[JustAnotherFan]

Just wanted to emphasize that all of those people were charged with felonies.  I'm not sure what you mean when you suggest that their situations differed from Jonathan's because they were "in the system".  I think the differentiation derives from the specific treatments available to those suffering purely emotional/ psychological afflictions vs. the possibility of directly treating the addiction.  The courts may be more comfortable (or accustomed) to the trade-off between prison and treatment when it relates to substance abuse.  Or not.  Maybe it is equally true of schitzophenia or other severe forms of psychological struggles.  I don't really know on that side of the issue.

There is a brobdingnagian difference between someone who is (1) arrested, indicted, prosecuted, and convicted, versus (2) DA seeks out an indictment for from the grand jury without an arrest. Every indication from your prior post suggests that all of the people you know were already caught up in the system and the prosecutors were willing to work something out for the defendant. That clearly was not the case with Martin. He was not arrested. The DA had a warrant issued without a prior arrest. This was most likely a political move, as the DA is a political office.

Prosecutors or defense attorneys are encouraged to jump in here.

[JustAnotherFan]

Just wanted to emphasize that all of those people were charged with felonies.  I'm not sure what you mean when you suggest that their situations differed from Jonathan's because they were "in the system".  I think the differentiation derives from the specific treatments available to those suffering purely emotional/ psychological afflictions vs. the possibility of directly treating the addiction.  The courts may be more comfortable (or accustomed) to the trade-off between prison and treatment when it relates to substance abuse.  Or not.  Maybe it is equally true of schitzophenia or other severe forms of psychological struggles.  I don't really know on that side of the issue.

There is a brobdingnagian difference between someone who is (1) arrested, indicted, prosecuted, and convicted, versus (2) DA seeks out an indictment for from the grand jury without an arrest. Every indication from your prior post suggests that all of the people you know were already caught up in the system and the prosecutors were willing to work something out for the defendant. That clearly was not the case with Martin. He was not arrested. The DA had a warrant issued without a prior arrest. This was most likely a political move, as the DA is a political office.

Prosecutors or defense attorneys are encouraged to jump in here.