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Ms. Hepatitis C Sentenced to 30 Years

By Jeralyn, Section Colorado News
Posted on Wed Feb 24, 2010 at 05:14:25 PM EST
Tags: kristen diane parker (all tags)
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Kristen Diane Parker, the hospital surgical tech who stole vials of the painkiller fentanyl intended for patients from the operating room of a Denver hospital, injected them and then filled and replaced the vials with saline solution, infecting some patients with the Hepatitis C virus, was sentenced today in federal court in Denver to 30 years in prison.

Last month, the judge rejected the 20 year plea agreement between Parker and the Government because he didn't think 20 years was enough, and offered to allow her to withdraw her guilty plea. She decided to stick with her plea.

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    Ms. Hepatitis C Sentenced to 30 Years | 29 comments (29 topical)

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    30 years seem light (none / 0) (#1)
    by nyrias on Wed Feb 24, 2010 at 06:57:37 PM EST
    for such a monstrous crime. I hope no one dies from her action.

    I'm with ya on monstrous crime... (5.00 / 1) (#4)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 08:49:46 AM EST
    but in no universe is 30 years "light".  30 years in a cage is an eternity.  And such long sentences reflect poorly on us as a society, imo.

    "The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons."

    - Fyodor Dostoevsky



    Parent
    For some crimes (5.00 / 1) (#5)
    by nyjets on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 09:51:59 AM EST
    For some crimes, like the woman in question, 30 years is the only correct sentence. And arguable, considering the nature of her crime, can be considered light.
    ALso, the sentence says nothing about society. What is says is that if you commit a crime, you will be punished based on the crime. Like hers.


    Parent
    It says a lot about society.... (5.00 / 1) (#6)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 09:54:37 AM EST
    it says we can be as cruel and inhumane as a collective as this sick individual.

    Parent
    No it doesn't (5.00 / 1) (#7)
    by nyjets on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 09:59:40 AM EST
    Putting someone in prison does not say that society is sick. It says that it will punish people for crimes.
    This woman hurt a number of innocent people. She should be punished and 30 years is a correct sentence. There is nothing sick about the sentence.

    Parent
    I'm still not sure (none / 0) (#8)
    by jbindc on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 10:17:27 AM EST
    Why it is "curel and inhumane" to punish people  who hurt and kill other people by locking them up where they won't hurt anyone anymore?

    Parent
    Spoken like someone... (none / 0) (#9)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 10:20:21 AM EST
    who has never seen the inside of Prison Nation.

    Luckily I haven't either, only jail...but I read a lot about it and it is certainly cruel and inhumane.

    Parent

    Well (none / 0) (#10)
    by jbindc on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 10:35:51 AM EST
    There is a simple solution to that - Don't steal drugs then replace them with stuff that could permanently injure or kill many others.

    I certainly don't want someone like this walking free.

    Parent

    I don't know... (5.00 / 1) (#12)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 10:53:37 AM EST
    what she did was beyond evil...but I don't think she's a Jeffrey Dahmer that is helpless to stop herself from killing people...if she got off the dope and never worked in healthcare again the public would be just as safe as we would with her locked in a cage...and our souls would be a little cleaner.

    Bumping the sentence from 20 to 30 is just vengeance...pure and simple.

    Parent

    Hey (none / 0) (#13)
    by jbindc on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:26:02 AM EST
    The judge gave her the chance to withdraw her plea and take her chances at trial.  She chose not to and she knew what the consequences would be, so it's hard to feel sorry for her.

    Parent
    I feel sorry... (5.00 / 1) (#15)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:28:34 AM EST
    for us...not her.  Her crimes are hers, the sentence is our crime.

    Parent
    No (none / 0) (#16)
    by jbindc on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:42:57 AM EST
    Her crimes are hers, and everyone of her victims and all their families and friends, and the hospitals and doctors and nurses who had to work on those victims, and everyone else who will be affected because of insurance claims from those victims, and lawsuits, etc.

    You seem like a big-hearted guy, but you always seem to feel sorry for the people who commit crimes and not the victims.

    Parent

    I would think... (none / 0) (#17)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:51:57 AM EST
    feeling sorry for victims goes without saying.

    Yes, many are forced to deal with her crimes, what I meant was the responsibility for her crimes is hers, responsibility for punishment is ours.

    Parent

    The sentence is her punishment (none / 0) (#18)
    by nyjets on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:54:15 AM EST
    The sentence is her punishment for the crimes that she commited. It is not 'our' crime.

    Parent
    Fundamental disagreement... (none / 0) (#19)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:58:07 AM EST
    locking human beings in cages is a crime...same as taking a life is a crime.  In some instances these crimes are justified, self-defense chief among them...but usually not.

    Parent
    10,000+ years of human history (none / 0) (#22)
    by jbindc on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 12:11:16 PM EST
    Would disagree with your thesis.  Separating people who do bad things from the rest of society is not a crime, nor cruel, nor inhumane.  

    Parent
    I dont see that (none / 0) (#26)
    by jondee on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 03:42:22 PM EST
    it's benefited us on iota, if the goal was to stop people from doing bad things.

    The 10,000 years of tradition argument reminds me of the story of the cannibal mother: "But son..we cannibals have ALWAYS eaten other people!"

    Parent

    The Catholic Church (none / 0) (#27)
    by jondee on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 03:53:18 PM EST
    still thinks celibate priests is a good idea, too.

    Parent
    That is a strange position. (none / 0) (#24)
    by nyrias on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 02:26:37 PM EST
    I have no problem locking someone like that forever. Certainly she would not and should not be an accepted member of society.

    Why is her sentence a crime? There is no fundamental principle that we need to be "nice" to every single individual.

    I don't feel bad nor guilty if we collectively treat criminals harshly.

    Parent

    If you don't see the crime... (none / 0) (#25)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 02:43:58 PM EST
    in chaining and caging and dehumanizing members of our species...I don't know what to tell you nyrias.  It's like saying "I don't see the crime in taking a life".

    Again, sometimes it is justified, sometimes we have no choice...but not to the extent we do it.

    Parent

    I don't see the crime of taking a life ... (none / 0) (#28)
    by nyrias on Fri Feb 26, 2010 at 09:38:32 AM EST
    in many situations.

    In self defense. In capital punishment. In war.

    It is reasonable to debate the "extent" but it is an extreme position to say that any caging is a crime.

    Some very bad members of our species should not be treated as others, based on their OWN behavior. If you think caging is dehumanizing .. fine .. then dehumanize them. Someone who would do such a horrible crime is LESS human, in my books, anyway.

    Parent

    Clean up prison (none / 0) (#11)
    by nyjets on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 10:43:53 AM EST
    Then you clean up the prisons (which I agree is something we do need to do). You do not stop punishing criminals. They are 2 different things.

    Parent
    Clean up prison? (none / 0) (#14)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:27:16 AM EST
    Where do you start?

    Better to just stop sending people to them all willy-nilly...they're so grimy its probably impossible to make 'em any cleaner.

    Parent

    It is not a spar. (none / 0) (#29)
    by nyrias on Fri Feb 26, 2010 at 09:40:20 AM EST
    It is perfectly reasonable to debate whether certain non-violent crimes are crimes at all and whether people should be locked up for them.

    However, in cases so horrendous, there is no doubt that the perpetrator should be locked up and if her cage is a little dirty, she deserves it.

    Parent

    Well, Hep C (none / 0) (#2)
    by Zorba on Wed Feb 24, 2010 at 07:29:18 PM EST
    is not exactly benign.  Most infected people will live years with chronic Hep C, especially with treatment, but it can and does lead to fibrosis and cirrhosis of the liver, and even liver cancer, as well as other life threatening diseases.  Link and Link.  So yes, people will die because of her actions.  Not immediately, but they will die.

    Parent
    Good (none / 0) (#3)
    by jbindc on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 08:36:09 AM EST
    Hopefully no early release for "good behavior".  She should serve every day of her sentence.

    Sounds like there might (5.00 / 1) (#20)
    by jondee on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 11:59:33 AM EST
    be some job openings in the Nebraska penitentiary system for those who can never get enough satisfaction out of making the bad guys suffer.

    Parent
    And if... (5.00 / 1) (#21)
    by kdog on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 12:01:36 PM EST
    the thug in a uniform hadn't been so stupid as to post it on facebook, he'd be bashing another skull as we type.

    Parent
    And being covered for (5.00 / 1) (#23)
    by jondee on Thu Feb 25, 2010 at 12:15:58 PM EST
    one way or the other, by the administrative chain of command right up to and including all the good hangin's-too-good-for-'em types that come out of the woodwork whenever society's righteousness is outraged.  

    Parent
    Ms. Hepatitis C Sentenced to 30 Years | 29 comments (29 topical)

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