Questions about criminal justice

Re: “Aurora woman sentenced to 25 years after shooting man,” and “Ringleader in jewelry store heist sentenced to 96 years,” May 18 news briefs.

I was shocked to read these two articles. In one, an Aurora woman was sentenced to 25 years in prison for shooting a 36-year-old man in a driveway without provocation. In the other, the ringleader in a jewelry store heist at Park Meadows Mall was sentenced to 96 years.

Is our justice system so broken that a woman who, on probation for her second and third felony convictions, “shot a citizen in cold blood for no reason, then callously walked away to let him die,” gets only 25 years in prison, while one of two men who “destroyed a watch case, stealing and damaging 14 Rolex watches, worth more than $284,000,” gets 96 years?

Obviously, 14 Rolex watches hold more value than a human life in our current system of justice. Joan Schobert, Aurora The May 18 edition The Denver Post included a story regarding the 96-year sentence given to the ringleader in the Park Meadows Ben Bridge jewelry store smash-and-grab robbery. That evening, 9News aired a story about a young girl who is a victim of shaken-baby syndrome. The child suffered severe permanent brain damage and at 8 years old needs roundthe-clock assistance, and will for the rest of her life. The father in the case was sent to jail, but was recently released.

It’s a sad commentary on society when we place more value on Rolex watches by punishing the criminal more severely than we do someone who destroys a child’s life. Victoria Morris, Idaho Springs