VC2 Top Contenders US | November 29, 2007 | Comment on this video (7)

Perversion of Justice

mummertville
In this poignant documentary, we meet Hamedah Hasan and her three daughters, a family caught in the web of our nation's federal sentencing guidelines and drug conspiracy laws. Hamedah fled from an abusive relationship and found refuge at the home of her cousin, who was selling drugs. When her cousin was arrested, prosecutors also charged Hamedah as a conspirator in the drug-selling operation. What happened next shocked Hamedah, bewildered her attorneys and outraged even the Bush-appointed federal judge who sentenced her, calling this the "most unfair, grotesque perversion of justice that I can think of."
  1. groups:
    VC2 Top Contenders US,   A Chance at Slamdance (2008)
  2. tags:
    VC2 Top Contenders US,  Family,  War on Drugs,  A Chance at Slamdance (2008),  1 more
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7 comments // Perversion of Justice // Video

  • bbpierre
    • 0
      bbpierre  

    • I feel badly for the children that are caught in this. I see and feel their suffering. I just don't feel badly for their mother. You can't diminish her role in a drug operation. By her own words, she knew what was going on, but she didn't "concern" herself with it. She can't say that she "just made wire transfers." That's important. Let's not diminish that. She may have been a low man on the totem pole, but her wire transfers enabled a drug operation to function. She made a bad judgement in being willfully blind to what she did and what was going on around her. She made bad judgements.

      The "biggest injustice" is taking parents away from children? Seriously, it was safer to be around drug dealers (that could be attacked or raided)? There are shelters and resources for battered and abused women.

      So often drug dealers use kids to do their dirty work because they get lesser sentences, but the guidelines are structured to DETER adult people from involving themselves in the drug trade-- no matter what peripheral role they have. I'm sorry that this woman's children will have to be without their mother and I'm sorry her family has to deal with the collateral issues of her incarceration. I just think, unfortunately, this clearly intelligent, Black woman made some bad choices and we can't totally place the blame on an unjust court system.

    • 2 years ago
  • loraxinla
    • 0
      loraxinla  

    • This should be required viewing for everyone who believes that we have a good system of justice in this country. I think we HAVE to trust that the punishment fits the crime and that there are no innocent people in prison for our society to function, but yet, I hope I never get charged with a crime. Clearly being innocent isn't enough. I have to wonder if Hamedah was a wealthy white woman, if her story wouldn't have a different ending . . .

    • 4 years ago
  • sfrtpro
  • HenryG
  • bstein
  • saskia
  • sarahbelle
    • 0
      sarahbelle  

    • Such an amazing story, the collateral damage of the so called "war on drugs" is an abomination. Changes have to be made to the system.

      The access that you have is amazing. Thank you so much for bringing this to the Current community

    • 4 years ago
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