[*BCM*] Cyclist foils heist, Boston Phoenix 9/28

[Paul Centro]

It might have been interesting if someone had spoken to James Johnson, the alleged perp, for his side of the story.  While I do not know his circumstances, let me suggest an alternative read for stories such as this:
   
  -Drug addict in the throes of addiction needs money for a fix.  John Doe of Boston who has been unable to find steady employment due to arrests in his youth for minor offenses finds himself in increasingly desperate circumstances.  What started out as recreational use of cocaine has become a $50 a day methamphetamine addiction.  "I'd like to kick, but I cannot afford treatment and all of the subsidized slots are filled," says Mr. Doe.
   
  "I'm really sorry about the bike, and you have to understand how desperate I am, I'm looking at 2 years in jail due to prior convictions.  Running is the only choice I have right now."
   
  Is this so far fetched?  I would argue that most of the property crime in this city is perpetrated for just such reasons.  Can we feel good that this person was caught?  What's to become of him?  Jail at 40k+ a year with no rehab or job training at worst, unable to work because of a CORI that will follow him for the rest of his life and vote dis-enfranchisement at best is what it looks like to me.  All this for a bike?  I see no justice here.
   
  Make no mistake, we pay for folks to use drugs and crime is the method of payment.  Drug laws have a human cost and I think it's time for a little empathy in place of punishment.  I am disappointed that someone involved with Critical Mass is so stoked at the result.  If these folks are unable to see beneath the surface of things, who is?
   
  Peter McNeff,
  Jamaica Plain     
   
   

       
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