5 ms·

Yes, and it's a fallacy to imagine you'll never end up there if you don't ever do anything wrong. The proportion of totally innocent people in prison is all but

Yes, and it's a fallacy to imagine you'll never end up there if you don't ever do anything wrong. The proportion of totally innocent people in prison is all but negligible. Hard to believe but true.

pfannkuchen 1y ago
While true that some people do end up in that situation, I think the probability of the average hner ending up in that situation is basically zero. The people who are overrepresented in being harassed by police tend to be underrepresented in technology circles.
- s5300 1y ago
  [flagged]
- rectang 1y ago
  A lot of immigrants read HN, and immigrants are getting plenty harassed these days.
- ljlolel 1y ago
  My friend in tech went to federal prison for years (weed)
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
- john01dav 1y ago
  https://youtu.be/cuIRvn89988 https://youtu.be/cuIRvn89988
- steelframe 1y ago
  This guy just went to federal prison on a 25-year sentence: https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=Syonyk https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=Syonyk https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/prisons/resident-client-search/details/161762 https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/prisons/resident-client-s... Some of his blog posts in the past several months also highlight the dismal state of prison tech, which I suppose is on-point for this thread: https://www.sevarg.net/ https://www.sevarg.net/
  - pfannkuchen 1y ago
    Yeah brb accidentally sexually assaulting a minor under 16, could happen to anyone.
    - nujabe 1y ago
      The only person who suggested that was yourself. > I think the probability of the average hner ending up in that situation is basically zero. You were proven incorrect. There’s no need to move goal posts, it’s not that serious, just accept it and move on.
      - pfannkuchen 1y ago
        You have reading comprehension difficulties. From the post I was replying to: “and it's a fallacy to imagine you'll never end up there if you don't ever do anything wrong” “IF YOU DON’T EVER DO ANYTHING WRONG” But you are right, interacting with this sort of person on the internet is probably a waste of my own time.
        deleted 1y ago
        [deleted]
        nujabe 1y ago
        I bet you think Ulbricht did something wrong too.
        stoltzmann 1y ago
        Well, he did facilitate drug trade. I wouldn't call that "not doing anything wrong". Whether you believe it's morally right or wrong, that doesn't matter - he did violate several high profile laws.
        potato3732842 1y ago
        Anyone thumbing their nose at the feds or sticking their dick in a 16yo knows what the risks are. Now, that's not to say I wouldn't welcome with open arms the "errors" of the legal system (or tax system, or municipal code enforcement, or pretty much anything else where government really screws people by messing up) being concentrated upon the demographics that make up places like HN. After all, the ignorance of said demographics do the bulk of the heavy lifting when it comes to providing the political will to perpetuate unjust systems, for they themselves rarely find themselves targeted by them and when they do they can usually pay the problem away. But I do agree with the person you're replying to, the demographics that make up HN find themselves subject to the kind of law enforcement scrutiny that puts you in prison less than the population average.
- aspenmayer 1y ago
  I was in a relationship, and they were cheating on me, but I did not know that at the time. They also were not sober, which I only found out after the fact. I went to their mom's place to get my things that were there and try to talk to her if possible, and the situation became untenable because of them being unreasonable. I decided to go, and wanted the cat to be in the house while I packed the car. I was a bit more concerned with this issue than might have been reasonable, but didn't use force or anything I can't explain. I needed to recover a legally owned firearm from the property, but didn't want to inflame the situation. I was just concerned for the cat. I told them I would call the authorities if they weren't going to try to resolve the situation without me doing so. I placed the cat inside the door and made a move to go back to our old shared room, as we both stayed with her mom occasionally. They flipped out and hit me with a ceramic dog bowl in the face, nearly knocking one of my teeth out. I was so confused. I knew they didn't want me there, but I wasn't seeking to stay. I wanted to get my things and go, and I wanted the cat to not have to be in a carrier in the heat, because that is cruel and not safe for the animal. I insisted that I call the authorities at this point, and they did too. The police arrested me, and charge stacked me with multiple felony charges. The case was dropped a year and a half later, mere days before my jury trial was set to begin. My public defender tried to get me to take their deal: 20 years suspended sentence, 10 years time served. I dodged a bullet. I made a bad call by dating this person, and I had no idea how bad it was until that day. I'm sure I was culpable by being there and allowing this to happen. I could have walked away. I didn't mean to be party to this situation, and I don't like violence or conflict, but it has been normalized in my life due to circumstances prior to the relationship, so I didn't see the warning signs beforehand. I am single now, and am working on myself. I have been given a second chance, and wish my ex well. I don't hold any ill will. It's just not worth it. I think that these cases are common, or at least ones like it are more common than you think. The authorities have to deal with the situation in front of them, and I don't think folks understand how charge stacking works, or the plea bargain system. I had to tell my lawyer to do their job because I wasn't taking a deal, and that is only because I know enough to know better. Most folks aren't as blameless as I was, and I know I wasn't entirely so, but I did know I didn't break the law in any way, even if I would have done things differently. This is not to say other folks don't deserve punishment, or leniency. I can only speak for myself. I made a mistake, but I didn't deserve to be a felon over it. I didn't even break the law, though I didn't handle the situation well at all. It was a learning experience, to be sure. Until you've had to try to bond out on felony charges, I think you should not assume how probable these things are. It could happen to anyone. Be good to each other.
- rossant 1y ago
  I'm a white guy working in science and tech, and I only avoided jail by sheer luck (believe it or not, one day my 4-month-old baby vomited at the nanny’s, and if it had happened a few hours earlier I would have been the one arrested by the police). Context: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37650402 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37650402 I know several HNers who went through the same situation. By my calculations, the risk is about 1 in 3,000 among young parents. tl;dr: I'll NEVER be alone with a baby under 12 months. Everyone I know who learns about this issue ends up thinking the same.

Yes, and it's a fallacy to imagine you'll never end up there if you don't ever do anything wrong. The proportion of totally innocent people in prison is all but negligible. Hard to believe but true.

pfannkuchen 1y ago

While true that some people do end up in that situation, I think the probability of the average hner ending up in that situation is basically zero. The people who are overrepresented in being harassed by police tend to be underrepresented in technology circles.

s5300 1y ago
[flagged]
rectang 1y ago
A lot of immigrants read HN, and immigrants are getting plenty harassed these days.
ljlolel 1y ago
My friend in tech went to federal prison for years (weed)
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
john01dav 1y ago
https://youtu.be/cuIRvn89988 https://youtu.be/cuIRvn89988
steelframe 1y ago
This guy just went to federal prison on a 25-year sentence: https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=Syonyk https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=Syonyk https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/prisons/resident-client-search/details/161762 https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/prisons/resident-client-s... Some of his blog posts in the past several months also highlight the dismal state of prison tech, which I suppose is on-point for this thread: https://www.sevarg.net/ https://www.sevarg.net/
- pfannkuchen 1y ago
  Yeah brb accidentally sexually assaulting a minor under 16, could happen to anyone.
  - nujabe 1y ago
    The only person who suggested that was yourself. > I think the probability of the average hner ending up in that situation is basically zero. You were proven incorrect. There’s no need to move goal posts, it’s not that serious, just accept it and move on.
    - pfannkuchen 1y ago
      You have reading comprehension difficulties. From the post I was replying to: “and it's a fallacy to imagine you'll never end up there if you don't ever do anything wrong” “IF YOU DON’T EVER DO ANYTHING WRONG” But you are right, interacting with this sort of person on the internet is probably a waste of my own time.
      - deleted 1y ago
        [deleted]
      - nujabe 1y ago
        I bet you think Ulbricht did something wrong too.
        stoltzmann 1y ago
        Well, he did facilitate drug trade. I wouldn't call that "not doing anything wrong". Whether you believe it's morally right or wrong, that doesn't matter - he did violate several high profile laws.
        potato3732842 1y ago
        Anyone thumbing their nose at the feds or sticking their dick in a 16yo knows what the risks are. Now, that's not to say I wouldn't welcome with open arms the "errors" of the legal system (or tax system, or municipal code enforcement, or pretty much anything else where government really screws people by messing up) being concentrated upon the demographics that make up places like HN. After all, the ignorance of said demographics do the bulk of the heavy lifting when it comes to providing the political will to perpetuate unjust systems, for they themselves rarely find themselves targeted by them and when they do they can usually pay the problem away. But I do agree with the person you're replying to, the demographics that make up HN find themselves subject to the kind of law enforcement scrutiny that puts you in prison less than the population average.
aspenmayer 1y ago
I was in a relationship, and they were cheating on me, but I did not know that at the time. They also were not sober, which I only found out after the fact. I went to their mom's place to get my things that were there and try to talk to her if possible, and the situation became untenable because of them being unreasonable. I decided to go, and wanted the cat to be in the house while I packed the car. I was a bit more concerned with this issue than might have been reasonable, but didn't use force or anything I can't explain. I needed to recover a legally owned firearm from the property, but didn't want to inflame the situation. I was just concerned for the cat. I told them I would call the authorities if they weren't going to try to resolve the situation without me doing so. I placed the cat inside the door and made a move to go back to our old shared room, as we both stayed with her mom occasionally. They flipped out and hit me with a ceramic dog bowl in the face, nearly knocking one of my teeth out. I was so confused. I knew they didn't want me there, but I wasn't seeking to stay. I wanted to get my things and go, and I wanted the cat to not have to be in a carrier in the heat, because that is cruel and not safe for the animal. I insisted that I call the authorities at this point, and they did too. The police arrested me, and charge stacked me with multiple felony charges. The case was dropped a year and a half later, mere days before my jury trial was set to begin. My public defender tried to get me to take their deal: 20 years suspended sentence, 10 years time served. I dodged a bullet. I made a bad call by dating this person, and I had no idea how bad it was until that day. I'm sure I was culpable by being there and allowing this to happen. I could have walked away. I didn't mean to be party to this situation, and I don't like violence or conflict, but it has been normalized in my life due to circumstances prior to the relationship, so I didn't see the warning signs beforehand. I am single now, and am working on myself. I have been given a second chance, and wish my ex well. I don't hold any ill will. It's just not worth it. I think that these cases are common, or at least ones like it are more common than you think. The authorities have to deal with the situation in front of them, and I don't think folks understand how charge stacking works, or the plea bargain system. I had to tell my lawyer to do their job because I wasn't taking a deal, and that is only because I know enough to know better. Most folks aren't as blameless as I was, and I know I wasn't entirely so, but I did know I didn't break the law in any way, even if I would have done things differently. This is not to say other folks don't deserve punishment, or leniency. I can only speak for myself. I made a mistake, but I didn't deserve to be a felon over it. I didn't even break the law, though I didn't handle the situation well at all. It was a learning experience, to be sure. Until you've had to try to bond out on felony charges, I think you should not assume how probable these things are. It could happen to anyone. Be good to each other.
rossant 1y ago
I'm a white guy working in science and tech, and I only avoided jail by sheer luck (believe it or not, one day my 4-month-old baby vomited at the nanny’s, and if it had happened a few hours earlier I would have been the one arrested by the police). Context: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37650402 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37650402 I know several HNers who went through the same situation. By my calculations, the risk is about 1 in 3,000 among young parents. tl;dr: I'll NEVER be alone with a baby under 12 months. Everyone I know who learns about this issue ends up thinking the same.