September 18, 2011Dear Sir,I read with dismay the five-year sentence passed down on a recent case where a man was convicted of drug dealing, but acquitted on a weapons charge. I write not to argue the merits of the case, but merely to show my surprise regarding the length of the sentence itself.In this instance we have a man, alleged to be a known gang leader, convicted of possessing drugs and all he gets is a mere five years handed down by the Supreme Court. In reality this means that in all probability he will back on the streets in 18 months or so. Before anyone says: “Oh well, that was the maximum sentence that could have been handed down”, well let's change the statute — surely we have enough lawyers and politicians on the Island to be able to do this.What sort of deterrent is such a short sentence? It's no use the Judge urging the man in question to speak to other gang members to “end the nonsense that has been happening in this country” — in reality he will be meeting with his cohorts in prison plotting the next gang strategy. This is yet another example of what Bermuda has done so well “Sparing the rod to spoil the child” — see where it has got you. Well done, you reap what you sow.AMAZED AND DISMAYEDPaget