After a judge decided that Martin Shkreli is a 'danger to society,' he has been jailed for posting a $5,000 bounty on a strand of Hillary Clinton's hair.
Let's compare this to other statements people made without being put in jail. Madonna once said that she wants to blow up the White House. Kathy Griffin held up a bloody severed Trump head in a photo. Neither of these two have been labeled as a 'danger to society.'
Don't forget about the many others who have called for the assassination of President Trump. None of those people are in jail, either.
Per Fox News:
A federal judge ordered “pharma bro” Martin Shkreli to prison Wednesday after the disgraced former CEO offered $5,000 to anyone who could bring him a strand of Hillary Clinton’s hair.
Shkreli had been out on a $5 million bond since being convicted last month of two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud.
Judge Kiyo Matsumoto declared Shkreli a “danger to society” and ordered him to jail. Shkreli left the courtroom flanked by U.S. Marshals, but was not in handcuffs.
In a letter to Judge Matsumoto Thursday, Shkreli apologized for what he called an “awkward attempt at humor or satire” and insisted he was not threatening Clinton.
Shkreli’s attorney, Ben Brafman, argued in court papers that Shkreli’s comments were merely a tasteless joke comparable to some of President Donald Trump’s derisive comments, not a threat worthy of putting him behind bars.
“Indeed, in the current political climate, dissent has unfortunately often taken the form of political satire, hyperbole, parody or sarcasm,” Brafman wrote. “There is a difference, however, between comments that are intended to threaten or harass and comments — albeit offensive ones — that are intended as political satire or strained humor.”
If you are wondering what got Shkreli in trouble, here is a screenshot of what he posted on Facebook. He said, "The Clinton Foundation is willing to KILL to protect its secrets. So on HRC’s book tour, try to grab a hair from her. I must confirm the sequences I have. Will pay $5,000 per hair obtained from Hillary Clinton. Payment after the sequence matches. Good luck, patrollers."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jv3hsy1H4UI
The Washington Post seems to think putting Shkreli in jail for this is fair.
For Martin Shkreli, the acts of ridiculing and trolling weren’t just a solitary hobby. They were a performance for the benefit of his small army of online fans, who loved watching their favorite Internet supervillain get away with it.
This time it cost him.
So I guess that decides it. Shkreli shouldn't have been joking around on Facebook. Since he was, he will now pay the price and spend some time in jail.
It seems very clear that he was joking. Don't tell that to the courts or Washington Post, though.
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