we need to take the next, considerably more difficult step, and abolish life without parole. It does nothing to deter crime. It simply clogs up overcrowded prisons with aging, no longer dangerous felons squandering precious tax dollars.  Illinois should go further and consider lowering sentences for all classes of crimes, violent as well as non-violent, when conditions warrant.

The granddaughter of one of Weger’s victims asked “If you let him go today, does that mean the crime wasn’t brutal?” That’s the wrong question. It’s up to society to pose this question: “Does it add any value to Illinois society to waste precious state treasure caging a feeble old man till he expires? The answer to both is a resounding NO.

Trib relishes 14 years for Blago; offers a mere “Tut, Tut” for infinitely worse Trump

To read the Trib’s post release editorial (‘As Trump frees Blagojevich’, Feb. 18) Blago is evil incarnate who deserved to serve every day of his 14 year sentence. Indeed, the Trib offers “his astonishing betrayals of 12 million Illinoisans qualifies him for a sentence of 30 years to life”. Reminds me of the Queen of Hearts in ‘Alice In Wonderland’ shouting “Off with their heads” at Alice, the befuddled playing cards and all who incur her wrath. Granted Blago, a bizarre and hilarious fool who never belonged in the Governor’s Mansion, deserved being impeached, arrested and convicted of public corruption. But after that disgrace and disbarment from further state and local office, Blago warranted a light sentence more in line with petty white collar crime than a preposterously long sentence belonging to violent criminals.

That brings us to Donald J. Trump who ascended to the hallowed presidency with a resume of racism, xenophobic nationalism, business corruption, sexual harassment, vicious blasphemy of any getting in the way of his six decade lust for power and wealth. The Trib is probably more upset over Trump’s commutation of Blago that any of Trump’s debasement of virtually every shred of presidential dignity. “Trump’s decision spits in the eye of those prosecutors, but also the jurors who found the ex-governor guilty” is about the worst the Trib has to offer on a president they should have been furiously banging the impeachment drum to all Chicagoland. Instead the Trib was aghast Trump was impeached, simply offering that “The American people will decide Trump’s fate” (in the November Election). Incredibly, the Trib promoted this remedy after admitting Trump’s doing exactly the same corrupt activity of using his office for personal gain…but on a scale that dwarfs that of Blago. For the Trib, betraying 12 million Illinoisans deserves 14 years in the joint. But for betraying 327 million Americans, Trump deserves another shot at 4 more years.

Sports ownership then and now

Too bad Houston Astros owner Jim Crane didn’t follow the example of Chicago Cardinals owner Chris O’Brien after the NFL awarded the Cardinals the 1925 NFL title. O’Brien refused to accept it because his team cheated to win their game against the Milwaukee Badgers by .hiring Milwaukee high schoolers to play on the Badger team to bolster the Cardinals win-loss percentage in their battle with chief rival Pottsville (PA) Maroons. The Cardinals cruised 58-0 against the kids. It didn’t affect the championship outcome as the Maroons dominated the Cardinals 20-7 in Comisky Park, ensuring them the title. But NFL President Joe Carr rescinded the Maroons title for violating a league rule preventing them from scheduling a game in the Frankfort (PA) Yellow Jackets home territory. In awarding the title to the Cardinals, Carr ruled the Cardinals’ cheating was engineered by a single player unbeknownst to the owner. O’Brien did the right thing, taking responsibility in refusing the title.

Ninety years on Astros’ Crane has decided to hang on to the 2017 World Series Title for dear life even tho it’s tainted with flagrant cheating against Series rival Dodgers. “Our opinion is that this didn’t impact the game. We won the World Series and we’ll leave it at that.” Apparently, Crane simply ignored O’Brien, channeling instead future Cardinal owner Charles Bidwell who acquired the Cardinals in 1946. Bidwell realized the NFL still recognized the Cardinals as the ’25 champs and officially placed the ’25 NFL title back in the Cardinals’ historical record. That wasn’t good for the Cardinals in 1946 and certainly not good for the Astros in 2020.