From tehgraun:
Black has described the US government’s case against him as “rubbish”, “nonsense”, a “vendetta”, a “persecution” and as “essentially a substitute for a wealth-redistribution policy”. He has condemned prosecutors as “Nazis” and “pygmies”. All these comments were pinned on an office noticeboard by prosecutors, who filed arguments last week calling for a longer sentence because of Black’s contempt for the process.
This prompted a slight change of tack from the peer, who informed the Canadian press in an email that he considered the US justice system to be “one of the 10 best in the world”
UPDATE [5.30pm]: Six and a half to eight years, apparently. So assuming he starts the term in early 2008, he might be out just in time for his seventieth birthday on 25 August 2014. That’ll give him something to look forward to.
Also, “What you really want to try to do is persuade the judge that there are particular aspects of his character which merit a lower sentence.”
…err, best of luck with that…
!!!
It’s officially six and a half years – I think he has to serve 85% of it before being eligible for parole.
I thought Reagan abolished parole in the federal jails. Or was that just for small-scale drug users?
Sorry, not parole – time off for good behaviour. So he’s looking at five and a half years minimum.
Federal parole commissions were abolished across the board by a bipartisan Congressional initiative, the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, in the 80s.