Unjust Application of Law

It was the great Martin Luther King Jr. who once stated, "Sometimes a law is just on its face and unjust in its application." He was right in his beliefs as a law may appear correct on paper but when practiced, it becomes unfair and seemingly no longer applicable to the situation. In my own experience, King's statement came alive when a close friend was unjustly sentenced. It was through this that I discovered to never put myself in a position where I could be made an example of.

It was more then ten years ago when a close family friend of mine has been at the peak of struggling with manic depression. A bipolar disorder, main depression is a mental illness which is characterized by episodes of mania, excessively intense enthusiasm, interest, or desire, followed by intense episodes of depression. This dramatic change in mental states causes profuse and rapidly changing ideas, gaiety, or irritability as well as decreased sleep. As a result, without medication, my friend was greatly affected at home with his family, but more importantly at his job.

He had been a Crown Attorney in Canada, which is the equivalent of a criminal lawyer. This kind of career demands long hours, along with the assignment of emotionally draining cases. Consequently, this caused him to become attached and overly sympathetic towards many of the people he dealt with. In addition, to being an attorney, he was partially in charge of a scholarship fund at a local community college. While under the influence of the manic depression, it seemed a good idea to take advantage of the scholarship money to help the people he got involved with in the emotional cases. As a result, the money was wrongfully distributed, and what seemed like a good idea at this time, turned into a life altering mistake.

The punishment for his wrongdoing would last over the next ten years. Although all the money was repaid in full at the expense of a large debt and continual strain on the family life, he was still an attorney, which meant someone who was supposed to uphold the law, broke it. Therefore, a trail was in order where things would not turn out for the best. Despite the money being paid back, and by this time, several years of psychiatric treatment, and character reference letters from many friends and colleagues, he received two years less a day in a maximum security prison. He was not a violent offender, a drug dealer, or a back robber, he was a Crown Attorney.