Hallucinator,
I'd agree, except that I think there would be pressure to plea-bargain down the time to be served to avoid "overcrowding" the jails.
When something like this happens, the DA typically will charge burglary, false imprisonment, assault and any other crime he think can stick. Once arrested, the bargaining begins and what started out as a potential 50-year term ends up being 18 months with 6-months suspended.
The problem lies primarily with the courts and legal system. I don't get the "logic" of the system when in one case you have 2 prior felonies and shoplift from a department store, the DA prosecutes it as "burglary" to get the 3rd strike instead of a misdemeanor theft.
Yet, in another case a dirtbag breaks into an occupied home, sneaks up and starts to fondle a 12 year old girl who screams, fights and escapes with some lacerations and when the guy is caught, he gets only 9 months in jail with 5 months suspended to cover his 3 week incarceration before trial. Then instead of 4 months in the slam, he's in jail only 2 weeks before being "paroled" into the public.
The country's all messed up if the good guys are afraid of the criminals.
That people fear criminals is nothing new. That's been happening throughout history. But throughout most of history, when a criminal was killed during his crime it was basically considered an
occupational-hazard. Unfortunately today, in some jurisdictions, I think
people may be equally afraid of the legal system as they are of the criminals.