Most of us think that every criminal offense has a generic and specific punishment. But thanks to legal technicalities and creative judges, the sentences can be the most interesting aspect of a criminal case.
我们大多数人都认为每一种犯罪行为都有其通用或者具体的刑罚，但由于一些法律伎俩和某些具有创造性的法官, 一个判决可以成为刑事案件中最有趣的部分。
10.Up To Three Years In Jail--Shoplifting A Hot Dog
10.长达3年的监禁--偷窃一只热狗
In February 2014, Rickey Joe Moore was caught on a convenience store surveillance camera filling up a fountain drink, walking to the rotisserie, pulling out a hot dog frank, and stuffing it in his pocket. Moore paid for the drink then left the store. The camera picked up a clear shot of his face, as well as the license plate on his car parked outside.
2014年2月，里基·乔·摩尔被监控摄像头拍到他在一家便利店拿走一瓶饮料，走到烤箱拿出一只法兰克热狗，然后塞到他的口袋。摩尔付了饮料的钱，就走出了便利店。摄像头清楚地拍到他的脸，以及他停在外面的车的车牌号。
Moore was arrested on a felony theft charge, facing prison time of at least six months and up to three years. This may seem intense, but Indiana law clearly states that taking someone else's property with the intent to permanently prohibit the rightful owner's use is a felony. In other states, pocketing minor items such as this $1.49 hot dog would count as a misdemeanor at worst.Usually, felony theft charges are significantly lessened if the suspect is a first-time offender, but Moore did not fit this description. He had been arrested and jailed in 2012 on burglary charges (among the items stolen were a microwave oven and a filing cabinet). While being transported from the Corrections Facility to the County Jail, Moore had tried unsuccessfully to escape, so they threw him back in the slammer with Class D felony charges on top of his existing penalties.
摩尔因重度盗窃罪被捕，面临少则6个月，多则3年的监禁惩罚。这看似残酷，但是印第安纳州法律明确规定：拿走别人的所有物，意图永久地禁止合法拥有者的使用是一项重罪。而在其他州，拿走像1.49美元的热狗这样的小物件在最坏的情况下也只是会被判为轻罪。一般情况下，如果犯罪嫌疑人是初犯，盗窃重罪指控会酌情减轻，，但摩尔不符合这一描述。2012年他曾因入室盗窃罪名被捕入狱（其中被盗的物品是一台微波炉和文件柜）。而在从修正机构到县监狱的运送途中，摩尔曾试图逃跑，但以失败告终。所以他们在现有刑罚的基础上把莫尔带回在D级重罪指控上。
9.Take A Donkey For A Walk--Vandalism
9.带驴散步--破坏公物罪
In December 2002, Jessica Lange and Brian Patrick vandalized a nativity scene in front of St. Anthony's Catholic Church in Fairport Harbor, Ohio. The 19-year-olds had stabbed the statue of baby Jesus and scrawled "666" on its forehead. When the teenagers confessed to their crime in early 2003, they were ordered to replace the ruined statue—and lead a donkey through the snow-sodden streets of their city as punishment.
2002年12月，在俄亥俄州的费尔波特港，杰西卡·兰格和布莱恩·帕特里克毁坏了圣安东尼天主教堂的一座基督诞生雕像。这两个19岁的少年刺毁了婴儿时期耶稣的雕像,其额头上也被潦草地划了"666"。当这两个青少年在2003年初承认他们的罪行时,他们被勒令代替被毁的雕像赶着一头驴穿过这座城市被大雪覆盖的街道，以此作为惩罚。
According to judge Michael Cicconetti, this was much more about learning a lesson through public humiliation than it was about religious symbolism. And to clear up any confusion from onlookers, the donkey (provided by a local petting zoo) wore a sign saying "Sorry for the jackass offense." Cicconetti has become infamous for his unconventional sentences, making one man stand with a pig for hours, forcing another to ride a school bus, and sentencing a couple to pose in bathing suits at a fair while standing in a kiddie pool.
据法官Ciconnetti解释，这是通过公开羞辱而学习的一个教训，更甚于宗教象征。为了清除围观民众的困惑，驴身上（由当地动物园提供）带着一个标志写着"对不起，愚蠢的罪行"。Ciconnetti因其不按常规的判决而臭名昭著，例如让一个人和一头猪罚站数小时，迫使另一人驾驶一辆校车，以及判处一对夫妇在一个展会上穿着泳衣站在儿童游泳池旁。
8.Five Christmases Behind Bars--Fraud
8.5次在监狱中渡过圣诞节--诈骗罪
In 2013, Betina Young of Ohio was accused of selling fake ID cards and driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. She'd handed out 95 fraudulent IDs and pleaded guilty to five counts of tampering with records.
2013年，俄亥俄州的贝蒂娜·扬被指控销售假身份证和假驾照给非法移民。她上交了95个假身份证, 供认了5项篡改记录的罪名。
Normally, the punishment for such an offense is 15 years in prison, but Judge Michael Holbrook took a different route. Holbrook placed Young on probation, fined her $3,000, and ordered that she spend a minimum of three days in jail each year for five years, always over Christmas. This sentence, which has come to be known as the "Holbrook Holidays," is not new for the judge. He has issued some 40 similar sentences, always finding out the perpetrator's favorite holiday before sentencing. Holbrook ties the defense of his punishment system with the expense of prison in the state of Ohio, saying that it has been an "alternative and effective" form of punishment.
通常情况下，这类犯罪行为有15年监禁的惩罚，但法官迈克尔·霍尔布鲁克采取了不同的措施。他判处扬缓刑处分，处罚金3000美元，并勒令她每年至少3天要监禁在牢里,并且每次都得关到圣诞节过后,这个刑法一直持续5年。这个判决，已经被称为"霍尔布鲁克假期"，对这位法官来说这并不新鲜了。他曾发出约40例类似的判决，总是会在宣判前找出犯罪者最喜爱的假期。霍尔布鲁克牺牲了俄亥俄州的监狱,将这种处罚纳入他的惩罚系统。他说，这已成为"另类而有效"的惩罚形式。
7.Hair Cutting--Hair Cutting
7.剪发--剪发
In 2012, Kaytlen Lopan, 13, and an 11-year-old friend were eating at a Utah McDonald's when they encountered a curly haired three-year-old girl. Shortly after befriending the child, the older girls decided the next natural step would be to cut her hair. When attempts to procure a pair of scissors from McDonald's staff members were unsuccessful, the pair purchased some from the dollar store across the street. Upon their return to the fast food restaurant, they chopped the little girl's curly locks off to the level of her jawline. Before the incident, the hair had reached midway down her back.
2012年, 13岁的Kaytlen Lopan和她11岁的朋友在犹他州吃麦当劳时,她们遇到了一个3岁的卷发女孩。结交这个女孩不久后，两个大女孩决定下一个自然的步骤就是剪小女孩的头发。在试图向麦当劳员工索要剪刀失败后，两人从街对面的一元店买来剪刀。他们回到快餐店后将小女孩的头发剪到下巴的长度，而在这个事件之前，小女孩的头发长达腰部。
Mother Mindy Moss was outraged and pressed charges for assault. Both Lopan and her friend went before Judge Scott Johansen, who initially sentenced Lopan to 30 days in detention and 276 hours of community service. The judge then offered to cut Lopan's community service sentence by 150 hours if Lopan's mother, Valerie Bruno, cut her daughter's hair right there in the courtroom. She agreed. Lopan's friend was sentenced similarly, though she was permitted to have the job done at a salon.
小女孩的母亲明迪·莫斯被激怒了，她提出控告。Lopan和她的朋友被带到法官斯科特·约翰森面前，最初她们被判拘留30天以及276小时社区服务的处罚。之后，法官提出可以将Lopan的社区服务时间缩短到150小时，如果Lopan的母亲瓦莱丽·布朗在法庭上剪去她女儿的头发。她同意了。 Lopan的朋友同样有处罚，虽然她被允许在美容院工作。
6.Prison--Charging A Cell Phone
6.监禁--给手机充电
Darren Kersey, a homeless man in Sarasota, Florida, was charged with theft and thrown in jail when he used an outlet in a public picnic area to charge his phone. The officer who carried out the arrest, Anthony Frangioni, defended his actions by proclaiming, "The theft of city utilities will not be tolerated during this bad economy." Kersey had to spend the night before his trial in jail because he couldn't afford the $500 bail.
达伦·克西，佛罗里达州萨拉索塔一个无家可归的男子，被控盗窃罪后关进监狱，他在公共野餐区使用插座给他的手机充电。负责这项指控的官员Anthony Frangioni，解释了他的行为"在这个经济不景气的时候，城市公用设施不能容忍被盗窃"，在审判之前，克西只好借宿在监狱里，因为他付不起500美元的保释金。
Frangioni was right that public utility theft is a real problem. People have been apprehended for tampering with meters to take advantage of the system. However, the judge threw out the case the next day because the officer had no right to jail Kersey—Kersey had not been stealing utilities; he had simply been using public property, and that's not a crime. This verdict came as a relief to many of us who have undoubtedly done the same thing.
Frangioni 是正确的，公共设施盗窃的确是一个问题。人们能够理解篡改线路而利用这个系统。 然而，第二天，法官否决了这项决议，因为他们没有权利监禁克西——克西并没有偷窃公共设施，他只是使用了公共财产，这并不是犯罪。这个判决让我们很多人松了口气，因为无疑很多人也做了同样的事情。
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