nepils

“There had been … incidents between the two boys prior to this,” she said. “The witness statements make it very clear that this was not a fight. This was one kid coming after another kid.”

Would you agree with that assessment, in regards to the final incident where you stabbed him?

But I guess I'm asking what he did specifically.

Full disclosure, I work in the courts as a prosecutor. I find that on the defense side, the people I know best are naturally the public defenders who I see and work with every single day. And since they're in criminal court five days a week, they really are the ones who "know the system."

I guess I just find it a bit amusing when uber-expensive lawyers who come down to criminal court once a year for the children of golf buddies are the ones claiming a mysterious power to manipulate the system. We literally have to show them where to find the paperwork.

That's why I'm curious what exactly your lawyer did to get you an outcome that you wouldn't have gotten if you weren't as privileged as you admit to being.

Can you describe more specifically how your attorney used personal connections to secure you a more favorable outcome in your case? What do you believe your attorney did that the public defender wouldn't have been able to do?

Prosecutor here. As I'm sure you're aware, the majority of incarcerated drug offenders in this country were convicted on state-level charges, not federal. For marijuana offenders convicted only of possession, that would be the vast majority. The president has no ability to pardon them.

OP's answer is not quite correct, depending on jurisdiction. Jails are generally run by the local municipality or county, and are for (1) people awaiting trial who have not made bail, and (2) people who have been convicted of a crime but sentenced to not-much-time, generally less than a year. Prisons are usually state run, and designed to house people long-term.