Sen. Orrin Hatch’s latest bizarre foray into the music industry appears to have landed him a capable recording partner in John Forté, a former member of the Fugees and a record producer convicted seven years ago for his 2000 possession of $1.4 million worth of liquid cocaine with intent to distribute.
Forté’s drug dealing intentions were apparently so much nobler than drug use that Hatch urged President George W. Bush to commute his 14-year sentence8212;the rapper will be released Dec. 22.
If Forté had intended to actually use the cocaine instead of sell it, Hatch might not have supported him.
“He was no risk to society because he was not a drug user,” Hatch told reporters. Our senator has something seriously backward. Drug dealers are more of a threat to society as a whole than drug users are.
I agree with Hatch that minimum sentences for drug charges are counterproductive, as they remove a judge’s discretion in sentencing for different scenarios. The law should be changed to let judges decide if one drug possession is less serious than another, and sentence criminals accordingly, but until the law changes, it is wrong for a senator or anyone with the power to influence the U.S. president to pardon or commute criminals based on their talents.
Hatch defends his position regarding Forté with his opinion that Forté was not using drugs and was therefore not a threat8212;which seems irrelevant8212;and with the idea that Forté’s musical abilities merit his release from prison. Hatch noted that Forté is a genius8212;by that logic, judges should sentence prison terms based on criminals’ IQs or artistic abilities. Either way, a powerful Utah senator has convinced the president that somebody is above the law because of a great and well-paid talent.
The attitude a lot of millionaire musicians and athletes have8212;that they can get away with serious crimes8212;has been sustained by those in power, including Hatch and Bush. If Hatch felt Forté deserved release based on excellent character and unlikelihood of getting involved with drugs again, he should start mentioning that as opposed to citing the musician’s great talent and intelligence. You can be talented and intelligent and still be a repeat offender. And if it is not just talent that got Forté out of half his sentence, it was fame8212;which the vast majority of convicts do not have the benefit of8212;that drew the senator’s attention to his case, and thus Forté has been placed unfairly above the law.
Lawmakers such as Hatch should write better laws if they feel, as I do, that one-size-fits-all sentencing is wrong, instead of hand-selecting Grammy winners to pardon.
It would seem a stretch to accuse Hatch of using his authority to get ahead with his career, but there is little doubt he did gain an advantage in his musical side career. Hatch is a somewhat accomplished songwriter and musician, and he has spoken seriously with Forté, still in prison, about working on music together.
“Senator Hatch is a superhero of a mentor to me,” Forté said to reporters. “I am looking forward to putting our creative minds together in the studio, sooner rather than later.”
Forté owes the next seven years of freedom to Hatch, so the senator is his hero and rescuer. He will probably bring most of the talent to their studio sessions, which is only fair, since Hatch gave him a get-out-of-jail free card.
Logan Campbell