Free Fastow?

As today’s NY Times puts it: “Andrew S. Fastow, the former chief financial officer of Enron, whose schemes to defraud the company made him a symbol of corporate corruption, was sentenced Tuesday to six years in prison for his role in Enron’s collapse in 2001.” His original plea bargain was 10 years, in exchange for cooperating with investigators, but the judge in the case reduced Fastow’s sentence, as I understand it, for several reasons: First, because Fastow had been the “subject of great persecution,” including anti-semitic threats; second, because the former CFO seemed genuinely penitent; and third—and this is the one that’s a kicker to me—because his wife, Lea, had already served a year in jail for tax fraud.

Now, generally, I’m no great fan of harsh punishments for criminals. I’ve claimed that I’d be willing to let the guy who stole my bike go scot-free if only he’d return it. But this seems very different.

My bike thief was a drug-addict street person who impulsively stole a bike and (probably) fenced it for a quick fix; Fastow was a slick corporate exec who masterminded a complex scam that resulted in thousands of people losing their jobs and savings. Now that they’ve been caught, I’m sure they’re both sorry about what they did, but I’d venture to say that Fastow enjoyed the fruits of his criminal activities a lot more when they were happening than my bike thief ever did.

And while I feel sorry that Mrs. Fastow also had to go to jail for fiscal misbehavior, I don’t see why her being a scofflaw, too, means that her husband ought to get off any easier. Most criminals surely come from criminal backgrounds, don’t they? Does this mean that Clyde should go free because Bonnie’s serving time? Do her sons get off because Ma Barker’s in the hoosegow? Should Jenna and Barbara have their DUI’s thrown out when Daddy goes to jail for war crimes?