Almost two years ago, Helen Golay and Olga Rutterschmidt were arrested on suspicion of befriending homeless men, taking out insurance policies on them and then running them over. FYI - Self referential narcissism here and here.
Well, the murdering blue hairs (alleged) are back in the news as their trial gets underway. Prosecutors opened their case on the women presenting some compelling (to me at least and we all know how important that is) evidence, including a tape made of them while they were being held where they appear to be talking about the alleged insurance scam.
There's a bit of a snag in the proceedings, though and I'd be surprised if the defense doesn't hammer it into the ground.
Golay hit 77 in February and Rutterschmidt turns 75 this month. Happy Birthday, Olga! We'll stick a file in that birthday cake and pass it on through. Or would a carton of smokes be better?
Anyway, the point is that any substantial jail time for them is a death sentence. Since they're already facing life with no possibility of parole, it could be a short stint in the hoosegow. This also means that plea bargains aren't really an option. Prosecutors would want some time in the can, which would pretty much be the same as the actual sentence.
And nobody wants to kill little old ladies, right?
Of course, should they kick during the proceedings this will get a lot more interesting.
2 comments:
Do you think age should enter into a sentence? If so, I have some heavy lifting to do.
In a sentence? No. In the outcome of a trial? Sometimes.
For example, a few years ago we had a guy, must have been in his 80's? Mistook the gas for the brake and mowed down something like 10 people at a farmer's market in Santa Monica.
He was acquitted, or got a fine, or something, I think. Got off with next to nothing, either way.
Now, a lot of people weren't happy about this, for obvious reasons. He killed a fair number of folks. Was screaming something like, "Got out of the damn way," or something like that when it happened. Insert get-off-my-damn-lawn jokes here.
Thing is, the guy clearly wasn't thinking clearly, didn't have the reaction speed he needed and wasn't exactly in his right mind.
And whether he should have been behind the wheel of a car or not, the point remains that it was an accident, not murder.
There was discussion about his age in case he got sentenced, but I don't think anyone really thought he was going to be convicted.
This is different. If they're found guilty of murder, well, they should do the time. Or as much as they can before they keel over.
As to your other point, yes, you need to do some heavy lifting. I recommend a tri-state bank robbery spree. Knock over as many banks as you can.
I dare ya.
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