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If a convicted criminal writes a book, does an interview or has a film made about them, should they be allowed to earn money from these things? Considering that they are essentially profiting from their crimes.
What if the person had committed some particularly heinous crimes?
| Yes | 7 | |
| No | 13 | |
| Stop touching me. | 11 | |
| Other | 2 |
This is one of those cases where it might not be pleasant but I think freedom of speech trumps most other issues. US courts seem to agree as "Son of Sam" laws have repeatedly been found unconstitutional.
But I would not personally buy such a book, and that I think is the best way to handle it.
Depending on crime they might have to go on the sex offender list, be allowed to vote do some jobs like security and not be hired by most of the rest, or own guns, join the military, be a lawyer, not be allowed to come within come within certain feet of a person or playgrounds/schools/children, be put in a mental hospital or sex offender ward after their sentence, be chemically castrated (if they want to get out), see a parole officer all the time, at their own cost, wear a GPS on their ankle. And rightly so. What's the problem with requiring criminals to give all book money to charity or at least do it for free? If a mafia member talks about mafiaing maybe he should be allowed to do so, especially if no victims or family of victims object but what if he describes the rape, blowtorch eyeball destruction (even the horror movie writer had no idea if what he wrote was medically accurate), and live dismemberment of your child with details that only someone who has done that would learn, or possibly the minority of people with medical and biochemistry training to have even used it to think of that maybe details that even some doctors wouldn't know if you asked them and writes a bible on how to serial kill? (free speech, woo!)
In other words, we screw criminals over every which way already, so why not take away their freedom of speech too? That's not very good argument.
Incidentally after posting the last time I read up on this a little bit, and apparently New York passed a revised law after the old one was struck down, such that the profit isn't automatically forfeit, but the victims must be notified and have an opportunity to sue for it. I can't find too many details, but that does sound a little more reasonable, and apparently it's held up constitutionally so far.
If they're able to not do it but do it anyway cause they didn't think they'd get caught then they're the ones screwing everyone over and they deserve what's coming to them. Also, some of those things are for public safety and only have side effects of being punitive. And the people who want a second chance to stop cause they got caught instead of a genuine change like remorse are the lowest form of law-abider and they should not whine that X didn't want to hire or rent to their lowlife. There should be like rooms and food stamps and spartan spending money for them if they really can't make it, though. Paid for by picking up garbage and dog poop in the street. Full time.
If they're profiting from their story they have either already done their time and gotten out or were found innocent in the first place, so yes, I think so anyway.