OT: Florida Man Gets Life In Prison For $4 Socks

Florida's Sun Sentinel, citing Orlando Sentinel, reports that a man got life in prison for stealing $4 package of socks, because he was a repeat offender and also happened to carry a handgun at the time of shoplifting.

Life in prison for stealing $4 package of socks (5/23/2010 Sun Sentinel)

"What started as shoplifting and turned into an armed robbery when the suspect revealed a handgun to a loss-prevention officer has resulted in a mandatory sentence of life in prison for a Daytona Beach man, reports the Orlando Sentinel.

"A jury deliberated for about an hour April 14 before finding Dean Rockmore, 48, guilty of robbery with a firearm, assistant State Attorney Chris Kelly said. On Friday, Circuit Judge Margaret Hudson found that Rockmore qualified as a prison releasee re-offender and handed down the life sentence, Kelly said.

"Rockmore was released from prison Jan. 26, 2009, and committed the robbery about two months later on March 29, according to court documents.

"An employee at the DeLand Walmart saw Rockmore place packages of tee shirts and socks into the front of his pants and stopped him, reports show. Rockmore ran when customers came between him and the worker, and he was chased into the parking lot.

"Rockmore dropped the shirts, but he got away with a $4 package of socks after the Walmart employee backed off when Rockmore lifted his shirt to show a gun, police said."

So, a shoplifting became armed robbery, even if he didn't use the gun to take the shirts and socks from the store.

What's interesting to me is the response of the readers. Majority of them decry "yellow journalism" for failing to mention on the headline that this guy had a gun, and are happy to see the man behind bars for life for stealing $4 socks; some are even calling for execution by electric chair or by a firing squad. One person says his organs should be auctioned off.

For $4 socks.

What kind of hysteria is this?

The very few sane posts that I could find:

"Another example that we are interested in incarcerating people because it is a money making venture. People who commit murder ger 8 years and this guy who didn't hurt a fly gets life and the dopes on this website think it's justice. I hope others see this and decide to shoot their way out next time."

"Jeeze, a white guy??? What's going on in Florida????"

My guess is that it is easier for people to get the sense of $4 package of socks and a handgun than to understand the theft by Wall Street banks of tens of bilions of dollars and their weapons are financial derivatives. Under the financial "reform" bill that passed the Senate, the chief of these banksters, the Federal Reserve, is set to protect you and me who have the keen sense of $4 package of socks.

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